hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. Where
could this drip be coming from. It also rained all day today pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

On Sat, 18 Apr 2009 16:40:07 -0700 (PDT), against all advice,
something compelled david , to say:

hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.



That sounds kinky.




--

Real men don't text.

david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. Where
could this drip be coming from. It also rained all day today pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

Water can travel a long way before it becomes visible. For instance, the
leak could be on the other side of your house, the water travels down a wall
to the floor, along the floor (under the carpet) until it finds a hole,
through the hole to a slightly-tilted beam, along the beam 'till it hit the
vent, thence down to your couch.

The easiest thing to check, and the most likely source of the water, is the
flashing on the various things that pierce the roof, irrespective of their
proximity to the visible part of the leak.

On Apr 18, 7:40*pm, david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. *This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. *I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. *I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. *Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. *I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. *I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. *The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. *Where
could this drip be coming from. *It also rained all day today *pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

" i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with
no evidence of it on the second"

Water will find it's way to an opening via a path that you may not
see. It may run along the bottom of a joist, a wire or a pipe, finally
dripping down when its attraction to the object ends and gravity takes
over. The property is known as surface tension and it can make the
origin of the leak difficult to find.

In addition, it could run along the top of the ceiling drywall and not
show any signs until it either pools someplace and/or saturates the
drywall enough to soak through.

Was it windy when you got the 3 inches of rain? It could have been
blowing through any opening and working its way down to the first
floor. If it was, figure out which way the wind was blowing from and
see if you can find an opening - an opening that might not be seen
unless it's really windy. That's a tough one.

Have you been there long and been through storms like this before?
Maybe you'll get lucky and it was an isolated incident. Stranger
things have happened.

On Apr 18, 7:11*pm, DerbyDad03 wrote:
On Apr 18, 7:40*pm, david wrote:





hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. *This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. *I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. *I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. *Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. *I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. *I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. *The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. *Where
could this drip be coming from. *It also rained all day today *pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

" i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with
no evidence of it on the second"

Water will find it's way to an opening via a path that you may not
see. It may run along the bottom of a joist, a wire or a pipe, finally
dripping down when its attraction to the object ends and gravity takes
over. The property is known as surface tension and it can make the
origin of the leak difficult to find.

In addition, it could run along the top of the ceiling drywall and not
show any signs until it either pools someplace and/or saturates the
drywall enough to soak through.

Was it windy when you got the 3 inches of rain? It could have been
blowing through any opening and working its way down to the first
floor. If it was, figure out which way the wind was blowing from and
see if you can find an opening - an opening that might not be seen
unless it's really windy. That's a tough one.

Have you been there long and been through storms like this before?
Maybe you'll get lucky and it was an isolated incident. Stranger
things have happened.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Thank you for replying

Yes it was very windy during the storm and the rain was horizontal at
times. I had leaks at different parts of the house last year during
Hurriance IKE and my handyman dir re seal the flashing as he noticed
that they were pretty bad.

This drip is about 3 feet from the one that i had during the
hurricane which was much worse.

The only thing i can think of is that the water came thru one the air
ventitation vents but again i don't see any signs of dampness there
nor did the insulation get wet. Does insulation dry so quickly.

thanks

david wrote:
Thank you for replying

Yes it was very windy during the storm and the rain was horizontal at
times. I had leaks at different parts of the house last year during
Hurriance IKE and my handyman dir re seal the flashing as he noticed
that they were pretty bad.

This drip is about 3 feet from the one that i had during the
hurricane which was much worse.

The only thing i can think of is that the water came thru one the air
ventitation vents but again i don't see any signs of dampness there
nor did the insulation get wet. Does insulation dry so quickly.

Leaks don't have to start at the top (roof), they can start at the side too.
Horizontal rain means water was being driven hard at places where it
normally wouldn't. Entry could be lots of places...around a window...bad
shingle...


--

dadiOH
____________________________

dadiOH's dandies v3.06...
....a help file of info about MP3s, recording from
LP/cassette and tips & tricks on this and that.
Get it at http://mysite.verizon.net/xico

David, is there a window on the second floor above the leak? What
is the exterior of the house - brick, EIFS, siding? Was the HVAC
running during the storm?

Improperly flashed windows, especially in EIFS, are quite common
and very destructive. High humidity, cold air conditioning, and
metal pipework can sweat lots of water.

--
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)




"david" wrote in message
...
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got
about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the
second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that
water
was just using the opening to drip down. Now the rain although
not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the
ceiling
just above. I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by
the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor
with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which
has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. The guest
bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance
ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a
drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going
on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side.
Where
could this drip be coming from. It also rained all day today
pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but
it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. Where
could this drip be coming from. It also rained all day today pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

Check around your vent stacks in the attic. I had a similar
situation that only occurred during heavy rains. There is a boot made
of rubber that is around the vent stack as it penetrates the roof. In
my situation the stack pipe had fallen ever so slightly causing a
indentation in that rubber boot around the pipe rather than tapering
upward around the pipe. This indentation was enough to accumulate a
bead of water and eventually it followed the pipe to a point to where it
dropped to the floor joists of the attic. I thought I would never find
the leak, but when I did it made sense.

