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Ice dam damage showed up 7 months later, even though we cleaned the gutters
We bought our place in St. Albert back in 2019 and last February had that nasty week where it went from -25 to +3 overnight, then froze again. I saw icicles hanging off the eaves and thought oh no, but my neighbor said just knock them down and rake the roof, which we did. Fast forward to September and we notice a soft spot near the living room window on the second floor. Peel back the drywall and the insulation was soaked, plus the wood framing had that dark water stain. Turns out the ice dam forced water up under the shingles and it traveled sideways before dripping down inside the wall. Our insurance guy took one look at the photos and said wear and tear, not covered. Cost us $3,800 to rip out the wet fiberglass, treat the wood, and put in new drywall with a vapor barrier. I guess the lesson is don't just clear the gutters, check the attic temperature and make sure you have enough ventilation up there. We had soffit baffles but they were all squished flat from when the previous owners blew in extra insulation. Has anyone else dealt with water showing up months after a big thaw? How did you find the leak path?
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patricia2624d ago
We had almost the same thing happen in our old place in Edmonton, found the soggy spot near a window about 6 months after a freeze thaw cycle. The leak path ended up being way higher than where the water showed, it had run down the inside of the exterior wall for like 8 feet before hitting that spot. What actually helped us find it was a cheap moisture meter from Home Depot, we poked around the drywall in a grid pattern and the readings got higher as we moved up and toward the corner. Ended up cutting a small hole up near the eaves to confirm and yeah, same story with the squished baffles, we fixed em by pulling back the blown in insulation and shoving in those hard plastic vent chutes that actually stay put.
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