Finally. We think we found the source of the leak in the ceiling.
It has been a process of elimination.
Three trips to the attic in all kinds of weather confirmed without a doubt that the water was not coming in through the roof.
Blue cleanser added to the toilet closest to the problem site confirmed that it was not a leaking toilet when the water leaked did not turn blue.
Eliminating use of the upstairs shower and sink closest to the site confirmed that it was not a faulty faucet or plumbing connection from either of those sources.
This weekend we had to face facts: it was time to cut into the wall above the ceiling where the vent pipe headed for the attic. We had tried everything else, so Ken cut away a piece of baseboard from the wall in the master bath. Flashlight and angled mirror in hand, he could see up into the wall where the guilty vent pipe connected to a second vent pipe. Aha! He shook the guilty pipe and water rolled down the PVC. Aha! The connection between the two must be faulty, and water was coming from....
the downstairs shower! which is vented to the second pipe! which explains why the water dripped during the week and not on weekends because Ken only uses that shower during the week!
There was no getting around another cut in the master bathroom wall, four feet up, where Ken estimated the faulty connection to be. He was right on target, or so I'm told. I can't bear to look. Ken sealed the connection between the pipes with silicon, waited twenty-four hours, and took a hot shower in the downstairs bathroom to make lots of steam. So far so good. No drips.
If everything holds, I will call my dry wall guy tomorrow and make a date to have all the holes fixed. If I do the patching, I will never be satisfied. If someone else does it, I might not be satisfied but it won't be my fault. A couple coats of paint and I will be the only one who knows.
This has gone on long enough. It's time to put my house back together.
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8 comments:
I am beginning to think the leak our guest bedroom will be there forever. Tell me again how long you lived with this? You give me hope in so many areas...
One less thing on your to do list. I like it!
Finally. Isn't it funny how one small thing like that can take over your life?
Whew -- finally. You guys are like CSI plumbers! So glad you are on your way to getting your house back in order.
I had something similar happen
when I lived in the old farm house.
With homes there is always something
Hopefully with this one being a little over 2 years old it will be fine for most of my days.
You are intrepid and determined! Now that you're working outside the home do you have time to come and play with the meme? http://wp.me/pgY75-Nu
A house is always a "work in progress," isn't it? Once I learned to accept that our home (built in 1926) will never be perfect or finished, I started to relax. A little bit. :-)
Glad you found your leak. Nothing worse than something wrong . . . oh, wait, yes there is. Finally finding and fixing the wrong and then having holes in your walls. oh well, at least they're temporary :)
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