Cannot identify roof leak problem

[jimmy342]

Hello,
I have a leak somewhere in the roof and water ingress into the 2nd floor bedroom. I had a few roofers check and they said it was the felt rotted so had a layer of felt fitted up to first batten with epc trays all the way along the roof and also the valleys on both sides of the dorma remortarted. He said it would fix the problem but there is still water ingress on the corner of the room. Checking today in the rain I see a damp patch all the way down the outside wall and slow dripping coming from behind the gutter where it is fitted to the facia board. I checked the gutter is clear and not overflowing.

Any idea what it could be as I am at a total loss as to how the water is getting in.

Attaching some photos.

Thanks for your help.

 

[bobasd]

i'd suspect your troubles lie in what and how the felt support trays have been fitted?
if you have access to your loft then crawl into that corner with a light/torch and have a look.
anyone else going on the roof should take photos of whats existing and what they claim to have done.

plastic Eaves Felt Support Trays are fitted and then the new strip of felt is lapped over them to slightly turn down over the gutter.
the roof tile is set with a projection of about 50mm.
moisture can be seen on the brickwork about 700mm from the corner.

doubtful but not impossible that the dormer valley is involved but that area can also be examined from below in the loft.

its difficult to see the main verge projection - it should be a min of 50mm.

 

[jimmy342]

Thanks bobasd for your advice. They have taken photo of the work they did. Attached. Looks proper. I cannot get into that part of the loft as is blocked by a joist half way up the roof else I would have inspected it from the inside.

As said he sealed both sides of the dorma also.

Any other ideas what it could be?

Thanks

 

[datarebal]

Water should not be on the underlay... look to the dormer ..picture zoomed in might help
batten looks pretty umarked too, may even be something to do with the brickwork

 

[bobasd]

see my post above #2, and check your roof at the eaves.
the last pic isn't clear - the felt is dipping over the gutter, it should finish another 20mm or so further- fwiw, professionals cut the felt not rip it.
neither can i tell whats happening at the junction of the gutter stop end - the last, verge tile, & the felt running down the verge - and that weird dip under the felt? the dip has created a pocket that might pool water?
another batten is, or was, needed.
and whats that white square of what looks like insulation?

you mention "dorma remortaring" - why are the dormer valleys or abutment flashings using mortar anyway?
as above, its possible that the mortaring is the source of your leak - a 5 out of 10?

 

[datarebal]

ladder looks oddjob to me

 

[bobasd]

just saying jimmy 342: other DIY'ers will be reading this thread.

probably a B&Q double extn DIY ladder - wrong angle, too shallow - resting on plastic gutter with no stand-off, and lacking 900mm projection above the gutter.
given the above, was the ladder tied-in at the top and footed at the bottom?

 

[datarebal]

Looks like a GRP dormer to me...take some pictures from out of the window...

 

[jimmy342]

Hi bobasd and datarebal. Had the guy round again to check his work and he couldn’t find any issue where the felt and eps tray installed. He even checked the loft and didn’t see anything obvious. Attached a couple of more pictures. One of before the felt and tray fitted as well photo of the dormer from the bathroom window as well as from outside. Note that gap in the flashing has been filled in with silicone but I don’t have an after picture. Wondering if the issue is further up the roof and/or water getting through the brickwork through to cavity due to heavy driving rain as in the first picture attached the wall near the leak looks really damp. Having a couple of more roofers coming to diagnose later in the week. Really frustrating that cannot get to root cause of the issue.

 

[bobasd]

OP, a few of the questions i asked above have not yet been answered?

the new pics show a roof thats got various "problems" that need a professional roofer's attention.
eg you show different types of material for the unusual dormer apron. the lead is a water trap.
eg the "mortar" (if that stuff actually is mortar) is simply a codge to somehow make up for a bad Dormer design.
eg an odd sort of filler piece for a tile.
eg the tile gauge looks a little short?

to my mind, the roof needs stripping and re-doing properly

 

[jimmy342]

Hi bobasd. The roof and dormer are original from when the house was built in 2005 by Westbury homes. I have owned it from new and I presume they would have not got the NHBC warranty if it was not to building regs? Never had a problem with the property till now. All the homes on the estate are the same style in terms of dormer with mortar on side of valleys and apron. I had three roofers out that all said the issue was with the felt under first row of tiles so I had that done and they also said the mortar on dorma had come off in places so had that done too. I don’t know what is a professional roofer and what is not. I use Checkatrade to find them. As said I am having couple of more roofers coming out to look at it. The issue is only on the corner side so I am hoping there is not a problem with the whole roof.

 

[bobasd]

Westbury Homes had an atrocious reputation for build quality that only got worse when Westbury failed, and became part of Persimmon Homes.
NHBC Warranties border on useless bits of paper - the NHBC exists to provide "excuses" for the big builders - it is not the home buyers friend.
just because other roofs on the estate have been done wrong doesn't somehow make it right. using mortar fillets instead of lead flashing is considered unskilled or cowboy work.
Checkatrade and similar have very bad reputations - they are out to make a profit and dont care how. if you have the joining fee then you too could join as a roofer.

ask the roofers you contact if they have an NVQ level 2 in Slating and Tiling? not all good roofers have the qualification but its a great indicator of training.

i know that you as a member of the non-building trades public are at a great disadvantage when hiring repair people, esp. roofers - why should you know someone else's job, i dont know yours.
but i can only advise you on what you say, and what i can see.