Thread: Roof Leak: How to Fix ?

So I was able to cutoff a hole in the ceiling to make a new service trap so I could access the roof and find where the leak was. First a few pics:

This is inside the roof, no floors


I have to walk on those narrow concrete beams,


And I also have to walk over those things,

This is what they put just below the tiles, it seems quite thin


is it effective for isolation ?

This is the damages done by the leak,

And this is what I found

not sure what that black thing is ? shouldn't it be on the top ? or behind the tin foil ?

The wiring in pic#3 of your first post scares the shit out of me !

Originally Posted by Happyman

The wiring in pic#3 of your first post scares the shit out of me

why ? typical Thai style wiring, perfectly safe

Originally Posted by DrAndy

all the picture shows is the tinfoil ripped a bit

only this pic, this is just above the damage being done

I purchased an older house that had heaps of leaks, particularly during a very heavy down pour and I got that German bloke in Pattaya in to spray the underside of the tiles with foamed insulation (German technology).

Not only did he fix the leaks but the insulation is absolutely fantastic and he guarantees the job for about 10 years from memory.

He advertises his company in the Bangkok post and for the life of me I can't remember the name.

The owners name is Karl and his number is 081-7816987.

I have used that sprayed insulation stuff ( not in LOS) and it is good !

Used it on the inside of generator sheds and it cut down the noise as well as sealing leaks and temp stability !

It is fire retardent as well !!

Originally Posted by Loy Toy

The owners name is Karl and his number is 081-7816987.

Its Lohr-Trade, expensive though!

^ - ^^I got my roofs sprayed where I am living now with insulating foam, while it can stop leaks I would never use it again! The problem is it stops circulation, it traps hot air in the roof void and keeps the house hotter than than hell..........

^ Yes you will have this problem if you do not put circulation vents for your roof cavity.

I design these ventilation units into all of my constructions and it is not a difficult job!

FFS since when do you vent through your roof tiles!

^^ Its all proportional mate. Water damage can also be expensive and from memory I thought the price Karl charged me was very reasonable. In and out in 2 days also.

Originally Posted by Airportwo

^ - ^^I got my roofs sprayed where I am living now with insulating foam, while it can stop leaks I would never use it again! The problem is it stops circulation, it traps hot air in the roof void and keeps the house hotter than than hell..........

Had not thought of that !

Our Gen sets had a 35hp fan venting through a roof stack - that no doubt got rid of the heat by convection when the sets were shut down and the doors were left open - had a filtered,sealed,watercooled air intake for the engines and cooling that the fan sucked the air through when they were running i

Originally Posted by Loy Toy

Not only did he fix the leaks but the insulation is absolutely fantastic and he guarantees the job for about 10 years from memory.

He advertises his company in the Bangkok post and for the life of me I can't remember the name.

it sounds promising, but it might be too small a job for him. I just need to fix a small area, not the whole roof. I don't want to start a big job and have a big mess in the house with it. Will try to give a call and see if he can come for quick fix.

In the meantime, what are my alternatives for that leak ? just add more tin foil in the missing areas ?

im afraid,
all it is, is a quick fix.
the problem is a leaking roof so fix the source of the leak, not cover it up with some expanadable foam.
will cause you more problems in the long run.

can I just buy a can of that expandable foam ? or it has to be done professionally with all the mess to follow ?

^no.

find where the leak is and fix it.
as some one has said already, its probably a cracked tile, so get on the roof or send someone up. find the cracked tile and replace it.
much easier.and its the correct way of doing it.
looks like the leak is in a valley on your roof ,so shouldnt be too hard to find,now that you know the rough area its in.

The tin foil is there for thermal isolation.
You prolly got a cracked roof tile higher up and the water travels on the foil until the foil abruptly ends.
The solution though is not to add more tin foil but instead to change the cracked rofe tile.
Time to inspect the roof again, this time from the outside

^^ & ^ if you look at the picture though, it's quite impossible to get to the tiles from below

and from the top, the house is about 15 meter high (maybe more) and very steep,

the question is how to fix myself, as I don't have access to builders and don't want to deal with their idiot workers, who have in the past done more damages than fix anything

The Foam thing seems the most convenient, and since I can't see the cracked tile from below without taking apart existing tin foil or look around the steel beams, and since there is no floor to move around in the roof, there is not much I can do to fix those properly by changing the tile.

Yeah, you can foam the bit where there ain't no foil and the water leaking in will find another way down onto your ceiling.
This is an from-the-outside job, try to get that into your head now!

^ ok, so it's going to be a big job, that's what you are saying ? damn !!!

the house is officially still "under warranty" but the foreman doesn't answer phone calls and the company did a runner,

the usual

next question then, where can I find a guy with a 30m ladder to check on my roof ?

the local fireman ?

Don't know if it can be considered as a big job..
15 meters, that is 8 meter of bamboo scaffolding and an 8 meter bamboo ladder on the top of the scaffolding.
It is probably a half days work for 2 guys to replace the tile, or if no broken tile seal the tiles with roof sealant. (3M or Scotch asphalt type sealant)

Oops, now it suddenly became 30 meters..