Leaky Roof - Ventilation Hole

Kintarō Hattori

Hi Folks,

I'm wondering if you can help me with some information. The good lady and myself bought a house in 2011. We noticed a stain on the ceiling outside the toilet. We figured we must have had a hole in the roof somewhere but after speaking to our neighbour she has the same issue and puts it down to the ventilation spot in the attic. Our houses are timber framed.

On our row of houses we have what look like two air vents on the roof which are brown looking in colour. We had a look in the attic and cut into the roofing is a circular hole, just below where one of the vents is. The insulation below this is wet and causing a stain on the ceiling below.

We bought it in 2011, though it was built and standing before that date. As the house is still under guarantee is there someone we can talk too or is it something we need to sort out ourselves?

Most of the houses on the estate were bought under the affordable housing scheme though we bought ours privately from the council. I don't know if that makes any difference.

I've attached two terrible illustrations which might help to give you an idea of what I'm talking about. Many thanks for any and all replies.

con1982

Hi

Your attic is vented to limit the buildup of dampness. it sounds to me like the vent was install incorrectly.

Did you get a survey or condition report when you bought the house?

In my experience, the homeowner has to sort out the problem. Insurance might cover it, but it may be cheaper in the long run to just get a small builder to remediate.

I wouldnt ignore this issue as timber decay may develop in the ceiling joists or rafters.

Kintarō Hattori

Hi Con,

Many thanks. We did indeed get an engineer to give the house a once over, I'm not sure how he could have missed it.

Do you have any idea, roughly, what it may cost to fix?