With a water stain around, there should be water damage lurking nearby. Water stains are one of the most telling signs of the presence of water damage. You may not have to look far; just look up. Chances are you'll find a yellowish / brownish / grayish mark on your ceiling. If so, then you've got a water damage problem right above your head, and it's time to check it out.



First, you'll have to locate the manhole that will take you to the crawl space between the roof and the ceiling. Once you've located the manhole, take a flashlight or a rechargeable lamp, climb up into the manhole, and unto the crawl space. Some crawl spaces are literally just that: a small space to crawl on. Others have enough space between the roof and the ceiling where you simply need to crouch a little to move around. Anyway, whether you crouch or crawl your way to it, you'll have to locate the spot where you saw the water stain from inside your house. A water stain will also be visible right above that spot.

Once you've reached the site, you'd most likely notice that water damage has already started. The cause will most likely be a hole in the roof. Don't always expect to find the hole right above it, though. The hole might be some distance away but the water might have found its way to the spot if the spot is located at a lower level than the one immediately below the hole. Hence, you might have to trace the source. This can be easy since you'd most likely find a water stain trail leading to it.

If you still have difficulty locating the hole, you might have to ask somebody to help you locate it. That person should aim water from a hose unto the roof in the vicinity of the water stain. While your buddy sprays your roof with water, you'll have to keep a sharp eye on the inside part of your roof from the crawl space. As soon as you see water drops forming, it would be then easy to locate the hole. If the hole is large enough, water will be conspicuously dripping from it.

Once you've located the hole in the roof, you'll then have to seal it with some roof cement. In some cases, you'll have to replace damaged shingles. The type of repair will depend on the type of roof that you have above you. We will not tackle such procedures in this article though. The important thing is that, the roof should be repaired as soon as possible to prevent the effects of water damage from getting worse. Water damage usually develops unnoticed since most of the places that are susceptible to water damage are hidden from our daily view. It is therefore important to keep a sharp eye for signs such as water stains to ensure that water damage does not escalate into a more expensive situation.