04/05/2021
//What Could Be Wrong in the Attic?🛖//
As a home owner, have you ever gone up to your attic?
Being one of the most neglected part in your home, attic space in fact plays an important role in keeping your home and your family safe and sound. This space between the roof and the upper floor ceiling contains the framing members of the roof structure. It bears the insulation which keeps your house warm in the winter and cool in the summer. This attic space also acts as a breather in your home as it continuously dealing with moisture and warm humid air that entered from the living place below. (attic is not usually designed for storage!)
Attic space being a significant part to the integrity of your home, we always spend a considerable amount of time and effort to inspect, despite its difficult accessibility. Below is a list of issues we commonly discovered inside the attic.
Roof leak
We look for evidence of water intrusion. Watermark on roof sheathing, wet insulation, rotted wood structure, mold growth are commonly seen in houses with a leaking roof.
Insufficient ventilation in attic
Attics allow venting of roof spaces to flush warm, moist air out of the building components. Air should move freely from soffit vents, through soffit baffles, into the attic, and out of roof vents. Inadequate air movement leaves evidence of condensation and mold on the sheathing or structural members. Poor air circulation also makes your attic too warm in the winter and too hot in the summer.
Vent problem
Exhaust fans in kitchens, bathrooms and laundry dump stale and moist air directly outside, usually through ducts in attic. This type of ventilation eliminates moisture and air pollutants before it has a chance to damage the buildings. Leaky or disconnected ductworks result in condensation damage and mold growth in attic.
Insufficient insulation
Attics with insufficient insulation cannot keep warm air inside your living space. Excess warm air that enters the attic can lead to condensation and mold growth. It also dramatically increase the energy cost from heating and cooling the house. On the other hand, poorly installed or shifted insulation may cover the baffles and soffit vents, blocking the ventilation in attic.
Rodent activities
It is common to see signs of rodent activities in the attic. Rodents will leave p**p and p*e in the attic as long as they are allowed to stay. It becomes a sanitation problem. Consult a pest control company as soon as possible.
Fire damage
Sometimes we will see attics that have been painted white. Often it is done to cover over evidence of a fire in the attic or home. Wood members get covered with smoke, soot or get charred after a fire has been put out. Painting the wood members makes the attic look better and to encapsulate the burnt smoky odor.
To protect your home from all kind of damages, homeowners should inspect and perform maintenance to the attic regularly, at least once a year. Remember to wear proper protective gears including a dust mask and a well-lit flashlight before getting in. If you are uncomfortable doing the job yourself, give us a call!
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//閣樓常見問題//
作為屋主的你上過閣樓嗎？
閣樓通常是最容易被忽視的部分，但實際上它在保持房屋結構與家人健康方面起著重要的作用。
這個屋頂及頂層天花板之間的閣樓空間包含了組成屋頂結構的組件，同時亦隱藏著保溫物料，令你的房屋在冬天保持溫暖，在夏天保持涼爽。這個閣樓空間還堅負著為房屋呼吸的責任，它不斷將我們日常生活中所製造的潮濕空氣排出屋外。 （閣樓通常不是設計來儲存雜物的！）
閣樓確保房屋完整健康，儘管它空間有限，難以在內走動，我們會盡力進行檢查找出潛在問題。以下是我們在閣樓內常見的問題。
屋頂漏水
閣樓是觀察屋頂是否漏水的最佳地方，從尋找一些蛛絲馬跡，例如屋頂夾層板上的水印、潮濕的保溫棉、腐爛的木結構、霉菌滋生等，再配合紅外線熱象儀及濕度探測器來找出漏水的屋頂。
閣樓通風不足
閣樓可讓屋頂空間通風，讓溫暖潮濕的空氣從建築物中排出。空氣應從拱腹通風口自由流動，穿過排氣隔板進入閣樓，再從屋頂的通風口排出。空氣不流通會導致屋頂夾層板或木結構上出現冷凝水或發霉的跡象，更會使閣樓在冬天過暖，在夏天過熱。
排氣問題
廚房，浴室和洗衣中的排氣扇通常直接通過閣樓的管道將不新鮮和潮濕的空氣直接排到室外。這種通風方式避免濕氣和空氣污染物積在屋內，損壞建築物。管道系統洩漏或連接不良會導致閣樓中的結構出現冷凝水損壞或霉菌滋生。
保溫物料不足
保溫不足的閣樓無法將溫暖的空氣保持在你的生活空間內，過多的熱空氣進入閣樓會導致冷凝水形成和霉菌滋生，此外，這亦增加了暖冷氣的能源成本。另一方面，安裝不當或移了位的保溫棉有機會遮蓋排氣隔板，阻礙閣樓的通風。
動物的痕跡
有時在閣樓內會看到囓齒動物活動的跡象，牠們會將糞便和小便留在閣樓，造成衛生問題。須儘快諮詢害蟲防治公司。
火災
有時閣樓被漆成了白色，通常是屋主用來覆蓋曾經發生過的火災。熄滅大火後，木結構會被煙灰覆蓋或燒成焦黑色。塗上漆油可以使閣樓更好看，同時遮蔽燃燒後的煙熏味。
為了保護房屋免受各種損害，屋主應定期，至少每年一次檢查閣樓並進行維修。切記在進入閣樓前佩戴適當的防護裝備，包括防塵口罩和光線充足的手電筒。如果感到有困難，請僱用專業人員！
