Ceiling Leak After Reno | Bowen Island

Photo: An all too common site on the West Coast. Buckets on a floor catching ceiling leaks.

Abstract: Bowen Island Home Inspector note on water leaks and spray foam insulation.

Problem Leak

We received a call from a client on Bowen Island for whom we had done a home inspection over a year ago. After the purchase, the house was renovated with the addition of a new wing. But now there was a problem… a water leak in the ceiling of the new addition. Considerable time and money had been spent on trying to locate the source. All efforts to date had been unsuccessful in locating the leak.   

Closed Cell Spray Foam Insulation

The interior ceiling had been insulated with high density closed cell spray foam insulation. Unfortunately with closed cell insulation, water does not migrate through the material. Rather water travels where it will and comes out at the most unexpected locations. The better application of closed cell spray foam insulation is on vertical walls, not ceilings.

Open Cell Spray Foam Insulation

Good practice for spray foam insulation is to use the open cell type of spray foam insulation on the roof’s underside sheathing. In the event of a roof leak, the insulation is permeable to water at the leak location and will stain directly below that location. This allow for rapid location of the defect.

Ongoing Support

We listened to our client’s concerns and agreed to visit their home.  However in this case, our client was finally able to locate the source and our site visit was not required.

All past EKAN clients receive on-going technical support at no charge for as long as they own their home.