In the picture below you will see a failed scupper. The reason this scupper failed was due to the roofer not tearing out the old roofing  from inside and around the scupper, before applying the new roofing material. Common practice for overlaying an old roof with a new roof is to what they call “divorce” the old roofing from around scuppers, pipes and other penetrations. The reason they do this is because these are weak areas and are often the source for leaks.    

Failed Scupper

As you can see where the arrows are pointing are places the old mastic has dried out and seperated from the scupper. Had all of that old material been removed prior to the new roof installation this would have never happened.

Ok now that we can see where our leak is, how do I fix it? Go get a couple tubes of urethane caulking and a caulking gun apply the caulking in all the cracks and tool it with a piece of cardboard or putty knife. You can then apply some elastomeric roof coating over the top of  that And the repair is finished.

Repaired Scupper

This kind of fix is easy to do yourself. This type of repair is considered a permenent fix. However if your roof is under warranty call your roofing contractor and have him tear out the old material and redo it. If this happened at one scupper chances are all of the scuppers are the same way and need to be corrected.

Below is a picture of the damage this leaking scupper caused.

celing cave in

If after reading this and you still not sure of the source of your leak try to find a roofing contractor that also offers window service. This way you will be able to get it fixed, and not have to pay some roofer who can’t fix it  a service call fee.

Identifiying a window leak:

If you develop a leak around a window.

 Is the water coming from the top of the window frame (usually the corners) or is it coming from the celing above the window frame.

If the water is coming from the cornners of the window frame then it is more likely a window leak and not a roof leak.

If the water is coming in from the celing above the window it’s probably a roof leak.

Some common causes of window leaks are due to

1. improper window mositure barrier (most likely not this).

2. Dry rotted, cracked seals. (most likely)

3. Plugged window weeps (depends on window type).

4. Cracked stucco.

5. Defective windows or window installation ( this is being seen more and more).

Below is a picture of defective window glass. If your home or property has windows that look similer to the pictures below and your home is less than 10 years old then you may have a constuction defect lawsuit, and may be entitled to compensation.

Defective window seal

The above picture shows defective window glass. The problem here is an inproper seal in between the two panes of glass.

If your windows look like this you may be entitled to compensation.

1. Caulking gun.

2. Urethane Caulking.

3. Polyester fabric (ty-tex tape)

4. Elastomeric roof coating and paint brush.

The first step is to clean the area of repair and apply the urethane caulking.

Parapet wall split

Step 2. Apply a heavy coat of elastomeric roof coating to repair area.

Apply elastomeric roof coating

Step 3. Lay the polyester fabric across the repair area make sure the fabric runs past the repair area at least 2 inches on all sides.

Polyester fabric

step 4. Apply 1 more coat of elastomeric roof coating on top of the polyester fabric and brush or roll the coating in.

Apply one more coat of elastomeric coating

Now the repair is finished this is what it should look like.

Finished wall repair

Doing this kind of repair yourself can save you alot of money. The leak was obvious and now you can do it yourself. A leak like this can end up in hundreds if not thousands of dollars in damages. Regular roof  inspections can and often find these kinds of problems before they cause any damage from water intrusion.

Normally blisters are not that big of an issue to be concerned with. Unless you have alot of them , They are unusually big  or they are broken. If the blisters are broken then prompt attention is needed to fix them because they can be a source for leaks. It should also be noted that blisters bigger than a baseball should be fixed by a roofing contractor who does foam roofing.

Blisters are fixed as a part of a routine roof re-coat.

In this first picture it identifys a golf ball size blister.

Step 1.

Cut the blister out using a razor knife (bread knifes work the best).

This is a golfball sized blister

Step 2.

Fill the hole with a polyurethane caulking. DO NOT use any other kind of caulking your repair will fail.

Use polyurethane caulking to fill the repair area.

Step 3.

Tool the caulking with a piece of cardboard or putty knife. Make sure you tool the caulking past all of the edges.

Tool the caulking

Step 4.

Coat the repaired area with an elastomeric roof coating. This is a permanent repair.

This is the same process a roofing contractor will use to fix blisters that are baseball sized or smaller and less than a 1/2 inch deep.

Below is a picture of a blister that you should not attempt to fix. If you have one that is broke and might be leaking you can caulk it then have it repaired later.

Volleyball size foam roof blister

1. Keeping trees cut back from the roof.

2. Place rubber snakes or plastic owls in the areas that are being effected. 

In this tutorial I’m going to show you step by step how to fix this type of damage.

Things you will need:

1. Polyurethane caulking, DO NOT use any other kind of caulking they will not work (especially silicone) it will popout of the hole like a plug due to expanding and contracting. 

2. A piece of cardboard or something similar to tool the caulking with.

3. elastomeric roof coating, disposable paintbrush and gloves

4. caulking gun.

This is what tey call bird and bee damage

 Step 1.

Clean off the oxidized foam with a fingernail or brush.

Step 2.

Fill up hole with caulking.

Fill With polyurethane caulking

Step 3.

