# Whats causing rain to go back up into the soffits



## shazapple (Jun 30, 2011)

Need overall pictures of the roof and close ups of anything above the area you are having a problem. If you have attic access pictures from there would help as well. 

It looks like a lot of water is being directed to that area from an upper roof. It must be getting in the attic somehow and making it's way down the trusses.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

let me know if these help, just happened to have had them already


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## John @ OHFS (Jun 26, 2012)

It may just be from the overwhelming volume and the surface tension of the water causing it to essentially be "sucked" up into the soffits. You may be able to remedy this by adding a supplemental drip edge to break the water tension...


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

I am just wondering if something wasnt put together right though... I can uderstand that you may get a little leak due to the 10 inches of rain we got in one day!!!!, but it literally flooded the corner of my living floor with water... thats definitely not right...


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## tinner666 (Mar 14, 2005)

If the shingle were an inch to 1-1/4" past the drip ege, it wouldn't be wicking back in there. That's flush and capilary action is intensified.
Good old Florida Code in action.


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## John @ OHFS (Jun 26, 2012)

Determining whether or not it was put together right is hard to do from the photos provided. It may require a physical inspection, at least as far as I can tell anyway. I don't see any red flags other than the soaking wet soffit!!


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

John @ OHFS said:


> I don't see any red flags other than the soaking wet soffit!!


yep, same Red Flag I saw 

Ive scheduled some inspections... but the soonest they can come out is 2 weeks away...
I just wanted to get some more opinions

It will also help out a lot when they are talking to me about the issue if I know a bit more myself, I havent had a ton of experience with roofing... until now


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

Where's the step flashing?

It looks like 3 tab just gooped to 90 degree flashing stock to me.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

kwikfishron said:


> Where's the step flashing?
> 
> It looks like 3 tab just gooped to 90 degree flashing stock to me.


good question, could it be under the stucco?

Im not sure if that would be the problem though, since there is an over hang above it, not much water flows along that edge...

thanx for pointing it out


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

My first thought was the water was wicking back as tinner mentioned and that’s probably the case but I’d still take a peek in the attic to make sure all is dry. 

Your roof to wall flashing looks wrong to me, or maybe I’m just seeing things.

Why don’t you have gutters? Properly installed gutters would eleminate the water wicking back.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

no gutters came with the house, I just bought it 6 months ago... it was built in 2000...
other side of the wall is a room, no attic, I would have to cut a hole in the wall to look around...
was thinking of removing the soffits to look around and see if I see anything, but then again I wouldnt really have an idea what to look for...


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## danpik (Sep 11, 2011)

Realy kind of hard to see in those pics but, does your drip edge have a small overhang like in this picture?...









I would also suspect capilary action drawing the water back under the overhang too. The little kickout on the dripedge looks almost flat in some sections. That could be bent out a little to "kick" the water away.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Hard to say but I will go with what tinner and kwikfish said.

Step flashing (roof to wall intersection in general as the kick out looks a bit hard too) and capillary action.


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## wkearney99 (Apr 8, 2009)

There has to be some sort of drip edge. If not then have one added. The idea is the surface tension of the water can allow it to wick back under the edge and down onto the fascia. How did the room flood? From the water getting in from above? Or from it puddling on the ground below? Sounds like you need rain gutters added either way. Control the water, get it away from the house.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

My money goes on the shingles being laid with no overhang.

I see this all the time on store bought sheds, they never have an over hang so they do not blow off going down the road, the bottom edges alway rot out after a few years.
Also lift the top layer of shingles to make sure they used a starter cource of shingles. (first row gets one tab cut off and is installed upside down so the tabs on the first row do not leave bare wood exposed)


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

danpik said:


> Realy kind of hard to see in those pics but, does your drip edge have a small overhang like in this picture?...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


they definitely dont have an over hang like the one you attached, which I thought was odd as well


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

wkearney99 said:


> How did the room flood? From the water getting in from above? Or from it puddling on the ground below?


I can see wet spots where the ceiling and wall met going down about a foot or so... then its all dry from there...

until the floor, but even the wall a few inches above the floor is dry...


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## wkearney99 (Apr 8, 2009)

I second the question about the shingle overhang. There has to be enough angle and length to allow gravity to overcome surface tension and allow the water to fall. Perhaps new edge and some gutters is the best course of action.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

wkearney99 said:


> I second the question about the shingle overhang. There has to be enough angle and length to allow gravity to overcome surface tension and allow the water to fall. Perhaps new edge and some gutters is the best course of action.