On Sat, 18 Apr 2009 16:40:07 -0700 (PDT), david
wrote:

hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. Where
could this drip be coming from. It also rained all day today pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.


Finding leaks may require some detective work. For example, a roof
leak can travel nearly horizonally several feet along a pipe or beam
before it moves downward. Wait for the next rain or have someone use
a garden hose on the roof while you inspect.

On Apr 19, 8:23*am, Ken wrote:
david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. *This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. *I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. *I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. *Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. *I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. *I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. *The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. *Where
could this drip be coming from. *It also rained all day today *pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

* * *Check around your vent stacks in the attic. *I had a similar
situation that only occurred during heavy rains. *There is a boot made
of rubber that is around the vent stack as it penetrates the roof. *In
my situation the stack pipe had fallen ever so slightly causing a
indentation in that rubber boot around the pipe rather than tapering
upward around the pipe. *This indentation was enough to accumulate a
bead of water and eventually it followed the pipe to a point to where it
dropped to the floor joists of the attic. *I thought I would never find
the leak, but when I did it made sense.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Yes, I have found the source and it is one of the vent stacks.
Unfortuntely i cannot go on the roof safely as it is a two storey but
can see the drip when i was on my attic during a recent
thunderstorm.

A visual inspection from the attic shows that it is sealed but I may
be wrong. My conclusion is based on the fact that i cannot see
sunlight from the boot. -- I am no expert so your comments are
welcomed.

Anyway i have called some roofing companys and one showed up and the
guy did not even climb the roof and wants me to file an insurance
claim. I am surprised. Why can't they just replace the boot or redo
the area around.
thanks please comment
Regards

On Apr 26, 1:16*pm, Jim Behning
wrote:
On Sun, 26 Apr 2009 08:22:30 -0700 (PDT), david
wrote:





On Apr 19, 8:23*am, Ken wrote:
david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. *This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. *I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. *I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. *Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. *I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. *I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. *The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. *Where
could this drip be coming from. *It also rained all day today *pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

* * *Check around your vent stacks in the attic. *I had a similar
situation that only occurred during heavy rains. *There is a boot made
of rubber that is around the vent stack as it penetrates the roof. *In
my situation the stack pipe had fallen ever so slightly causing a
indentation in that rubber boot around the pipe rather than tapering
upward around the pipe. *This indentation was enough to accumulate a
bead of water and eventually it followed the pipe to a point to where it
dropped to the floor joists of the attic. *I thought I would never find
the leak, but when I did it made sense.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Yes, I have found the source and it is one of the vent stacks.
Unfortuntely i cannot go on the roof safely as it is a two storey but
can see the drip when i was on my attic during a recent
thunderstorm.

A visual inspection from the attic shows that it is sealed but I may
be wrong. *My conclusion is based on the fact that i cannot see
sunlight from the boot. * -- I am no expert so your comments are
welcomed.

Anyway i have called some roofing companys and one showed up and the
guy did not even climb the roof and wants me to file an insurance
claim. *I am surprised. *Why can't they just replace the boot or redo
the area around.
thanks please comment
Regards

The roofing company replaced one of 4 sections of my roof after a
hailstorm. They replaced all the boots in that section. That roof was
only 10-11 years old. They said the boots were not in great shape. The
roofing company had to inspect the roof and take pictures documenting
the damage before the insurance company would act on the problem.

Water will find ways to get in even if things appear to good from one
view. I would assume you could reboot vent pipes. I have replaced
damaged shingles on my barn. Of course if the roof is already too far
gone, patches are just the chance for more complaints. No reputable
roofing company is going to try a job where the potential is great for
more complaints. Maybe the roofer saw that your shingles were already
showing signs of being at the end of their useful life.

I took an abandoned brick chimney out of the roof and attic of one of
my co-worker's houses. I installed some plywood to fill the hole and
weaved in some new shingles. She never complained about any new leaks.
That roof was relatively new (a few years old) so weaving in new
shingles was pretty easy. *Note I am not a roofer so any comments
should be taken accordingly.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


The shingles on my roof are the 40 year shingles and they look to be
in very good shape. But i am not an expert and therefore getting a
second opinion from another company. In any case i too am leaning
toward it being an issue with the boot. Only wished the roofer would
take the time to climb the roof instead of telling me to first file a
claim. He did say he has 18 yr experience so go figure.
Regards and thanks again

On Apr 26, 11:22*am, david wrote:
On Apr 19, 8:23*am, Ken wrote:



david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. *This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. *I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. *I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. *Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. *I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. *I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. *The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.

