The Most Common Roof Leak We Fix in Lufkin (and Why We Don’t Use Caulk)

If your ceiling has a brown stain near a bathroom or the kitchen, there’s a good chance the problem is a pipe sticking out of your roof.

The most common leak repair we do around Lufkin is at a penetration. That’s any spot where something comes through the roof:

• plumbing vent pipes
• satellite dish mounts
• chimney flashing

Why those spots leak

Most of those spots are sealed with caulk. Caulk works when it’s new. Then the weather goes to work on it. Heat, rain and wind break it down over time, and once it dries out and cracks, water gets in.

You usually won’t know right away. The water has to soak through the roof decking first, then the sheetrock, before you ever see a stain. By the time you notice it, it’s been going on a while.

How we find it

When you call, the office gets the details: where the stain is and when it shows up. Our inspector looks inside first, then goes up on the roof to pin down exactly what’s letting water in. It’s often right there at the pipe, but not always, so we check.

The fix: take the caulk out of the equation

Re-caulking a failed vent pipe works for a while. Then it fails again, because it’s caulk.

So wherever we can, we use caulk-free parts. Around vent pipes, we install a Bullet Boot. It’s a rubber boot system that fits over the pipe. There’s nowhere that needs caulk, and nowhere for water to get in. It takes the most common failure point off your roof for good.

What happens after the repair

Our inspector is on site during the repair or comes back right after for a final check, to make sure the job was done as quoted. The office then sends your invoice with a link to before, during and after photos, so you can see exactly what was done on a part of the house you can’t easily see.

Got a stain?

Don’t wait for it to spread. Our inspections are free, and calls are answered 24/7 at (936) 632-9002. If water is coming in right now, see our emergency roof repair page.