Roof Inspection Finds Exhaust Gases Entering California Home

“Kids and wife all got sick within the last week.”

After a California family had a technician service their rooftop air conditioner, they learned that exhaust gases were being forced into their home.

Unsure how to respond, one of the residents posted in Reddit’s r/Roofing community and asked, “What do I say to the roofing company?”

Here’s what happened

In the Reddit discussion, the homeowner described the situation in detail. The family’s gas water heater was 26 years old, and the homeowner intended to replace it after the roof work was completed. Before that, an HVAC technician had serviced both the indoor furnace and the rooftop air conditioner and had spoken with the homeowner about the water heater.

Later, when a contractor came to work on the gas water heater, he discovered that the water heater’s exhaust vent pipe had been disturbed and was letting combustion gases vent into the house.

The original poster then added, “Kids and wife all got sick within the last week (classic cold symptoms only for them, whereas I had a cold and a headache for a few days) … Did my family almost just die of CO poisoning?”

Several commenters advised the homeowner to inform the roofing company about the problem, while suggesting that the conversation remain calm and not accusatory.

One user wrote, “I would let the roofer know, not as a ‘gotcha’ but just so maybe they can tell their team to make sure they’re reinstalling exhaust vents properly when they wrap up the job.”

Another commenter, who said they owned a roofing company, advised, “You should mention it just so they can be mindful moving forward within their company, but it’s not their fault. We come across this often and to be honest if something is loosely attached that could potentially shift and kill an entire family, what kind of sh*t job are the HVAC or plumbers doing in the first place?”

A third user said a similar situation had happened to them and was resolved without extra charges. Another joked that since “nobody died or was catastrophically injured,” it was “a win.” The original poster replied, jokingly, “I think survival of the homeowner is assumed in the roofing estimate.”

Where to learn more

Other homeowners have found water-heater venting problems after roof or chimney work. Those cases include backdrafting warnings and carbon monoxide risks.

• After chimney work, professionals warned a furnace-water heater vent could send exhaust the wrong way.

• A Wisconsin family shut off its water heater after a roofer installed an unsuitable vent cap.

• A home inspection flagged water heater backdrafting, and plumbers warned repairs could be expensive.