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Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
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Author:  Steve Heath [ Tue Feb 26, 2013 3:56 pm ]
Post subject:  Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
The problem: Our bedroom tiled shower is normally fine, but twice now, although 4-5 months apart, some water has leaked down along the potlight casing warping the drywall of the ceiling of our family room downstairs. It can't be a plumbing issue because of how rarely it happens. I had assumed in both cases that somewhere there is a leak in the silicone/tiling grout... maybe even the front of the shower floor tiles if the water had gotten out there... but I tried spraying water all over the shower and couldn't reproduce the leak.

So what I need is someone that can come in, cut a hole in the drywall, figure out where it's coming from and how to permanently (or at least long-term) fix it, and then fix the drywall (luckily we haven't painted that room yet)... but I'm not sure what I'm looking for? Some kind of specialized handyman? A plumber with drywall skills?

Having bad luck this year... just before the snows came we lost some shingles on the roof, so need to find someone to fix that too when the snow melts off it.

Thanks!

Steve.
Author:  munchito [ Tue Feb 26, 2013 4:14 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
weird that it only happens once every few months, especially if you use it every day? I can't see it being a grout/tile issue.

This may sound stupid, but maybe there is a leak in the plumbing somewhere, and it only reveals itself when cold water is involved? Only reason I say this is becasue I have both a kettle and a coffee maker that have the smallest of leaks when I pour the cold water in it. However once the appliances heat up, the leak dissapears.

EDIT: Oh , and I do realize that I haven't helped with your actual question...sorry :)
Author:  miltontaper [ Tue Feb 26, 2013 8:33 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
I had something like it happened to me, it was the toilet liking
Little drops of water and going down the water line, it took me a while yo
Figure it out, may best advice is to silicone everything around the baseboards and
Toilet and toilet water line,I don't think is nothing major, normally a bad leak you see it all the time
The part that was worn out was the one the water line hooks into the toilet, good luck.
Author:  OddJobJay [ Tue Feb 26, 2013 8:39 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Quite often a small leak will sit above the drywall and dry out before it's visible. Is it possible on those occasions that it came through, that the shower was used excessively compared to a typical day?
Author:  redrider [ Tue Feb 26, 2013 8:40 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
You should be able to pull out the pot light and peek into the ceiling. Pull off the lens, then the bulb. Once the bulb is out, you should be able to grab the edge of the insert and work it down. It will eventually come out. If you're not sure what I mean, go the the Home Depot and look at how the pot lights are assembled from the backside...you will see what I mean. There are only small metal tabs pushing against the backside of the insert holding it in place. With a bit of wiggling, it will come out. Then you can get in with a light and maybe a mirror and have a look in the ceiling.
Author:  Fred D [ Tue Feb 26, 2013 11:14 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Another wrench to throw into the mix... to keep the stalker-level to a minimum, I will say I BELIEVE you're in a home with 2nd floor laundry, is that correct? Have you ever traced the dryer duct to the outside? Some of your model has the dryer duct pass between the 1st and 2nd floor above the family room on it's way outside.
If your dryer vents are lonnnng and not cleaned out annually, the backup will trap moisture inside the pipe, and rarely,but sometimes!! enough to collect IN the pipe, travel to a seam (since ducts are not water tight), and drip through onto the drywall below. The periodic nature COULD mean it is only happening when your vent is clogged or the exterior vent flaps are frozen shut. Is your dryer taking longer than normal to run?

Just another thing to consider.
Potlight removal + flashlight is the best idea on here so far, if you're comfortable with that.

Likely scenario is that is is in fact the shower, but I thought I'd give you at least one easy thing to scare you momentarily, then rule out quickly if you can :)

Keep up posted!
Author:  Steve Heath [ Wed Feb 27, 2013 9:55 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Thanks guys... I actually tried removing the potlight while it was wet and tracing it, that's how I know for sure it's coming from the shower, but where in the shower is the problem. I believe it is that intermittant because unlike normal showers, the head had to get a little wild those times... the door had to be open a bit, and walls... maybe even a bit of the ceiling got sprayed. And of course, I tried spraying all the walls down afterwards to find it and couldn't. Ah well, I'll just get the drywall fixed when we get it painted and maybe stick a bowl on top of the drywall so if a little bit does leak again sometime, it'll just evaporate :)
Author:  Matt [ Fri Mar 01, 2013 11:20 am ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
A home inspector with an IR camera and Moisture detector may be able to assist. The water may be running from somewhere else not related to the bathroom.

Matt
Author:  Universaltile [ Fri Mar 01, 2013 2:57 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Hey Steve,

I'd love to come there and rip out your shower floor and redo it, but I don't think that's the issue.
My best guess is that it is a condensation related leak, as those are usually the sporadic leaks. I had Andy the inspector come in with his equipment, and found out that the mold on my ceiling was from condensation. The insulation in the attic got blown back from those windy days. The ceiling along the soffit was ice cold, with the moisture from our hot showers
.....and voila, mold! I would recommend calling Andy, he'll find out what's going on.
Author:  Halton Home Inspector [ Fri Mar 01, 2013 7:22 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Universaltile wrote:
Hey Steve,

I'd love to come there and rip out your shower floor and redo it, but I don't think that's the issue.
My best guess is that it is a condensation related leak, as those are usually the sporadic leaks. I had Andy the inspector come in with his equipment, and found out that the mold on my ceiling was from condensation. The insulation in the attic got blown back from those windy days. The ceiling along the soffit was ice cold, with the moisture from our hot showers
.....and voila, mold! I would recommend calling Andy, he'll find out what's going on.


Thanks John.

Glad I could help. Infra Red sure makes finding problems easy.

Good luck doing your repairs and be carfull in that attic of yours.
Author:  Larshy [ Fri Mar 01, 2013 7:30 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Our shower/family room ceiling leak was the screw where the shower door attaches. We re-tiled, cocked, silicon-ed the heck out of our shower to find out months later its where the door attaches to the marble, the peg or screw had rusted out and the seal had been broken i guess. Take off the door and have a peak. Good luck.
Author:  esanjeev [ Fri Mar 01, 2013 7:42 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Any possibility it might be coming off of a leakage in the roof?
Wouldn't show up in the bathroom because of the tiles.
Author:  Halton Home Inspector [ Fri Mar 01, 2013 8:31 pm ]
Post subject:  Re: Who do you hire to trace a very occasional leak?
Leaks in drain pipes below showers, sinks, and tubs can often be intermittent. Unless the house is brand new then when ever I look at drain pipes or at P-Traps under sinks I look for evidence of leaks, not the leak itself. Often small particles of crud can seal a small leak in a drain pipe, usually at a connection point. When this "crud" or particle comes loose then the leak starts until it is sealed again.

Many leaks are often so small that they never show evidence on a ceiling below the leak. In these cases, when they are finally discovered there is all kinds of crud and mineral deposits around the area where the leak originates from.
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