Ceiling and roof leak water damage repair in Los Angeles

Water from a roof, an upstairs bathroom or an AC drain pan lands on the top of the drywall and spreads. Drywall soaks it up, sags and eventually drips at a seam, a nail or a light. By then the insulation above it is usually soaked too.

Most ceilings are saved if the water stopped and drying starts within a day. Sagging ones are opened. If the drip sits under an attic air handler, an AC condensate overflow is the likelier source.

A sagging ceiling is drywall holding more water than it can carry, and it can come down without warning. Keep people and pets out from under it. We relieve the water safely with a controlled drain into a bucket, then open the saturated section so the cavity can dry. Cutting at the framing makes the patch clean. Trying to push the bulge back up, or waiting to see if it dries, is how whole rooms of ceiling end up on the floor.

An attic leak soaks insulation first, and wet insulation holds water against the ceiling for days after the rain stops. We go into the attic, find the entry point on the roof deck, and pull out insulation that is wet. The deck and rafters are dried in place with air movers and a dehumidifier. Once the roof itself is repaired, new insulation goes back, because dried fiberglass rarely returns to its original thickness. We photograph the entry point for the roofer.

Window and stucco intrusion shows up at the ceiling edge or top of a wall, usually in the corner nearest a window, after wind-driven rain. Water gets behind the stucco at a failed window flashing or a crack and runs down inside the wall. We confirm the path with a thermal camera, dry the wall cavity, and note the entry point for the window or stucco contractor, because the stain comes back every storm until the outside is fixed. Painting over it first only hides the evidence.