Leaking through ceiling after loft boarding

bigsaver2010

We had our loft insulation topped up recently and about a week ago had some boarding put down over the top.

Yesterday we noticed water marks on the ceiling and top of the wall in one of the bedrooms below. There is a water tank in the loft and we think it must be one of the pipes from this leaking.

The boarding was put down in tongue and groove style- my husband wants to find the leak but assume he can only do this by taking the whole floor back up?

The people who did the floor were not particularly helpful when my husband phoned them back to query something, so he thinks they will deny any responsibility if he contacts them.

In the mean time we are worried about our newly decorated house (only moved in 3 months ago) and how much further damage will be done :-( Obviously we have turned the water off for now. Any advice much appreciated.

Wookey

Check all visible joints on the pipework in the roofspace first, including any tank overflows, there maybe a compression joint that has got a knock and just needs a slight tightening.

bigsaver2010

Thanks. He has done that already (as much as an ameteur can!) and can't see anything obvious. The damp area is coming from almost the middle of the loft space not far from the hatch.

Wookey

If its T+G floorboards then probably cutting a trap in them directly above the damp spot is the next thing to try, check there for water or pipes. If the damp spot gets worse and looks to be starting to drip thru the ceiling then with a small screwdriver make a hole up thru the ceiling to allow water to escape, catch this with a bucket. A tiny hole to let water out is better than allowing the whole ceiling to get damp and collapse. If the whole roofspace is floored and pipes are buried beneath it then either a joint has got a knock or a pipe has had a nail/screw driven thru it.
Also was the overflow checked? A leak is possible only some of the time when the water tank has not been used.

Gloomendoom

I had a similar problem once after having some work done in the loft. The pipes had been disturbed (leant on or wiggled) and it caused a leak where the pipe entered the water tank. From bitter experience I can tell you that the leak can be yards from where the water appears.

If you haven't already, I would check all easily accessible joints and unions before ripping the boarding up.

27col

I agree with most of the previous posters. Thoroughly check the water tank to see if you can establish exactly where the leak is situated. It is pretty pointless trying to pinpoint the leak by going to where it is apparent on the ceiling. I once had a leak that exited over 9ft from where it actually was leaking.

bigsaver2010

Thanks. Unfortunately there are not many visible joints to look at before ripping the floor up. My husband has already checked what he can and is none the wiser. Tis may be a stupid question, but would it be better to get a plumber to come and tke the floor up and look, or would it be OK for hubby to do this himself? He can take the floor up but may not know what to do if he finds the leak! In the mean time we have cold water but no hot :mad:

DVardysShadow

bigsaver2010 wrote: »

Thanks. Unfortunately there are not many visible joints to look at before ripping the floor up. My husband has already checked what he can and is none the wiser. Tis may be a stupid question, but would it be better to get a plumber to come and tke the floor up and look, or would it be OK for hubby to do this himself? He can take the floor up but may not know what to do if he finds the leak! In the mean time we have cold water but no hot :mad:

If he feels he can do it, you should allow him. There is no special ability a plumber would have to know which boards to take up, so there is no reason not to let OH do it.

27col

Why pay a plumber to do something that you can do free of charge.

victoria71

Could it be a condensation problem?

WestonDave

When you say its tongue and grooved - do you mean the chipboard panels that have T&G on the sides? If so it should be possible to ease a few out to get to the area you want. Assuming they've been put in staggered, you'll need to take out a triangle - so one over where you want to get to, the two next to that one, the three next to those and so on. You should then be able to put them back. If they've screwed them down its obviously going to be easier than if they are nailed.