Water that should be outside is coming inside? No, this will not resolve itself. You have a leak in your roof and it’s getting into the space between your ceiling and the roof itself.

If left alone, eventually you will have a huge mold problem.

And winter is coming…

Not an issue that will resolve itself! Water damage is no joke and the longer you wait the more it will cost to fix.

You have a hole in your roof. AFIK they haven't developed the roof that heals itself yet.

You have damage to your roof. It might be minor and fixed with a little timely maintenance.

But the longer you leave it the worst its going to get. The moisture will start damaging the structure of the home.

Get it fixed ASAP or you are going to look at a lot worst bill/having to rebuild some of the structure at least if you try to ignore it.

You also have to worry about mold. Moisture in your walls/cieling is how you get things like black mold or something else which will seriously fuck with the health of anyone inside and, again, be much costlier to clean up and fix the longer you leave it.

I was going to put a plastic tarp on the roof until I can get a roofer in next week. Anything else I could do?

I was going to put a thin tarp on the roof until I can get a roofer in next week to fix it. Anything else I should do in the mean time?

contact your insurance agent. You may be covered for a roof leak, I know my insurance would cover this.

Try to keep things dry. Make sure the air is circulating well in the kitchen. About all you can do until they get there, as far as I know. From having two different roofs leak.

Thankfully if it just started everything could be good. Especially with you getting people out there quick. Roof leaks are the worst.

Good luck with it.

Be cautious about this step. My insurance said "not only will we not cover this, but you have (x) days to have the damage repaired and show us proof, or we're canceling your policy". We finished everything but the trim in the room that was reworked by the deadline, and they said "not good enough" and canceled the policy...

I used to work in property preservation. That's exactly what I would do. Make sure you cover all the way from the peak down to well below where you think the leak might be.

If the weather isn't conducive to immediate repairs, I would advise laying down the tarps, then using 1x2" furring strips to hold down the edges. Just lay them down on the edges of the tarp, and screw them to the roof.

If you have any access to the attic, leave the door or hatch open. A fan in the attic area would also be useful.

Name and shame? Sounds like a bullshit company to work with.

The water was likely running from another location then dripping through the spot you saw. When you pushed the screwdriver through, it may have created a small lip of soft material (drywall?) around the hole that now diverts the water around the hole and somewhere else. Picture it as the lip around a crater or an ant hole created by the upward pressure of soft, wet material by the screwdriver. The water drained quickly at first because it was above the 'rim' but once it went below, it started going to the next low point on your ceiling. That's my thought anyways.

Capitol Preferred out of Florida

Not seeing this perspective in the other replies yet but...

It may have stopped coming in because the wind is not blowing as much, or is blowing from another direction.

Storms can blow water downward, sideways and upwards. That you got water inside is clearly a problem, and tracing such an occasional problem can be very difficult, but you're doing the right thing in protection your roof until you can get an expert in to survey and report.

Call your insurance and see if they will help pay for it inside and out. You may need to go into your attic and see if part of your ceiling need replaced

You probably have a lot of drywall and insulation to replace in addition to the roof repair.

This happened to my friend and water was coming through a loose piece of siding.

When I had an issue like that it was a gasket around one of the vents that “failed”. Basically dry rot I guess. Easy Fix for a roofer if that’s the case.

They might prefer capital. Shame on them.

Eventually it will resolve itself. The ceiling will fall and the water will no longer be dripping from the ceiling; it'll drip from the rafters instead.

Not much you can do now except put a fan on it. I live in Philly too - these guys are great and fixed a leak on my roof that I had multiple people out for who said they just couldn’t figure it out - they fit me in quickly and showed up on time and their prices were competitive - you know if you don’t have a reliable roofer already - https://roofdoctorphilly.com/

Someone flushed?

Your roof leaks, water is accumulating in the attic

If you can find where the roof is leaking, put henry 208 over the roof.

Same thing happened to me and I used a tarp, but it keeps moving with the wind even with bricks all over. If you put it there for too long the tarp will disintegrate and leave little strands everywhere.

Depending on how long it will take to get your roof fixed, use tarp for a few weeks, henry for months.

