After heavy winter, roof leaking during spring storms.

[UserNameAttempt3]

We had one of the worst winters in central Kentucky with several inches of snow and some ice thrown in. Have been hearing some creaking from the roof with decent winds but never thought anything of it, being new to the area an all. Well, after a hell of a day of rain, noticed some water puddling at the laundry room door. Dried it out and went back an hour later and there was more water. Got up in the attic this morning and located where the water was dripping on the insulation.


Couldn't really see where the intrusion is so had to get up on the roof. Inspecting the area where the leak is suspected, I found several loose screws and a couple of spots with dried out sealant.


My question being, is this as easy as replacing the screws on the roof (probably the whole thing) and putting some new sealant down? Or am I going to have to peel back some of the metal and do some more inspecting? If the later, I might farm it out.

 

[jack stand]

You need to get back up into the attic (sorry) and see if you can find an area or screw directly above the wet insulation then find that corresponding area on the roof.
Counting the trusses from the end is a good way to get close (they're 2' apart) then measure against the roof upwards to this area.
Look for damp/wet sheathing around one of the (protruding inside) screws. If you're lucky enough to find some (2 by guessing at your pic) that would definitely be a place to start with some new screws. You may not be able to use the existing leaky location. The 7/16 osb isn't great at giving a screw a second chance once leaking. Using the best sealant you can get, put a little dab on the old hole in the metal, then another one on the new screw and gently draw it tight with a 1/4" nut driver. (by hand)
This might be part of the problem seeing that an inexperienced guy could easily over tightened the screw and essentially "stripped" any potential seal and holding power.
Basically try to isolate the leak within a 8' circle around the leak.
The hardest thing about fixing many types of leakage is finding the SOB!

 

[UserNameAttempt3]

Yeah I've pretty much isolated the screws in the area. The truss to the right of the wet spots in the attic is a roof elevation change from above the laundry room and the main house to the garage side. And where the leak is from the edge of the roof up is a slope change on the main section of the roof above the laundry room. The roof is 10yrs old and most of the screws look to be in good shape, except for the ones along that pitch change.

 

[pcmeiners]

Would suspect the screw up there need to be replaced. Personally I would get plenty of stainless screws and new rubber washer and start replacing them in the leak area. The one spot with sealant cracks need a good cleaning and resealing, kind of obvious the installer new this area was an issue.

 

[UserNameAttempt3]

Previous owner left a Foldgers can of screws that I imagine are what was used. Can I just swap the screw or should I go with a larger size?

 

[Rusted Nut]

Beaware that where you see the leak inside, is not nessecarily where it's leaking. It could leaking quite a bit above where it drips, and running down top of truss etc... However the loose screws are a good indication of the issue. I would reccomend getting a slightly longer and larger screw to replace the loose screws you found. Get a good quality screw gasket, and don't over torque the screw and squish the washer/gasket to death.

 

[reader2580]

They make roofing screws where the metal covers the rubber washer completely. This helps keep the washer from deteriorating. I don’t recall the name, but I used them on the few places where I had to use an exposed screw.

 

[finn]

I’ve said it before. Never seen a steel roof that didn’t leak.

You can try longer screws or beehive screws as a temporary fix, but it will never be as good as a shingle roof.

 

[Uncle murph]

I’ve said it before. Never seen a steel roof that didn’t leak.

You can try longer screws or beehive screws as a temporary fix, but it will never be as good as a shingle roof.

A properly installed metal roof is probably the best option out there.I’ve made my living for thirty years going behind hacks and butchers and am still amazed at some of the sh t shows I’ve come across.

 

[PopcornSutton]

That metal roof will be going strong when asphalt is dried up. But these maintenance things need to be kept up. Many believe screws should be installed in the ribs. There is logic to this, but pulling down the screw where i properly loads against the washer can be iffy. I re-roofed my barn this year with metal, that maker recommended the screw pattern in the flats.

Tighten down the screws by hand (my cordless has an adjustable clutch you can set for torque) then get some good roofing sealant, nit black asphalt. Seal any screw/gasket that looks suspicious. And address that caulked joint.

Any metal roof should not need sealant to shed water. But sealant will protect against wind blown rain and the metal movement due to temperature.