A brown ring on the ceiling does not always mean the roof is leaking. In North Texas homes, the most common causes are the roof, the air conditioner in the attic, and a pipe or a bathroom above. Where the stain is, and when it shows up, tells you a lot. Here is how to tell them apart.
First, is it still wet?
Press a dry paper towel on the stain, or touch it lightly. Then mark the edge of the stain with a pencil and look again in a day or two.
- Wet or soft, or the ring keeps growing: water is still getting in. Find the cause soon.
- Dry and the same size for weeks: it may be an old leak that was already fixed. It is still worth knowing where it came from.
If the drywall sags or bulges, water may be sitting on top of it. Stand clear, put a bucket under it, and read our post on what to do in the first hour of a leak.
Clues that point to the roof
- It shows up after rain. The stain gets darker or grows after a storm, then dries out in dry weather.
- It is on a top-floor ceiling. A roof leak shows up on the ceiling right under the attic, not on a first-floor ceiling with a room above it.
- It sits near an outside wall or a corner. Water often comes in where the roof meets a wall, at the flashing (the metal strips that seal those joints).
- It is near a pipe, a vent or the chimney. The rubber pipe boots that seal around pipes crack in the Texas sun.
- It came after hail or high wind. Lifted or missing shingles let water in the next time it rains.
Keep in mind that water runs along the wood in the attic before it drips. So the hole in the roof can be a few feet uphill from the stain on your ceiling.
Clues that point to the AC
Many homes here have the air conditioner in the attic. It makes water as it cools the air. That water drips into a pan and runs out a drain line. If the line clogs with gunk, the pan fills and spills over, right onto your ceiling.
- The stain shows up on hot, dry days, when the AC runs hard.
- It is under or close to where the AC unit sits in the attic.
- The pan under the unit has water in it, or rust marks.
Some systems have a small float switch that shuts the AC off when the pan fills. If your AC stops cooling and you also see a stain, check the pan first. An AC tech can clear the drain line.
Clues that point to plumbing
- There is a bathroom or a laundry room above it. A worn seal under a toilet, a cracked tub drain or a loose shower part can leak through the floor.
- It shows up after someone takes a shower or runs the washer, rain or shine.
- It never dries out. A pipe that drips all the time keeps the spot wet every day.
If you think it is plumbing, a plumber is the right call, not a roofer.
Other causes
- Bath fans. A bath fan that vents into the attic instead of outside fills it with warm, wet air. That can drip back down near the fan.
- Sweating ducts. In summer, cold AC ducts in a hot attic can drip, like a cold glass of tea on a hot day. Torn duct wrap makes it worse.
- Skylights. A stain around a skylight can be the skylight itself or the flashing around it.
- Ice. After a rare ice storm, ice at the edge of the roof can push water under the shingles.
How to check the attic safely
If you can get into your attic, go on a dry, cool morning with a good flashlight. Step only on the wood beams or a walkway, never between them. The drywall will not hold you.
- Find the spot above the stain. Count the beams from a wall, or measure from the attic door.
- Look for dark or wet wood, a drip line down a rafter, or wet insulation.
- Look up for daylight through the boards. Daylight means a gap in the roof.
- Look at the AC pan and the drain line if the unit is close by.
- Take photos of what you find.
If the wood is dry above the stain but the AC pan is full, you likely found your answer. If the wood is wet near a pipe or a wall, the roof is the likely cause.
Painting over it
Do not paint over a stain until you know the cause is fixed. The stain will come back, and paint can hide a leak that keeps rotting the wood. Once the cause is fixed and the drywall is dry, a stain-blocking primer covers the mark before regular paint. If the drywall is soft or crumbles, that piece needs to be cut out and replaced.
What to do next
If the clues point to the roof, call Legacy Roofing at (817) 602-2057. We are based in Crowley and work across Fort Worth, Burleson, Mansfield and nearby towns. We find where the water gets in, show you a photo, and tell you what a roof repair would cost before we start. Not sure if it is the roof at all? Our free drone roof survey photographs every slope. Someone needs to be home for the flight, you see the pictures before we leave, and you get a written photo report.