This is your home correct and not a rental??

Depending on your insurance carrier, your policy and possibly your state, improperly fastening boards via penetrations (screws and nails) can lead to a denial in insurance coverage. Not to mention additional water intrusions. An alternative to this is to lay the tarps over the peak as described but instead of fastening through the roof roll 2x4s in the perimeter of the tarp, fasten additional 2x4s to the wrapped 2x4s. This sandwich the tarp between the boards and is often enough weight on its own to secure the tarps.

In the event of the possibility of heavy wind or additional security for the tarp you'll need sand bags and ropes. Place sand bags on key points on the tarp along the perimeter and criss-cross ropes over the ridge across to the opposite side of the structure and secure them to the ground via additional sandbags, poles, trees.

This method is more difficult to do and significantly more in material costs, but insures good coverage with no new potential for water intrusion via anchors. Also by not anchoring into the roof your potential for the insurance company to say "you negligently caused additional damages" is reduced.

If you know you don't have coverage or a viable claim, use the anchor method above and a tube or two of Henry's roof patch.

I've got 11 years in emergency property restoration (think ServPro/Belfor). Started using this method after SafCo and American Family denied coverage to a handful of our customers during a particularly bad storm and we ended up having to tear off and reroof one side of a customers home.

Edit: clarification for securing tarp to the ground.

I had neighbors (in a rental, thank God) in SoFl who were completely broke and a little “off.”

I thought the place was vacant when we moved in, but apparently they had been living there for years with no electric or water. They had a small hole in their roof when we moved in, which had progressed in 2 years to a 6 foot opening, inhabited by a family of ducks.

Right before we moved (after 4 years), they finally got evicted and someone bought the house at auction and flipped it.

I feel bad for whoever bought that house as although the flipper put a new roof on, they didn’t do a gut renovate and God only knows how much water/mold had saturated that place given it rained daily for six months out of the year.

Pull out any accessible wet insulation that you find, it's basically a sponge holding moisture. Anything you can do to get airflow onto the wet surfaces. If you see microbial growth spray it with a disinfectant. Google the bleach to water ratio if you don't have access to "ready to use" antimicrobial products.

To be fair... I have seen some unique situations where the water intrudes, swells the framing and sheeting materials to the point where no new water intrudes. But that scenario still leads to long term issues so some kind of long term solution will be needed.

Also, there is a chance of event leaking. We had a leaky roof for months in an apartment and it was the toilet above that leaked when flushed. The apartment maintenance kept trying to say it was AC condensation.

I did this as a temporary measure on my shed, lasted 5 years...

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Insurers are going to try to deny coverage on any grounds they can invent. Merely having a leak in the roof can result in a denial of certain coverage. Failing to adequately anchor the tarp can result in a denial of coverage, as well as open you up to liability if your weighted-and-not-anchored tarp goes flying in a storm and causes further damage to the house, cars, neighboring property, etc.

If it's leaking, the roof needs considerable repair anyway. There's little risk to anchoring the furring strips to the deck. If you're not going to anchor the boards to the roof, don't use them at all. Just tie off the tarp to anchors on the ground.

The more important factor is getting the roof properly repaired as soon as possible.

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> Google the bleach to water ratio

IIRC my bottle of drinking bleach has the ratio printed on the label.

I bet someone has developed that but it's just so impractical and expensive nobody has ever installed one.

I guess if you're concerned about insurance doing BS like what happened to u/jesta192, phrase it like it's a hypothetical. "We've been having all kinds of storms, and my friend said to watch out for roof leaks, so I was wondering what my coverage is just in case I need to make a claim"

This can be fixed some dragon glass.

Buy a dehumidifier. If you get insurance involved, they will appreciate it. At least ours did

weather is changing, check your AC drip pan for plugged up lines, if your drip pan is full you need to have it checked to find out why it is condensing so much

Maybe spend the extra $20 for the thick heavy duty tarp…

You need a new roof

This very thing happened to me when my wife put a 2.5 gallon water jug, like the fridge dispenser type, in an upstairs closet and unknowingly scraped a hole in the bottom of it.

We must prepare for the Night King. Alert the Watch!

