Hole in roof - how should I fill it?

[nzwasp]

I was cleaning out my gutters yesterday and I found a hole about 3 inches long by an inch wide in my roof above my garage. Its about half a foot from where my gutter starts. I dont know if i can put that fill and expand foam in to it or if I should use something else. The rest of the room that I could see seems fine.

[Kloubek]

Dear Liza dear Liza. (Not sure why I thought of this song...)

Firstly, you'd have to make sure you don't have any rot anywhere. If you do, you'll have mold which you need to take care of.

Expanding foam isn't going to seal the wood, though it might provide a good backing to put a proper product over top. Any hardware store or Canadian Tire will have roof patch material which would work well to seal the whole area.

[nzwasp]

How would I figure out if there is an rot in there? I wish i had one of those cameras on a small flexible pole that I could stick into places like that.

Incidently just under the gutter there is some wood thats all damp that I presume is ply wood that the ashphalt is installed onto. atleast thats what it looks like from all the other houses around our house (built 2006).

[spike98]

Originally posted by nzwasp
How would I figure out if there is an rot in there? I wish i had one of those cameras on a small flexible pole that I could stick into places like that.

Incidently just under the gutter there is some wood thats all damp that I presume is ply wood that the ashphalt is installed onto. atleast thats what it looks like from all the other houses around our house (built 2006).

These cameras can be had a princess auto or crappy tire for less than $100 on sale.

[Kloubek]

I'm not sure a camera is going to be sufficient unless it is a great picture with a light on it.

Honestly OP, you're going to have to decide whether you want a proper fix or not. If so, you might have to get a professional to work on it.

If not, then you can make the call whether or not it is likely it is in a place where water/snow would have gotten in (sounds like it), and seal it up anyway and hope for the best. If moisture got in and has been hanging out there for a while, I'd just about guarantee some level of rot/mold.

If it is in an unhabited area as I presume, I wonder if it is really a huge deal to have a little mold in there or not. But you certainly want to dry it out as much as possible at the very least before sealing it up.

[masoncgy]

Take a picture of the hole and post it here so we can have a better idea of what's going on.

From what you are saying, you have an actual hole through your shingles (or roof covering) that is 3" x 1" ... does this hole extend through the sheathing (ie: plywood or OSB) too? If so, that is not good, at all, given rain/etc would be pouring into that hole and soaking into everything underneath.

My assumption is that you have a chunk of shingle missing, which isn't as bad given you *should* have a waterproof membrane underneath, but I could be wrong. Either way, you need to fix it.

The only way to fix it properly is to have someone over to re-shingle the area to close it up and keep the pattern consistent. If there is a hole through the sheathing too, that will have to be cut out and properly patched first, then shingled up.

[nzwasp]

I looked at this again today - http://i.imgur.com/sx5Ob.jpg

Its more of a pushed in dent - it penetrates the tile and the plywood but doesnt go all the way through the plywood. All the tile is pushed down into the hole.

Not sure if I can replace the tile or how - I suspect I'd need to get a pro.

[jdmakkord]

That is a hole through your shingle (not tile) and it looks like it is through the sheathing as well. You will want to patch the plywood, and the shingle to ensure your room is water tight.

[nzwasp]

Thanks, pretty sure this was caused by that tornado that came through this part of the sw a couple of years ago, the neighbor next door said he had a few shingles damaged fromshit flying around. Too bad the previous owner didnt get this house checked out.