We have been battling a leak above our fireplace for years. We live in an old stucco Tudor, so we have lots of cracks we've had repaired, and outlets roof replaced, etc. it still leaks during heavy rain.
The ceiling is opened up right now, and my husband wants to put this highly absorbent material called "Oil-Dri" up there to stop the water from coming through our ceiling anymore. I am afraid that trapping water up there is going to create a mold problem, but he insists that since this stuff is mold resistant then it won't become a problem.
He is gung ho on putting that stuff up there today, and closing up the ceiling, so I need advice FAST!!! The more responses the better!
That sounds like he wants to install a sponge in the wall... not sure about the mold factor, but I doubt it will really solve any problems with moisture, as the water will still be in the material and weighing against your ceiling.
It is like a sponge. They are "professional absorbent pads". So he wants to reach up into the hole and somehow tack it to the interior wall, and the bottom of the 2nd story subfloor. This way it won't be touching the ceiling.
But then we will basically have a wet sponge trapped inside our ceiling (?), whereas before, the water was able to escape through the ceiling.
Anything short of finding the leak(s) and fixing them properly I would consider as only a band-aid on a gaping wound. Time to bite the bullet and while the ceiling is opened up, find the source of leaks and fix it once and for all.
Thanks gym, yes I know and agree. We have had the ceiling opened up probably 5-6 times in the last 3 years trying to recreate and identify the leak. We have had roofers and contractors and carpenters and stucco guys and masonry people all look at it. We have been able to recreate the leak in the past but no longer. My husband is giving up and just wants to ABSORB the water so it no longer comes through the ceiling.
He is putting the absorbent stuff up there now, as I type. He doesn't believe that it could cause mold to grow. Will it?
Nothing more to be specific. You would basically be creating a health hazard doing this. Plus it would allow any wood to rot and attract bugs.
Bite the bullet and get it fixed. Stop with the slumlord fixes. The only way to fix it. Will be removing all stucco from the chimney, along with wood. That wood will have to be replaced, if it shows any signs of insect damage or wood rot.
It is going to cost you more as you keep letting it go, to fix it. Then do it now and fix it now.
In addition to what Greg stated that absorbent material is going to get heavier over time when it absorbs water and eventually the increased weight may cause structural failure. It's also possible that eventually if it doesn't collapse the material may reach the maximum amount of water it can absorb and water will come through anyway.
Even if the item you describe soaks up the water, you will still have water in the surrounding areas and when that thing reaches its limit of holding water, you will have drips onto the underside of the drywall. These scenarios will produce mold. Mold spores will reproduce and your whole ceiling cavity will be filled with it in time.
The absorbant could very well become a huge mold incubator. Think about having a constant damp mass in an enclosed space with all of the prime growing conditions.Temperature/Moisture/Food Source all in one convenient location. Even though the material is not organic, the increased moisture levels inside the space will set up a prime condition on drywall and the wooden structural components. The absorbant material will constantly hold moisture easily above the levels needed for mold growth in close enough proximity to organics to allow mold to thrive. You need to understand that when conditions are right for mold to grow on wooden materials, it is prime for bacterias as well. Together mold and bacteria on damp wood eventually consume the wood as food. This is what happens when wood rots. It is being literally eaten by these organisms. What you plan to do there is create an "all you can eat buffet" for these organisms. The outcome can only be very destructive and much more expensive than a proper repair.
Bees nest, birds nest, and somthing about lady's lunar cycles. Let him know that men don't always know.
Top of chimney may have sloped concrete cap around the flue that failed and letting rain in?. Or if non masonary material, seals failed. May need a flue cap. Remote chance, but if metal tube flue, condensation?
Thanks so much for your replies! I am going to show him this thread. If I can't talk him out of it, maybe you guys and this thread can. He said he would reopen the ceiling and take it out if I could show him proof that it's a bad idea. Thank you!
Oil-Dri makes reputable products, which I have used before. They are meant to be used as high-efficiency absorbents. However, I don't see how Oil-Dri could have any application in your own situation, for the absorbent plus the absorbed liquid are meant to be removed and disposed.
If you plan leaving the saturated absorbent behind, you will not be using the product as the manufacturer intended, tested and approved. The consequences have been described by fellow users of this forum already.
Still not a single picture of this chimney or roof area.
If these so called pro's your hiring are just showing up with a ladder and a caulking gun and handing you a bill that may be part of the problem.
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