Tool the caulking with cardboard or putty knife, apply a little pressure to make sure the caulking is down in the hole.

Apply a little pressure to ensure the hole is filled

Step 4.

Apply a generous coat of elastomeric roof coating over the urethane caulking. This is very important with out this coating the suns uv rays will destroy the caulking and your repair will fail.

The finished repair

In this first picture it shows a caulked skylight lens. This is not recommended. Over time the caulking fails and the skylight will leak again

Caulked Skylight Lens

In this picture it shows the reason why the sky light was leaking in the first place. If you look the “weep” (this is where the water comes out of the skylight). Has been caulked and foamed shut, blocking the waters exit. The water traped inside can only fill the trough and leak inside of the house.

This is the inside of the skylight

The operating function is as follows. Water runs in between the lens and the metal frame (see picture 1). Fills up in the trough. The water travels to the cornners and then out through the weep on the side. This skylight is ruined and needs to be replaced. At a price around $150-$200 or more depending on who does it!

Basic operation of a skylight

If you develop a leak in your skylight don’t panic most of the time it’s not as bad as it may seem. There are only a few things that can go wrong.  Here is a quick tutorial on how to fix these problems.

 Never caulk the lens! This is a bad idea and in time will leak again. Also you will be able to see the caulking from inside, this looks very bad. And you will end up having to replacing the sky light.

Common causes for skylight leaks

1. Plugged up weep. The weep is the area where the water runs out of the skylight and on to the roof . These become clogged due to blowing dust, roof debris and the accumulation of dirt washing down into the lens and plugging up the water trough inside of the skylight.

Solution: remove the screws that hold the top metal frame down onto the lens. Remove the lens (careful not to rip the rubber seals) Check to see if the water trough has any dirt or other debris impeading the flow of the water out of the skylight. If so clean it out and then carefully reassemble the skylight. Run water over the skylight lens and check for leaks.

2. Broken, Cracked  rubber seals. (see above for lens removal) Check to make sure all the seals are in place not broken or cracked. If seals are worn broken or cracked go to your local hardware store and ask if they carry new ones. The rubber seals are what prevents water from running back past the water trough and into the house.

3. Cracked or broken lens. Skylights typically have two lenses and is unlikley. You can spot cracks or failed lens typically there will be moisture trapped between the two lenses and you can visually see this. If this is the case remove the lens and check your local hardware store for a replacement. Availability depends on skylight size and the age of the skylight.

Typically when you have a leaking skylight you will notice that it is leaking at one of the four cornners of the skylight. If you have checked everything above and all looks good then it may not be the skylight at all, and may be the roofing around the skylight. If this seems to be the case check around the skylight for obvious things holes,cracks,roof splits and such. If you can’t find any thing wrong cover the skylight with plastic weigh the plastic down on the roof with bricks or something heavy on all sides to avoid more drywall damage and call your roofing contractor.

Replacing your curb mount skylight.

If you want to save yourself a few hundred bucks you can replace the skylight yourself.

Curb Mount Skylight

To remove the skylight remove the screws or nails from the bottom of the skylight on all four sides (the amount of nails depends on the size of the skylight). Once all nails/screws have been removed. Grab the skylight by the sides and pull straight up on it. If the skylight is stuck work it free from all sides. Careful not to damage the drywall inside. Once the skylight has been removed take it to your local hardware store and get a replacement (depending on the size).

Skylight Re-installation

Once you have your new skylight set it down over the curb apply pressure to the top and re-nail/screw it. Use one nail on opposite sides to hold it in place then re-nail the rest and you are finished.

Note

The roofing is wrapped around the curb and the skylight fits around the curb so the roofing should not be affected.

Important

This removal precedure is for curb mount skylights only pictured above. Self-flashing skylight (pictured below ) removal is a whole different proccess and should only be done by a qualifed roofer . However the leak detection and lens removal are the same.

Self-flashing Skylight

1. Asphalt Roof Cement  or commonly known as “Wet patch , mastic”

2. reinforcment  webbing

3. Trowel

4. Gloves

Doing a basic wall repair like this can save you a lot of money, and is very easy to do.

This is a standard method of repair and can be used on built-up or SBS modified bitumen systems.  

Step 1:

Make sure the area is clean from dirt and other debris. If necessary scrape old roofing material off.

Split roofing

Step 2:

Apply a thin layer of wet patch to the area to be repaired approxamately 1/8 thickness  (make sure to apply wet patch at least 2 to 3 inches wide around the entire area of repair).

Apply wet patch

Step 3:

Place the reinforcement webbing. Center the webbing with the split.

Apply reinforcement webbing

Step 4:

Apply another thin layer of wet patch on top of the  reinforcement webbing.

Thin layer of wet patch

The final repair should look like this. You can apply some roof coating over the top if you wish, but its not nessecery.

Finished repair

The above pictures are for illustration purposes for a typical 3 course repair only. This type of repair is used on built-up or SBS modified bitumen systems. Or also known as “rolled roofing”.