SYS

Wed Aug 31, 2005 12:42 am

Ok guys this is a tough one cause it's hard to admit mistakes. I got a good question for you all. I'm sure we have all had our bad day where a roof has leaked. Not like we all started off knowing it all. If you guys tell me about your leaks I'll tell ya mine. This is based on roofs that you installed personally not someone else's leak. Keep it real.

I dare ya


Most important point is that it was a learning experience.

G-Tape

Wed Aug 31, 2005 2:13 am

Besides the regular little drips now and then, I can't say that I have had more than one in my whole roofing career. And the one was a hospital residence building, we were doing the roof. It was a complete tearoff flat roof. Coal tar pitch, about 3 inches thick, 2 - 1 1/2 inch ISO, 45 mil EPDM and ballast. We laid everything, put the rubber down and ballasted it. We didn't do the seams or flash anything. We were so burnt that nobody could work anymore. There was a slight chance of rain. So we took the chance and all went home. Well, that slight chance of rain turned into about 2 inches of rain. I went back out to the jobsite at 12:30 at night to check on it. I walked up to the door and janitors were pulling out 5 gallon buckets full of water and dumping them outside.
The lucky part was just that afternoon after we left for the day, they cleaned out everysingle piece of furniture, carpet, and any other thing that wasn't nailed down. They were starting their remodel.
So not a single thing got wet, not even the ceiling tile, they took those out also.

The main office never got word of it.

Besides that I have never had a leak that severe since.

QRFL

Wed Aug 31, 2005 2:41 am

one time i was supervising for this company and we hire a referral hot foreman from another company.. all the rock was laid we all went home ... then it rain and we went out to a complete indoor shower!!! we look around and the only possible thing were the ac units ... we inspected them and covered them with plastic.... next day rain again!! same problem!!! leaks all over...!!!we seal every little crack on that dam thing!!! next day same problem!!! we took drastic measures and scraped off the bran new gravel and threw a couple of plies more in there and re-gravel....the owner went with us this day and he couldnt figure it out either!!! it started driziling and inmediately started leaking!!!!i took all my right arm guys.. the last day and after a good inspection..( by the way this is comercial building)... one of my main guys look at the crawl space and saw a pipe and he told me look.. something is not right!!...

we saw this pipe go into the wall but no exit on the other side!!!
he puncture a hole on the other side and whooosssshhhh!!!! water shooted out of that thing..!!!!!

turned out that the drain pipe from the flat on the second story .... got covered with the cap-sheet at the walls..and the dumb guys never cut open the hole!!!!!

owner payed a ton of cash to dry the place up only because one dumb guy forgot to cut a 4" hole!!!!

SYS

Wed Aug 31, 2005 3:18 am

I was on a roof for an elderly woman ( I spoke of her cookies in a post before) this was quite a memorable job. He home was huge. She had 3 skylights a chimney and 2 bay window extentions on the back of her home. It was winter time. Weather reported it to be clear. Even radar was clear. We tore off the whole back side. It was all felted in and we had began to shingle it. Then beep beep on the nextel it was Charlie the owner of the company we were doing the roof for. Snow is coming your way it will be there in 15 minutes. OMG we freaked. I started water tighting things like crazy. A week or two went by and her roof sat under like 3 feet of snow. Then we get a call her roof is leaking. We go out and shovel off all the snow thinking the skylights were leaking or the cricket. Well we were wrong those were fine tight as can be. Some snow backed up under the felt paper on the ridge of one of the bay extentions. She had a very small spot on the inside of her home. I couldn't believe that was what leaked. I guess I was to worried about those darn sky lights and that cricket. I think there was a few soil stacks on that roof too but I dont remember exactly. That was one of the most memorable jobs i ever did.

The woman was very understanding about it and let us fix it for her. I felt so bad cause she really was a nice lady. We fixed it though so I felt better after that but just to have her go through it.