So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. *Where
could this drip be coming from. *It also rained all day today *pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.

If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.

* * *Check around your vent stacks in the attic. *I had a similar
situation that only occurred during heavy rains. *There is a boot made
of rubber that is around the vent stack as it penetrates the roof. *In
my situation the stack pipe had fallen ever so slightly causing a
indentation in that rubber boot around the pipe rather than tapering
upward around the pipe. *This indentation was enough to accumulate a
bead of water and eventually it followed the pipe to a point to where it
dropped to the floor joists of the attic. *I thought I would never find
the leak, but when I did it made sense.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Yes, I have found the source and it is one of the vent stacks.
Unfortuntely i cannot go on the roof safely as it is a two storey but
can see the drip when i was on my attic during a recent
thunderstorm.

A visual inspection from the attic shows that it is sealed but I may
be wrong. *My conclusion is based on the fact that i cannot see
sunlight from the boot. * -- I am no expert so your comments are
welcomed.

Anyway i have called some roofing companys and one showed up and the
guy did not even climb the roof and wants me to file an insurance
claim. *I am surprised. *Why can't they just replace the boot or redo
the area around.
thanks please comment
Regards

"My conclusion is based on the fact that i cannot see sunlight
from the boot."

Light doesn't bend but water does.

Try looking through a garden hose. Unless it's stretched perfectly
straight you can't see light through it, but water has no problem
"leaking" from one end to the other.

david wrote:
On Apr 19, 8:23 am, Ken wrote:
david wrote:
hi
I have a two storey house in houston texas. This friday we got about
3 inches of rain at around noon. I was in my master on the second
floor for the good part of the rain.
When i went to my first floor family room I noticed water on my
couch. I looked up to see a water stain from my vent. I quickly
opened the vent to find it was completely dry and concluded that water
was just using the opening to drip down. Now the rain although not
heavy was steady by the drip had stop.
I went up to the second storey and noticed no leaks in the ceiling
just above. I also went thru the attic with a flood light and
although the space is tight could not find any water marks by the
drain vents etc.
So i am lost as to how water was dripping thru the first floor with no
evidence of it on the second.
Now to the left of the family room is the guest bathroom which has
it's drain vent and plumbing pretty far from the drip. I cannot
imagine any plumbing in the area of the drip. The guest bathroom does
have an exhaust which is about 3 feet from the drip spot.
All the drain vents on the roof were re sealed after hurriance ike.
And i should mention that during hurriance ike we did have a drip spot
about a foot to the left of the new one.
So my quesiton is where do i look and what do you think is going on.
The drip spot is about 9 feet from the shingled house side. Where
could this drip be coming from. It also rained all day today pretty
heavy and the drip is gone.
If it was the plumbing or the drain it would be consistent but it
isn't.
Please advice and thanks for reading.
Check around your vent stacks in the attic. I had a similar
situation that only occurred during heavy rains. There is a boot made
of rubber that is around the vent stack as it penetrates the roof. In
my situation the stack pipe had fallen ever so slightly causing a
indentation in that rubber boot around the pipe rather than tapering
upward around the pipe. This indentation was enough to accumulate a
bead of water and eventually it followed the pipe to a point to where it
dropped to the floor joists of the attic. I thought I would never find
the leak, but when I did it made sense.- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -

Yes, I have found the source and it is one of the vent stacks.
Unfortuntely i cannot go on the roof safely as it is a two storey but
can see the drip when i was on my attic during a recent
thunderstorm.

A visual inspection from the attic shows that it is sealed but I may
be wrong. My conclusion is based on the fact that i cannot see
sunlight from the boot. -- I am no expert so your comments are
welcomed.

As another poster said, it is not always possible to see a gap for
there to be one. Those boots are not expensive, (something less than
$15) but sometimes a couple of new shingles are needed in order to
replace them. This is due to the way the boot sits between the shingles.


Anyway i have called some roofing companys and one showed up and the
guy did not even climb the roof and wants me to file an insurance
claim. I am surprised. Why can't they just replace the boot or redo
the area around.
thanks please comment
Regards

As far as the company not wanting to climb your roof for this problem:
I suspect he is looking for a larger job than replacing a boot or two.
You might see if an odd job person or handy man is willing and
knowledgeable for the task. Unless your roof is in need of replacement
it should not take long or cost much.

The correct way is to replace the boot which is generally affixed to an
aluminum base. As a cheap and temporary fix, you could cut the rubber
part out of the replacement boot and simply slip it over the existing
one. It will probably work for some time since it will provide an
umbrella effect over where it is currently leaking. I do not recommend
this type of fix, but I just thought I would throw it out there.