The three things that fail · 02
Pipe boot leak: what's broken and how it gets fixed
A pipe jack (the rubber boot around your plumbing vent) leaks for two reasons. The builder put on the cheapest one, and the rubber dries out in the sun and cracks. Or the nails in front of it pull up and water gets underneath. The leak often shows up on a ceiling a room away.
Why do pipe jacks crack in Texas?
Builder-grade rubber and years of sun. The rubber dries, shrinks and splits around the pipe. It's a known failure point on roofs about 10 to 12 years old, sometimes sooner.
How we fix it
The failing pipe jack comes out and a new one goes in with the five shingles around it worked back in, the way it should have been built. Never a collar slipped over a split boot. The fasteners are screws with rubber (EPDM) washers.
Catch it on a visit, or after it splits?
Caught on a visit, a pipe jack takes about an hour. Caught after it splits: a stained ceiling, wet insulation, and a repair inside the house on top of the roof.
Questions homeowners ask
My roof is leaking around the vent pipe. What's actually broken?
Usually one of two things. The rubber boot around the pipe (the pipe jack) has dried out and cracked, or the nails in front of it are pulling up and water gets underneath. Either way, the leak often shows up on a ceiling a room away from the pipe.
The rubber boot around my plumbing vent is cracked. Can that be fixed without a new roof?
Yes. A cracked pipe jack is a repair, not a new roof. The old one comes out and a new one goes in with the shingles around it worked back in properly. No collar over the old one.
What does it cost to fix a pipe boot on a roof?
On one of our visits, an extra pipe jack is $150. One is included in The Breakwater program ($1,049). A standalone repair is priced after the photo inspection.
Do all my pipe jacks need to be done at once?
No. They don't all fail at the same time. We put in a new one only when it's failing. If a boot still has life, we keep it and upgrade the fasteners.
See what your roof is telling you before you decide anything.
- Book a roof inspection.
- We bring your roof system down to you. The good, the bad, what's failing, in photos.
- You decide.