Thread: Goop coming out of shingles

Brown goop coming out of our shingles. Contractor who installed them (and roof) says we're bad house cleaners. I fear it's a roof leak that has found its way into wall and out shingles. Photos of roof above are posted (along with the goop). Thoughts?

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My first thought is that the water from the valley is getting behind the gutter end. Why, lack of flashing or to much volume for size of gutter. Allot of roof surface being channeled to a K5 gutter.

I would be interested to know how rain water travels from upper downspout (in the second picture) down the valley and into the 5k gutter in picture three. It does seem like a lot of water coming to that one point with only caulking providing a seal. It seems there could be a flashed kickout incorporated here.

If you do a water test (use a hose to run water down the valley) or wait for a rain, see if the caulk is not providing enough protection.

I'm not crazy about the intersecting roof design or the valley detail, but the question is what is that brown goop? I also don't know where the stained shingles are in relation to the valley. In the last picture the shingles look clean at gutter end.

As far as the brown goop, It looks like the shingles were not cleaned or prepped properly befor painting.

The shingle appear to be cedar shake that have been stained gray. If water is getting behind the shingle the cedar will bleed out at the edges. This is what I feel you are seeing. The discoloration appears only to be in the corner and under the gutter.

The construction of the valley and the is a different discussion in itself.

Looks like typical extractive bleeding from Western Red Cedar. The goop is likely tannin bleed, it may well have been polymerized in the sun & intense heat rather than wash off - with the overhangs, etc., esp. if the source of moisture driving same is from above and behind.

Note your location is "Los Angeles" (known for its lack of rain for long periods and arid/hot climate with intense polution), therefore you've also been limited to "california" low voc, finish materials. Not much in the way of "Right Coast" info (eastern white) or typical experience (calif. limits on coatings and volitiles long-standing) will apply.

Even in a perfect world prep, installation, and finishing; every trim, sanding, and nail penetration can produce and evidence itself in the first finish. More likely if less-than-perfect anything in the process.

Note you didn't provide any info on the type install, if the shingles were kiln dried or aged, if the shingles or panels were factory pre-primed (and with what!) and if pre-primed, if they were re-primed before finishing, etc. If the MC was verified prior to finishing, etc. Rain/drain screen system, spacing, on skip, for drying, etc. Guessing these were pre-made up panels since inside corner courses are not inter-staggered at meeting inside corner and trim looks slapped on (might also be a source of water behind shingles) under roof gables.

Check out this thread on another forum, pay special attention to what "CedarEd" has to say.clickable link: Extractive Bleeding on Red Cedar Shingles?

Keep in mind that the worst thing to use to clean and prep is Pressure washers, blasters, or sanders. Gentle "Hand washing" with a scrub brush and gentle rinsing downward hose, drying, repriming & painting/staining.

You can d/l authoritative papers from the FS.

Typical search terms for finding more information would be "Extractive Bleeding", Tannin bleed, Western Red Cedar, etc.

Flashing details, kickouts, dead valleys, and downs emptyping from above onto lower roof into valleys, and roof-to-wall intersections no cants, all potential problems, along with poor choice & execution installation of spiked low-grade & capacity gutters. Agree with others regarding concerns in those areas.

A moisture probe/meter and possibly thermal imaging may help in analyizing moisture intrusion issues. Start at the boards the gutters are spiked into water getting in behind. If accessible attic or eave space - also investigate there for signs of trouble (water).

HTH.

The brown stains on the siding is from water getting behind the siding shingles. The second picture shows excessive caulking at the end of the gutter where a metal "kick out" flashing would be required if this house was in MN. The last picture looks like the valley is made from a rolled asphalt material. Poor choice at the least. Here in MN you'd be required to have a metal tin under the rolled material.

I believe the valley is probably torched-on (modified bitumen), in which case that is a standard way to cover that type of valley in my area. And yes, it does rain in LA.

Moisture is without a doubt oozing out through the wall in the area of the shingles. It may be running for some distance along the ceiling or framing members in the attic. We think you have a roof leak, possibly at the flashings, at the wall/roof intersections, but it could be from plumbing or HVAC. You need an inspector to find the source.

Looks like that corner collects water from several roofs. Water is definitely getting behind the gutter and siding. The gutter can't handle the volume. Perhaps installing a collection box with a suitably sized downspout will work better than a low volume gutter.

Thanks all. Attached is a picture of the downspout above. The shingles are on the side of the house. That side faces south so not a lot of sun--even here in sunny SoCal (where the smog is no longer all that bad thanks to the catalytic converter). The shingles are painted, not stained. Given the other issues we have going on, probably a lousy painting job too. The goop is defintely seeping out from under the shingles--not just the downspout crack (which the gutter guy gooped up even more in case that was the issue.)

For your viewing pleasure, under a new thread, I'm about to post the picture that speaks a thousand words for this project--a gas hose wormed under a moment frame where the contractor left out drypcack--right next to the 18x18 inch hole he punched out of our foundation to make room for ducting.