Eventually more like already and has been for some time usually when it’s a big storm that just over loads it and leaks a lot were there the whole time

Had this happen to me, the issues was a vent that wasn't sealed correctly and water was coming in from the storm but only at a certain angle. Is there a vent around that area

Are you the home owner or just renting? If home owner you can try to repair it temporarily but should probably plan on a new roof soon. If you can get onto the roof safely you can try to identify where the leak is coming from and patch it with these products. I'm also assuming it is a flat roof because of your location.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Henry-183-6-in-x-25-ft-Reinforcing-Fabric-HE183196/100067732

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Henry-208R-Rubberized-Wet-Patch-Roof-Cement-Leak-Repair-0-90-Gallon-HE208R142/100041225

Tarp or if the leak spot is obvious get a tube of roofing caulk (black stuff) from your local home improvement store and temporarily seal it.

Go in the attic in the daytime and turn off your flashlight in the attic and see if you see any daylight (such as plumbing vents). If light comes in water can too.

Typical leak spots are where there are interruptions in your roof, such as vents, chimneys, etc.

That's what she said.

You should absolutely follow up with a professional.

However, I’ll saw I had a similar thing happen and it turned out that the volume of sideways rain from tropical storm Mathew had caused to blow into our vent for one of our bathroom fans - and leaked just a bit between the seams where the vent duct met the exterior wall. It happened once 6 years ago and never again.

Oh - homeowners insurance in Florida is being difficult? What's new -_-

First, white fucking walkers. Next, mold. The gods of Westeros are douchebags.

Is the other side of that wall an exterior wall? If so, I'll wager your gutters are overflowing and spilling out.

Knew someone this happened. The drain for the drip pan beneath the AC unit in their attic was blocked by mouse nests and poop. The condensation overflowed out of the drip pan into the attic and did this.

I had a somewhat similar experience that involved an emergency overflow drain. It wasn't that poking a hole fixed the issue, but that the water from above seemed to randomly stop leaking when the outside weather conditions had not changed. It was a mystery until the landlord finally got someone to inspect the problem. It turned out the normal drainage mechanism would become temporarily clogged by random wind events, and then water would build up to a level where it drained through an "emergency" outlet intended to keep the weight of collected water below a certain threshold. It was just a piece of open PVC pipe packed into a brick wall around the affected area. When the normal drain was clogged, it would eventually allow water down onto my unit, but when the normal drain would somehow blow open etc., the water would stop leaking.

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you're the hero we need

They consider that as you having a leak. Hypotheticals hit you too.

Yeah. Fastening the tarp down like that is for after a hurricane tears part of the roof off and it’s obviously getting replaced.

Also check your vent pipes. These are the pipes that stick out of the roof that are connected to your bathroom plumbing. They deteriorate and leak into the attic and then through the ceiling.

I don't understand your confusion. You're wondering why it stopped dripping? The roof clearly has a leak and it allowed in some outside water in, it's not gonna be a nonstop water source.

Great thread. That problem won’t resolve itself. I did roofing for 8 years. Lots of mold could be in the forecast if that isn’t fixed by a professional

It just ghost roofers working while you sleep bro…

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Can you go in the attic and look? Maybe put some kind of container under the leak in the attic.

So this is way out in left field but I will tell you what I did for a hurricane issue.

I went up in the attic and found the damage. It was minor but enough that I could not just catch it in a storage tub. I got out my cooler and put it under the leak and went outside and grabbed my hose. I cut the end off and forced it over the outgoing cooler bib/nozzle.

Then just ran it down out of the attic into the nearest sink. Hindsight I could have just dropped it though the soffit.

Anyway it acted as a catch until I could fix the roof. Good luck. If you can find the issue and it is small I happen to use expanding foam and the covered it with flex seal and that held for over 6 months.

Dehumidifier and damp rid can pull the rest of it out.

Keep in mind that roofers want to put on new roofs. If you ask them whether you need a new roof, most will say yes. I called a roof inspector (who used to be a roofer) and he went up, took photos, wrote me a report that included recommended repairs and where to get the materials for them, and charged me less than $200. A roofer had said I needed a roof and bid the job at $13,000. That was 5 years ago and my roof is doing fine.

