Ceiling Moisture Problem
What Causes Moisture to Accumulate on A Bathroom Ceiling?
In most cases, it's either going
to be from a roof leaking onto the bathroom ceiling, something leaking from
the floor above or the most popular of the three choices, poor bathroom
ventilation.
The damage you're looking at in the picture above was
actually caused by the roofer who forgot to the lap the roofing paper over
the ridge. Could you imagine that, all of the damage to this particular
bathroom ceiling was the direct result of someone who didn't know what they
were doing.
Welcome to the world of construction and home
inspections.
Let's get back to the moisture problems and poor
ventilation.
When someone takes a hot steamy shower or bath and in
some cases lets the hot water run in a sink while shaving or washing their
face, moisture can accumulate on the walls and ceilings as the vapors from
the hot water start to cool down. This is by far the most common cause of
mold, mildew and fungus in bathrooms.
Most building departments
require either a window in the bathroom for ventilation or a fan to help
circulate fresh air. In some cases you're going to have neither and if this
is the case, a fan or window might need to be installed.
There is one
more thing you can do and that would be to leave the bathroom door open
while showering or using hot water. The minute the door is closed and
moisture is trapped, without a window or fan, the moisture in these rooms
can get pretty intense and I've seen ceilings form hundreds of droplets over
the shower.
Moisture can ruin drywall and plaster, leading to major
home repair bills.