Thanx, that what Ive been gathering so far...
seems like I have a fairly simply fix, probably just get a new drip edge it...

now I just need to figure out how much water damage I have...

think Im going to try and pull up my floors tonight with minimal damage so I can reuse them....

thanx again for every ones advice
-Danny


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## wkearney99 (Apr 8, 2009)

Get a fan in there and start blowing a lot of fresh air around the space. Moisture is the enemy here, and mold isn't far behind it. Consider that your homeowners policy may cover calling in the professionals (like ServePro) to deal with this. Yes, it'd be messy but cracking open the drywall to air it out may be the best plan. Better to have to deal with some drywall and paint work now, versus health issues from mold AND the same drywall and paint work later.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Remove the base boards and make a cut just below where the base boards were sitting and remove all that sheetrock asap.
Start running a dehumidifier ASAP. 
That about all Servpro or any other damage control companys going to do and be far cheaper.


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## shazapple (Jun 30, 2011)

I'm going to disagree with everyone here. I can't as much water as indicated making it's way inside from the drip edge or from the wall. If you look closely you can see that there isn't much water at the wall, and there is a sheet of water coming out the lower piece of metal under the drip edge, which says to me it is getting in from under the shingles. 

If you could get a picture of that upper valley, that would be great. I'm guessing A) there is an issue at the bottom of the valley or B) the valley is closed cut, but the cut was done on the lower roof instead of the upper.

Edit: another point, oveerhang is typically created by extending the top chord of the truss, meaning the drip edge would be lower than the ceiling height. The soffit was most likely built after the wall below was sheathed. Not to way water isn't getting in at the drip edge and possibly rotting out the fascia, but it wouldn't be going anywhere near the interior.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

thanx for all the advise...
we dont have any more rain headed are way at the moment, and I should have two roof companies coming by in the next week hopefully to look it over...

now I need to figure out what to do about my laminate flooring, which I will post in the proper section


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## Kpaul (Jun 23, 2012)

Also check to see if the sofit is level, if it's low at the house, that can cause the water to wick back to the house, seen it happen before, always keep the facia metal a little low so that don't happen.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

got up on the ladder today, Soffit looked pretty level...
I attached a few more pics to see if the extra detail helps out at all
thanx
danny


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## tinner666 (Mar 14, 2005)

Yep. DE catching the water. The shingles change angle in the last inch because the DE is sitting level. 
Further investigation will probably show it's nailed on top of the fascia. Idiot carpenters nowadays think they're saving something by stopping the sheathing somewhere behind the fascia. It's supposed to run 1/2" to 3/4" over the fascia.


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## tinner666 (Mar 14, 2005)

And though MD roofing policies defy everything a roofer knows, that wall doesn't appear to be leaking. I don't see in any staining under the soffitt at the wall in the last pic.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

so if I follow:
-the water under the soffits should be fixed, but its not my issue
-the issue is the last 1-2" of the roof has a slight bend back upwards causing the water to puddle a little instead of running off freely?

is that correct?
thanx
Danny


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## mae-ling (Dec 9, 2011)

That and your shingles do not overhang your eave.
Also there may not be (probably isn't) ice and water guard at the bottom of the roof under the shingles and on top of your roof edge flashing.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

could this paint crack in the windowsill have caused the water on my floor?


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## wkearney99 (Apr 8, 2009)

Yeah, a crack on a surface like a sill could definitely cause water to get into the room. 

There really need to be no cracks or gaps on any outside surface. Water needs to be able to run down and away from the house. Shingle, gutters, flashing, caulking and the like are all part of the process for getting water away from your house. Sill cracks, caulking (windows, doors, patio edges, etc) can all present gaps into which water can seep. Not just straight down though, sometimes during a hard, windy rain it may drive water more sideways. 

This is why windows with screens have those weep holes at the bottom (that some folks incorrectly seal up). They're there to get any water that did happen to get into the window to run back out.


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## Windows on Wash (Aug 30, 2011)

Post up a picture from further away.


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

How's this


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## dcastillo (Apr 6, 2012)

Just had the first roof inspector stop by. He noticed a couple things. The very bottom shingle right before the drip edge, none of them are actually tarred down, they can be lifted up. He also noticed that the vents on the roof top of the roof didn't have caps.


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