>Edit: What could I do in the interim before I get a roofer in to take a look?

I realize this is DIY, but... Do you have insurance? Call your insurance company and tell them. They will likely pay for a professional tarp to prevent further damage, while they they investigate the repair claim. This sort of thing can be a big deal (mold, weakened beams, etc), so if you can, call in the pros.

If not, definitely a tarp, and read up on how to properly apply it to prevent more damage.

Tarp on your roof NOW. Call a roofer ASAP. If you let this go on you’re fucked big time.

I just finally fixed a recurring roof leak. Went through 3 contractors over a ten year period. I really hope it’s fixed for good this time around. Rain season starts soon…

How do you not have mold problems?

I’m usually pretty quick to get it fixed each time it comes back. But you’re right I should bring someone in to check.

Wait, you mean asking what you're actually paying for gets you in trouble?

I mean that’s kind of what bit(bitch)uthane is.

Use a dehumidifier if you have one.

> What's going on? Do these issues start and self resolve ever?

Hahahahaha, no.

> If left alone, eventually you will have a huge mold problem.

Probably already have a medium to huge mold problem.

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WE had this with a bathtub. Soloution: Rip open plaster ceiling and install drop ceiling after numerous plumbers couldnt fix fully. Replace/repaint drop ceiling panels as needed.

DO NOT BUY A HUDRED YEAR OLD HOUSE UNLESS YOU ARE VERY< VERY VERY HANDY.

And beware that it might not be right above this spot. It usually is, but water can travel through the structure in weird ways sometimes.

Make sure your roof is clean, first and foremost. If you have a lot of build-up I'd be willing to bet that's causing it. Especially if it only leaks when it's raining particularly hard

Go on the roof and seal around your vents that stick through the roof.

Same thing happened to me. I think I used flex seal.

Your ac unit isn't in the attic is it? Had this issue before and it turned out to be a clogged drain line for the ac.

Start? Yes. Self resolve? Never.

The problem here is Florida. The state’s insurance market is forever fucked

Just be aware that where the leak is on the inside of your ceiling does not necessarily correspond with where the leak is on top of your roof.

I had a leak in my basement ceiling and the water leak in my kitchen was 6' away. Trying to find a leak at my parents and the water was coming in 20' away from where it was showing on the inside.

My in laws have a hundred year house but they've taken very good care of it

Ehhh. Just renovate the bathroom properly. Replace the tub and all the associated plumbing. While you're at it, might as well do the rest of the bathroom over.

Oh, dont get me wrong, it was a lovely house, but still had the original plumbing and electric and guess why hit burned down?

Our building got a new roof but the leak is in the bay window above my unit not connect to the rest of the roof. I just got the contractors who did our roof to rip out the whole bay window roof and replace it with a new one in the same style of the rest of the roof.

This should be the end of it.

You sound like someone whos isnt wrong but who didnt have 2 kids in school form 1986-1994.

> If it’s leaking, the roof needs considerable repair anyway.

Not necessarily. Often it's just a missing shingle, bad flashing, or other small fix.

Exactly why houses shouldn't be an investment. The first thing you do when you get one is change everything about it anyway.

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I was 11 in 1986. But I do have 2 kids now, and my house is 175 years old.

Seriously! I grew up in a 1928, my dad is still battling it (he was a carpenter, and he taught me lots of handiness). My wife kept looking at craftsman homes and other classics and I finally had to tell her to stop, no way in hell I was going to deal with all that.

I'm a decade younger with two kids and a house that's 125 years old. I wish I'd had other options because I'm a diyer because of budget issues.

Prob a water leak...

The roofer should be able to find it but keep in mind that the leak outside could be far from the puddle inside - water runs down joists and can end up far away. Good luck.

Exactly...

While you’re at it change the door frame in every room. Then the floors. Redo the kitchen. It’s a workflow that starts when you work on your house. You start and you’ll never stop.

