Nor'easter 2014 - The Flat Roof Dilemma

Nor'easter of November 2014 Emergency:

The Flat Roof Dilemma - The Millionaire Stove Pipe Mystery

It was on a stormy night - wait, this isn't a Sherlock Holmes story, it's a roofing emergency - but it did turn out to be quite the conundrum! 

We were called out of our beds at 12am by a fellow who sounded absolutely beside himself. he had a leak in his million-dollar mansion that was literally pouring water on his kitchen floor. Since we do emergencies, we decided that his could quite probably be the end of his home, so we'd better hurry out there. 50 miles later, we arrived at 1am to find a flat roof mystery like no other. 

In 65 mile per hour gusts, we got up on his flat rubber roof and looked for the source of the leak, and there it was, glaring like a spotlight through the gloom: a circle cut in the roof and deck wherein a stove pipe had be thrust with no sealing whatsoever. We could see clean down into the kitchen. 

The plywood was still exposed, and the rafters were bare to the elements. It was a horrific sight to see on a night that had driving rain (the horizontal type) and even snow. 

Here's a picture of the initial flashing that we installed over the hole, with sealing tape on every seam that we could find. We literally sealed anything we thought might be leaking, including the pipe. See the rain cap on this pipe? It's entirely inadequate to the task - a sort of silly pie-plate stuck on.

We offered to replace it, but the owner didn't want a new one. 

Note the wetness on this roof - it was still pouring as we did this work. 

After that, we began to dry and warm the rubber roof in preparation for accepting a seal. Note my expression here - I was squinting because the rain kept flying in my eyes, and the wind (despite the torch) was quite unbearable. 

This million-dollar mansion in located between the bay and the sea on a slip of land that is rather small - it' s a better location for a light house! Finally, we cut and placed a heavy-duty rubber torch-down mat over the whole thing, and cemented it to the existing roof. There's no way anything will be leaking down this pipe for a very, very, long time. 

That's me again, checking each and every seal, just before it started to snow. 

Now here's the dilemma: How did this hole end up not being sealed, especially on a million-dollar mansion - and who is responsible for things like this? 

After a little homework I found out that this home was a "Super-Storm Sandy" Rebuild, and that the company who did the work took the Super-storm funds, did a quick rebuild and polishing of the inside of the house, (floors, walls, etc.) but it was all eye-candy and no substance. I think it very likely that the new owner (yes, he just bought the place) will find additional issues with the electrical, a/c, anything that you can't see. Very likely the workmen cut the hole in the roof, but forgot or thought it a good corner to cut to leave the stove pipe hole exposed. After all, who will climb up on a roof, but a roofer? They'd be long gone and forgotten by the time the deed would be discovered. 

And so they are, sneaking into the night with their ill-gotten government money. 

A word of advice for those buying houses on Long Island at "rock-bottom" prices - get a good inspector to check out everything, and don't let them get out of looking at the roof. If they decline (as some will do), call a roofer for a separate roof estimate. Oh, and don't forget to have your chimney and all vents in the roof looked at. They're part of your roof, too. 

Got an emergency? Call me: Nick at Best Quality Roofing and Chimney, Inc. 631-281-9100