whats the likely cause of this leak ?

RobAMerc · 21-11-2019 10:58am #1

and who do I need to call?

I have a leak somewhere coming into a room below my bathroom
I think its more noticeable when there is rain - but there seems to be a constant drip of water and I dont think its rained much the last few days ( till today )

So pic named roof give the plan of the toilet upstairs and explains the 4 other pics attached.

So, whats the likely culprit ?

Toilet ? I have looked behind the toilet where its joined and it is dry on top
Shower ? A bit far away and dry from there to leak
Rad connections ( they are in the wall behind panelling ) - I've turned off the rad -no change but this stared happening around the time we turned the heating on.

Or the flat roof where it connects to the house ?

Pic 3 shows dry in direction of shower.

Can someone help ?

Up Donegal · 21-11-2019 11:29am

It looks like the water is coming off the flat roof.

listermint · 21-11-2019 12:03pm

Plans good.

Pictures aren't. It's hard to decipher what I'm looking at.

Have you checked the transition of the roof to the outside render ?

RobAMerc · 21-11-2019 10:37pm

thanks folks

pics are messed up on upload.

I've re-uploaded them

The transition looks good to me - but what should I be looking out for.

They cut a ridge in the external plaster about 5 inches above the flat roof and the fiberglass comes up that with new render and a plastic edging down over it.

I dont have pics of the external - but it seems unlikely to be there ( I think )

listermint · 23-11-2019 6:27am

Where in the original plan is the leak.

Photos indicate it's coming from above the flooring level.

RobAMerc · 23-11-2019 9:31am

listermint wrote: »

Where in the original plan is the leak.

Photos indicate it's coming from above the flooring level.

I am not sure what you mean but where it says pic 1 is the most wet and has a drip from it. I presume its around there where most of the water is collecting.

Agreed - its from above the floor level, leaving the toilet waste, rad pipes or roof.

Could it be the pitched roof and the water running down inside the brickwork of the outside wall by any chance ? The wall with pic 1 and pic 2 is external upstairs wall.

listermint · 23-11-2019 10:12am

My two areas of concern would be the waste or the radiator.

Also a very common issue often overlooked is the cistern 'sweating' that is moisture from showers condensing on the cold cistern tank and collecting in bottom of toilet dropping to floor and going into gaps in the floor. Then when room dries the condensation disappears.

Fix for this is to line the inside of the cistern with insulation material such as that used in a yoga mat.

I have this issue on one of my bathrooms. A problem with a warm insulated house but an ultra cold cistern.

RobAMerc · 28-11-2019 4:17pm

So, having cut a hole in the ceiling below the flat roof, I can say its not coming from inside for sure as the deck of the flat roof is wet where the wall meets the roof.

This points towards the transition, however this to me looks fairly good, its only 4 years old but was a bit mucky from moss - I cleaned it and looking at where the plaster comes down over the "filet" and flashing, it looks good.

But : The outside wall above the area that is leaking is absolutely soaked from about 15cm below the guttering to the bottom, about 2 meters across.

Coincidentally the gutter at that point was full of moss too.

Could it be that the gutter or something overflowed to the point where it soaked the wall in this spot and what I have now is that water seeping through the wall and into the room below ?

If this is the case, wouldnt it have dried out a bit by now ? how would I ever know ? It is likely to take months for that wall to dry out no ?

listermint · 28-11-2019 4:33pm

RobAMerc wrote: »

So, having cut a hole in the ceiling below the flat roof, I can say its not coming from inside for sure as the deck of the flat roof is wet where the wall meets the roof.

This points towards the transition, however this to me looks fairly good, its only 4 years old but was a bit mucky from moss - I cleaned it and looking at where the plaster comes down over the "filet" and flashing, it looks good.

But : The outside wall above the area that is leaking is absolutely soaked from about 15cm below the guttering to the bottom, about 2 meters across.

Coincidentally the gutter at that point was full of moss too.

Could it be that the gutter or something overflowed to the point where it soaked the wall in this spot and what I have now is that water seeping through the wall and into the room below ?

If this is the case, wouldnt it have dried out a bit by now ? how would I ever know ? It is likely to take months for that wall to dry out no ?

If the gutter is full it will pour water back onto the wall behind it everytime it rains. If the gutter is high enough it can go behind the render .

RobAMerc · 07-12-2019 7:56pm

2 builders 2 roofers and a plumber later and we still have not found the cause.
The only thing I can see is that the wall externally behind the radiator is soaked and actually seems to be oozing water out onto the flat roof and it is soaked inside it way about where the transition of the flat roof is.

The one thing I can point to is the feed pipe from the water tank in the attic goes down through this wall - so I can only think that this is leaking inside the wall - otherwise I am totally stumped !

Does this sound feasible ?

listermint · 08-12-2019 3:45pm

RobAMerc wrote: »

2 builders 2 roofers and a plumber later and we still have not found the cause.
The only thing I can see is that the wall externally behind the radiator is soaked and actually seems to be oozing water out onto the flat roof and it is soaked inside it way about where the transition of the flat roof is.

The one thing I can point to is the feed pipe from the water tank in the attic goes down through this wall - so I can only think that this is leaking inside the wall - otherwise I am totally stumped !

Does this sound feasible ?

Drill a hole and put in a scope

RobAMerc · 09-12-2019 10:41pm

so this has GOT to be the reason - my neighbour says its been like that for a few weeks - she thought when she say me up there so much I was sorting it.

it has to be this no ?

listermint · 10-12-2019 6:49am

It's a problem yes but I wouldn't have thought it's your problem yours appears to be isolated to the middle of a room not the corner no ?

RobAMerc · 10-12-2019 11:43pm

agreed that the external back wall about 600mm from the edge in view is where the wall looks wet, however internally the water is right the way from this side to the centre of the house - but on the ground floor ceiling !

My thinking is the water is somehow coming through this gap, finding its way across the wall about 600mm and heading down the wall to the ceiling just below the transition from old to new.

Again, I know it sounds like its the transition is the issue, but the wall is soaked internally well above the transition.

whizbang · 13-12-2019 1:51am

coincidence that plasterboards from that era were about 600mm wide ?

Have you a mains waterpipe running up inside that wall?

whats the likely cause of this leak ?

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