Being a drywall guy, it looks like that ceiling texture has been patched before

Every place I lived in Puerto Rico has flat roofs, but if you have a leak, you generally have a pretty big problem at that point. My grandma’s house has a small layer of concrete and tar. My grandpa said he’s never had a leak and it would be a “devastating cost” if the roof had a leak.

i think your issue is the ceiling. you have to remove it then therell be no water leaking through it anymore.

You gotta find where the water is getting in. Could be a leaky roof, could be strong winds that blew water through an attic vent or underneath the shingles something. A little water will eventually dry (if it's a one time event). Prolonged moisture will rot and mold, so prevention and dealing swiftly with the issue is the best way to go.

While you're waiting for the roofer, you should put a large bucket in the attic to catch the dripping water so it doesn't cause anymore damage. Then try to dry everything before it starts molding.

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I’m sorry.. I don’t mean to be a dick but are you saying your solution of a constant and active leak was to remove an awesome plaster ceiling and replace it with a drop down ceiling so that you could just rip them out as they got water damaged? … Are you planning on addressing the leak? Disposable ceilings, now i’ve literally heard it all.

I also am from philly, my flat roofed house as a child had a lot of leaks and i've done the same as you.

you have a leak in the roof, that's running into a crawl space above you. You may believe there is just a roof above you, but there is an insulated crawl space. somewhere in the roof is a crack allowing water to pool in that crawlspace. It's gotten bad enough to soak thru the dry wall above your head.

you poked a hole and it drained out the pool of water, but you still have a leak.

If you allow it to continue, as my family had for years as a child, you will get the fun adventure of having mushrooms grow upside down from your ceiling.

I don't recommend eating them.

Did the ducks get evicted too, or did they have to cover rent and put it on their bill?

He doesn't know what to do besides poking a hole in the ceiling and you expect him to determine if the entire roof needs replacing?

Use the sandbag method to be safe mate!

I'm a decade younger than you and have neither kids or a house. If something is leaking then I really have a problem.

Storm = a lot of wind -> water is blown into holes or cracks in the curb part of your roof. Or underneath shingles which need to be reattached etc . Typically happens during rare conditions like a storm coming from a certain direction.

Yup. It's associated with risk for the insurance company.

If you own, call insurance. I had my roof and gutters covered in a similar circumstance

Nope, bad switch.

I'm right in between y'all in my house that's 8 years old. Houses always need fixing. The 12 year old one did and the 40 year old one did too. There's always something.

1890 something and my dad was handy as hell. Still had issues.

Not the houses that Wilson Goode renovated.

A professional what? We're assuming it's a roof thing, but what if it's a plumbing thing? I assume you need someone to cut apart the ceiling and look around to find the source of the water. I have a similar sitch, except I have a master bathroom above my moldy spot (which is in the garage), and I think it was old caulk that I recently replaced. But I'm not sure who to call to take apart the ceiling, remove the insulation and start poking around to determine if I fixed it with new caulk, or if it's an ongoing issue.

Mines 1917.

We're pretty handy.

Some small plumbing leaks that we fixed, replaced some of the cast iron sewer pipe that was rusted at the toilet, and replaced the old leaky cedar gutter that rotted the rafter tails. We cut those off and put up fascia and had aluminum gutters installed instead.

That's pretty much all that we have been "forced" to do. Everything else was because we decided to.

Dang, I was going to guess it was the plumbing

Don't need to be handy if you are rich.

It's not too late to burn it down!

I have water coming in through the ceiling. The thing above the ceiling is the roof. It’s been raining. WhAt CoUlD Be hApPenInG

Some people shouldn’t own homes.

Their bill hahah

If only there was a good way to make it look like an accident...

Better than being “handsy”.

Just blame it on the kids...

dehumidifier in the attic

I must have the most honest roofers on earth. Had a leak at the flashing, two roofing companies came out for bids and both told me I had ten years left on the roof and to just get a new flashing strip and some roofing tar, and one even showed me exactly where to overlay the new to stop the intrusion.

Make sure your scupper box is clear and water is draining off your rubber membrane roof. Source: Philadelphian, rubber roof leaky fuckin house owner. Make sure the water is not getting up under the flashing.

