Finding the source of a water leak in your Sanibel home
Finding the source of a water leak in your Sanibel home can be a monumental challenge.
Here in Sanibel Florida we have a sub tropical weather pattern. That means every year we have several months of torrential rains driven by high winds. During this rainy season we experience daily thunder storms. These wind driven rain storms create extreme conditions that may cause water intrusions into your Sanibel home that are unique to this area.
There are several problem areas that are common to a typical concrete block construction home with a hip roof here in Sanibel Florida.
The Sanibel Roof: Asphalt shingle roofing is held in place with roofing nails and adheres to the neighboring shingle with asphalt sealant. This sealant degrades over time with the intense sun and heat of Sanibel Florida. Hip roofs, though designed to resist lift in a hurricane situation, create more outside corners on the roof. These outside corners must be capped with cut shingles. This is a weak spot for water penetration. The high winds of a storm can lift a shingle and driving rain penetrates under the shingle to the roof sheathing below. Once water has penetrated to the plywood roof deck it may drip straight down or travel along a roof truss until an obstacle stops the flow and a drip occurs there. The drip penetrates the insulation in your Sanibel attic space and shows up a spot on your drywall ceiling. If the paper on the drywall or the paper backing on your insulation stays wet more than a few days mold growth can begin. The same process can occur with tile roofing but tiled roofs are more water penetration resistant.
Sanibel Roof Soffits and flashing: Extreme horizontal winds can drive rain through the roof soffits and into the attic space. Once into the Sanibel attic space water will wet insulation and the drywall that is your interior ceiling. Similarly lifting of the bottom course of shingles past the flashing will expose the roof sheathing to wetting.
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Sanibel Stucco Cracks: The stucco finish on a concrete block home will crack over time and with the settling of a Sanibel home on its slab or foundation. Wind driven rain will penetrate stucco cracks and wet the structural materials underneath. In extreme situations moisture will penetrate to the drywall walls and wood trim materials inside the Sanibel home.
Sanibel Windows and Door Leaks: Exterior doors and windows are installed into a wood “Buck” opening. Then they are sealed with silicone or other water resistant sealants. If the sealants are improperly applied or crack over time water will penetrate when driven by high winds. Sealants and caulking should be checked and reapplied when necessary.
Stucco cracks around windows and doors will break the seal and allow water to penetrate. Once water penetrates it can affect the interior materials such as wood and drywall. Stucco cracks can be repaired with hydraulic cement.
Sanibel Roof and wall penetrations: Various penetrations are necessary in your home.
- Roof penetrations for bathroom vents and vent fans.
- Wall penetrations for plumbing and electricity.
They are typically flashed and sealed with a boot or a sealant. Sun and heat crack these sealants and a homeowner should check for cracking once a year before rainy season.
When a Sanibel home owner finds a water stain on the ceiling or a discoloration on the corner of a window how can you find the cause. It could be a roof penetration or a flashing problem or even a stucco crack. A good Sanibel water damage restoration company will have an Infra Red camera, a qualified IR camera operator and state of the art meters to track the leak to its source. The infra Red camera creates an image that sees temperature differences. The principle being that a building material such as drywall or stucco will be slightly cooler when it is wet compared to the same material when it is dry. The Infra red camera sees this temperature difference as a color. Hot materials will show red or white. Cold materials will show blue or black. But…Infra red cameras can be fooled by metal objects or wiring which can be normally cooler or warmer than the surrounding materials. So moisture meters are used to confirm or disprove the findings of the Infra red camera.
The best Sanibel water damage restoration companies will have an experienced Infra red camera operator who will be able to track a water leak to its source and recommend the repair to remediate the problem. The better Sanibel water damage restoration company will also be a licensed Florida Contractor who will repair any damages caused by the Sanibel water intrusion. The very best Sanibel water damage restoration company will provide a free estimate and guarantee their work.