We've had a fuckton of rain, my bet is it's getting under the flashing and their gutter is fucked because our gutters go into the city water runoff. If that gets backed up your gutter backs up. And spews all over the sidewalk.

Okay...the 'long' answer: Water comes from many sources. I'll run down the most common: Plumbing leak - if this is a single family home structure that's easy enough to determine whether applicable - I cannot 'see' your place so you'll have to determine that.

You don't indicate whether this is a condo (multi-floor structure), a multi-story structure of any kind, a duplex, etc.

You cannot tell just by 'looking' it takes some sleuthing - it's a kitchen which means it has many water source potentials. Most commonly it's a roof flashing where a sink vent, stove exhaust, or some other utility penetration (like a hot water heater exhaust). But could also be a water pipe, an icemaker pipe, heating/cooling drain pan.

You say there's 'no space' up there - so that tends to rule out HVAC pan/stuff. But the other elements are possibilities - as are adjacent room services (bath, shower, water closet, laundry room).

Just because it stopped doesn't necessarily mean it's a roofing/weather problem - but most likely.

As the water built up above the ceiling it eventually saturated and perforated enough to have water evidence inside the space. Prior it was contained above, and building up a volume of water. When you poked it drained out a majority of the 'reserves' - it still may be leaking from any source...just not enough for it to be leaking through the roof. It could still be soaking into other materials. You've just changed the water path. When you poke a hole you potentially create a 'mountain' on the other side - where the water cannot continue to leak out of the screwdriver poke through spot...and may be saturating/finding another location - gravity always working on the water.

I cannot see your roof...but if it is a roof leak - these are usually pretty small. Buildings expand and contract - different elements at different speeds/distances. Thus the problem is usually at a penetration.

Your roof consists (most likely) of 3 layers...the upper protective/sun/water layer - this could be tile, shingles, rubber, tar rolled - lots of options here. Below that you have the vapor barrier or tar paper...and below that the roof sheathing (plywood most commonly).

Water, mostly wants to go 'down'...as many have said it can leak in one spot and travel along a pipe, conduit or rafter through adhesion/surface tension, and migrate to a spot where it has to drip down...and eventually start to puddle.

You cannot assume it's just the roof from what you've said - you'll have to get up there and find out the reason.

I'm assuming your home is a flat roof with nothing above it (I would hope you'd be smart enough to share/consider other leak sources - like an adjacent tenants toilet or piping...so I'll assume this is 'your house' and a single family dwelling just without an attic. No attic does make things harder.

If you're certain you've located the leak - many posts here have discussed how to locate and how to remedy - so I'll not waste their efforts repeating.

As for insurance - they're always looking for a reason to say "NO" or an avenue to decrease their obligation. It's through documentation you prove this later - and be certain your claim adjuster and EVERYONE knows you're collecting evidence - and retaining it. Your policy either covers this event, or it does not - I cannot answer that. If it does cover it they'll be looking for a way to save money or pay nothing. Showing good faith IMMEDIATE effort to remedy goes a lot farther than 'doing the wrong thing' - But wrong efforts which further cause damage could be held against you. The sooner you can get professionals out there - PAID AND UNDER CONTRACT the better. Just having them show up and review does show good faith but that company isn't responsible until you engage them through payment/writing.

Consider the potential for further harm to the structure and take steps to remedy that. That is what 'they' will use against you. Client learned of leak and DID NOTHING ABOUT IT for X # of days. That's wording that will look bad for you. You saying: I discovered the leak and 20 minutes later we sourced the location and put up pots/pans or hit it with silicone and called professionals would look great for your side. Chances are though, if you're covered the insurance will just pay without incident...these stories of them not paying usually has some mitigating factor or the 'real story' that wasn't told. Like a roof that knowingly leaked for months.

Anyway water leaks aren't rare. It could be anything from blown water in/under tiling...to ripped up shingles due to wind/animal...to a very old roof needing replacement...or something as small as a TINY crack that occurred at a roof vent...and is rolling down the roof vent to a collection spot, collected and eventually showed up inside at the kitchen.

I don't know your age, ability, tools on hand, or mechanical capabilities so I'll not 'instruct' you to do anything. Mostly if you can locate the leak caulking is enough to solve the problem for the short term until pro's can come fully remedy. If it's a leak that you cannot spot tarping the whole roof may be needed. Again, too many complexities there for a 'simple discussion' on that. Tarps also leak...and the potential for blown in water still exists. As does rooves are large areas where tarps are big and heavy. And without knowing the size, and weight abilities of your roof I'm not going to advise you to go up there. If you do choose to do that, be safe...use proper safety gear. And remember, that tarps work like shingles, remember to start at the bottom and leave plenty of overlap if you need multiple tarps.

I don't know the 'strength' of your roof...or how long this saturation has happened. Roof sheathing is very strong even when wet...but long term rotting can lead to structural failures and walking on a roof can considerably further damage a poor situation. Make sure as much of your inspection happens from below prior to you considering going on the roof. For all I know you're 72 years old and don't even belong in the category of even pulling out a ladder.

So don't assume it's 'rain' and don't assume that just because it 'stopped' it's because it's not raining. The hole - as many have said - or the problem will NOT FIX itself. Once the liquid barrier is broken it'll keep leaking until the water source is removed.

For all I know you've got a poorly insulated line up there and you're getting condensation drips - thats where warm/moist air hits a cool surface like water drops on the outside of a cool drink. Ultimately there's water where you don't want it coming out and it won't 'fix' itself without you causing that to happen. If it's a leaking water pipe just create some runoff path - something as easy as a string tied for the water to follow is enough. If it's a pressurized line that you can shut off - do so and turn it on as needed to minimize downtime leaking. If it's a line that can be unused (such as an ice maker feed) - just suffer without it for a while.

As you said there's no space - I'll assume you know what you're talking about. But common leaks are from pans, drain lines, or overflow lines from HVAC units. There's also a secondary pan below the unit that can also leak. Where I live/work I hear people all the time say 'we do not have an attic' - but there is a crawlspace. To them attic means something they can climb up into and store stuff via a ladder or stairs. If it's just 'roof above' as you say it makes tracking down the leak source easier - or harder depending on viewing angles available. Ultimately you have to find the leak and plug it and determine how best to proceed depending on what is leaking, how, and why. Good luck.

I work professionally in water mitigation, hold multiple certifications in said field, and am particularly known for (1) my mold work, (2) creative solutions to difficult problems, and (3) the ability to resolve difficult to find water sources.

You need to call insurance, file the claim, and let a professional start doing stuff that the insurance company will pay for, not you.

They will take down some ceiling where you've already poked a hole. When that is done, the problem will be relatively easy to find.

Good luck neighbor, I’m a few miles over the Ben Frank in Jersey and our ceiling has a similar leak :(

No issues in your house resolves itself. And it's always better to fix things ASAP.

Run, don’t walk, for a roof tarp. Then call a good roofer. Inspect and video what is under the shingles/sheathing when they are exposed. Never ignore a water leak. The damage expands exponentially.

I was thinking arson

My parents’ house was built in the 1800’s. So. Many. Problems.

Agreed, nextdoor neighbor before we moved has no ceiling in her living room. It caved in on the person before her, that person moved out, the complex "fixed" it, then it came back down a year or two after she moved in.

That wasn't the worst apartment of our 3 apartment section. The people under our two apartments needed the EPA to come deal with all the black mold in the walls under the flooring, if it could grow there it did. I have no idea how the complex is still standing with all the black mold in them.

“Very less than very very handy”?

It was puddling somewhere between the roof and the ceiling. You only poked where some water was pooling.

Step one. Look at your roof. It is not uncommon for plastic roof vents to lose their top cover during high winds. It will be pretty obvious if one is missing. Step 2. Check in attic. Once again roof jacks are very common leak spots, I would examine the range vent and any other vents above where the kitchen is. With any solid pipe going to the roof, you may need to feel the pipe to tell if water is running down the side. Step 3. Seal the problem with roofing tar or replace the roofjacks if needed.

> Do these issues start and self resolve ever?

Absolutely. I have a homeopathic general contractor. She gave me a tincture that'll clear up pretty much any non-structural problem in just a few weeks.

Yes, water is awfully flammable.

It could be your air handler If it is up there. You need to go check around the unit , especially the drain pan . If there is no water in the drain pan then make sure the inside of the unit is draining correctly to the condensation line (pvc pipe)

If all that is fine then make sure the unit is level, sometimes a unit that is not level can have draining issues and will leaking can occur.

If you are absolutely sure it's not the ac unit then go up on the roof and check shingles, they are cheap. If you hire a roofer or hvac guy to check the roof and system you will get charged, a lot .

Leaky roof or flashing rotted away around venting. You need to get this fixed ASAP. It's more than just a potential mold problem. Could be a fire hazard too if water gets on electric wires.

I would have guessed cheese pita in the toaster oven.

Is that a popcorn ceiling? Might want to test for asbestos now that you've poked a hole in it.

At the first place I lived when I worked in Norway had this problem, but only when someone showered upstairs - might be worth looking this up thoroughly Indeed

More likely there’s a slow leak from the roof, and water had accumulated before starting to leak through the ceiling. He drained the accumulated water, but the slow leak is still going.

That's nothing. I was 135 years old in 1986. We bought a two year old house and it was a nightmare cause I was leaking all over the place!

not unless someone left a hose running in the rafters

It's also possible that it's condensation depending on your Insulation/ plaster boarding. We've had water condense between the foil backed board and insulation

Depends where you live - my house is just over hundred years old, but it’s pretty standard in the UK.

Pain in the arse to fit anything like cupboards or shelves as not a single wall is straight or at a right angle to anything else!

Dragon attack?

Trogdor?

Burninating the country side!

Your house is sad and is crying

If any rich heads with old houses out there are reading this, I am very handy and will gladly take your money.

I'm having a stroke

My guess is you have a slow leak that pooled below it over weeks, then you drained the pool and even though you still have the leak it's slow enough that it dries before it pools again.

Cut out a square of the drywall and find the leak otherwise it'll cost you 10 of thousands in black mold removal.

Find different plumbers. Every leak can be fixed if you don’t half ass the repair.

Just did a full kitchen remodel on my 120ish year old house, with two kids in school. Once they are old enough you can actually use their help and teach them things.

(Although to be honest I'm a little premature in using the past tense, I've still got some trim to hang and I installed the blower motor on the range hood backwards, so I have to fix that before it's truly 'done').

I am a roof designer. Please get this looked at by a professional. You are most likely facing structural damages, leading to weaknesses in your roof. The most likely candidate is damage to the panelling overlaying your rafters or trusses or damage to the fascia/soffit boards.

The last thing you want is your ceiling joists going rotten/soft and caving in. This is unlikely, however you should still get this looked at asap as even the smallest changes can cause large deviations in the roof structure.

When you say there is no room above, there most probably is unless it’s a flat roof. Not a habitable room, but attic space. This space may contain your cold water storage tank or other plumbing which could be leaking and also be a candidate for this issue. Check your water pressure is as normal. Contact your land lord rigit away if you have one.

Ah! The drip from your ceiling is never directly under the hole in your roof. Water tracks sideways. Rain gets in roof hole, water makes a pool and finds a weak spot in the ceiling yards away.

Check the flashing round the roof edge.

Sounds more like the doing of Alduin to me.

Check your guttering. I had water overflowing from the gutter and getting forced up in to the gap between roof tiles. It was coming in between the upstairs ceiling and loft floor, reaching the chimney breast before dripping down in to my bedroom.

I had the gutters empties (I paid to have hedgehogs put in them so who knows what happened to those). The guy basically pulled a big chunk of turf about 2 foot long and the problem was solved.

If one of those two walls is an external wall with guttering (or old brickwork), it could be the problem. Sounds like it is if it's a room with a roof above it.

Yeah, I don't think you can broadly generalize about older houses like people are in this thread. It has to be more case-by-case. If a 100+ year old house has been well maintained over the years then it's not going to be much worse than a newer one. Different types of problems certainly, but it's not not automatically a junk heap. Whereas I've heard numerous stories of newer houses needing repairs or remodeling within the first 10 years because of shitty contractors cutting corners and doing a bad job.