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| Hole in Soffit; Temporary Measure ? | |
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| Topic Started: Nov 4 2016, 08:17 AM (766 Views) | |
| campy | Nov 6 2016, 05:07 AM Post #16 |
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Handyman Extraordinaire
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Sorry wildie. But that's a terrible sloppy solution to a simple problem. No matter how you cut it. You have to get up on the ladder to the hole. And it's the size of a fist. |
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| campy | Nov 6 2016, 05:12 AM Post #17 |
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Handyman Extraordinaire
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All I can say is. Wish I was there to help. Butter two credit cards with caulking compound on one side. Punch a hole in each and tie a string to them. Push them up in the hole and pull down on the string. Repeat for the other side. And look at all the money you will save this winter. Edited by campy, Nov 6 2016, 05:19 AM.
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| wildie | Nov 6 2016, 10:16 AM Post #18 |
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Veteran Member
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My immediate neighbor had a similar problem and resolved it with the foam. If you are interested, I can take a photo and post it here for you! These foam products are designed for filling gaps and work splendidly. |
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| Olive Oil | Nov 6 2016, 10:56 AM Post #19 |
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Gold Star Member
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Well it's done . It's not pretty but doesn't show unless you are looking for it. I used some steel wool but it was not in there very well as the wood was crumbly. I found a piece of thin board in the garage that DH had used to clean his paint brushes and I took this as a sign. I used gorilla glue on one side and stuck it on top of the hole. I then used some duct tape to hold it up in case it needs time to dry. Thanks for all the inspiration! I saw what happened. is A cedar tree branch tip grew up into the board and I guess overtime it created a moist atmosphere so that the board rotted. On the bright side, the rest of the soffit looks in great shape. Surprising for a house built in the 50s! Thanks Trotsky for the concern. Although I have never broken anything, I do dread falling and almost as bad, being seen to fall! I fell this summer mowing a slope of the lawn when my foot got stuck in a gopher or vole hole. I was so glad no one was around to see me! |
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| FuzzyO | Nov 6 2016, 11:21 AM Post #20 |
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It's a good idea if you don't have another person there to phone someone before you do something dangerous and ask them to follow up if they haven't heard back from you by a certain time. I do this when heading down the 1835 basement steps. Even though I have my cellphone with me that wouldn't help if I knock myself out. |
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| campy | Nov 6 2016, 12:04 PM Post #21 |
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Handyman Extraordinaire
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Gorilla glue. I have seen it but never gave it a try. Excellent solution. It sets in 10 to 45 seconds. It's one of those super glues. Usually when I am gluing stuff I use a slow setting glue because I have to move it into position. Does any of the soffit have vents so that air goes into the attic. ? That would be another solution come spring. Just get an aluminum soffit screen . Edited by campy, Nov 6 2016, 12:11 PM.
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| wildie | Nov 6 2016, 12:57 PM Post #22 |
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Veteran Member
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Funny thing Campy. I have seen the Gorilla advertising on TV and this never entered my mind! Once you try something and its successful, You tend to get locked into it. I'm going to buy some and try it out! |
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| swing | Nov 6 2016, 04:04 PM Post #23 |
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swing
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My DH uses gorilla glue often! I also used spray foam to fill a hole in the cement on the corner of the house where I thought mice were entering, worked well. I then bought paint and painted it gray as the foam was yellow!
Edited by swing, Nov 6 2016, 04:05 PM.
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| Trotsky | Nov 7 2016, 01:06 AM Post #24 |
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Big City Boy
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All soffits should be vented. |
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| campy | Nov 7 2016, 01:46 AM Post #25 |
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Handyman Extraordinaire
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Well Trotsky it depends on where you live. Some places in Canada don't have soffits at all. It's wide open venting. I guess the idea is to keep the roof cool in the winter so the snow doesn't melt and form ice dams at the edges. And you need roof vents as well to make it work properly. I had an idea once and never followed through on it. Since the attic is always warm even in the winter, my idea was to have a pipe going from the attic to the cold air return on the furnace. It would be thermostatically controlled and in the winter would bring any warm air from the attic into the heating system. No matter how hard you try and how much insulation you use, the heat from the house rises and it will eventually get into the attic. The only way to stop that is with a continuous fan on low speed on the furnace bringing the warm air back down from the ceiling. It's a trick situation here and it seems to go through phases like a complete roof vent all across the roof to simple single vents. It's easy to check on because if you go up in the attic in the winter and there is frost on the roof boards it means there is moisture not escaping. Edited by campy, Nov 7 2016, 01:49 AM.
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| campy | Nov 7 2016, 01:59 AM Post #26 |
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Handyman Extraordinaire
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The reason I don't like using steel wool outdoors is rust. A job worth doing is worth doing well. It wouldn't take any longer to do that repair properly than the foam method. You still have to get up on the ladder. |
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| Olive Oil | Nov 7 2016, 04:05 AM Post #27 |
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Gold Star Member
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The end soffits have some holes in them but the others are all solid. If they were all to be replaced, I would look into those aluminum ones I see on some homes. They look nice and maintenance free. I notice that my overhang on the house is larger than the ones I see on other bungalows when I'm walking. My soffits look at least 50% larger than usual. I could be wrong but I think it was Redial who told me about Gorilla Glue. I had a piece of stucco that had chipped off the bottom edge of the house. Speaking of safety, it used to scare the heck out of me when DH would go up a ladder with his one leg without telling me. He once did it in the kitchen when I was in the backyard. The ladder fell and it crashed into the fridge leaving a big dimple in the ss front. He was not hurt. I was always going to order a replacement panel but now that he is gone, the dent has sentimental value. |
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| campy | Nov 7 2016, 04:37 AM Post #28 |
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Handyman Extraordinaire
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I was going to replace the soffits on my home with those aluminum ones but I didn't bother because I could paint the existing ones from the ground with an extension on the roller. I think the original ones look better on an older style bungalow with the big overhang. To have it done around the whole house is an expensive proposition. Stepladders are the worse thing to use on soft ground unless you have someone holding it. Edited by campy, Nov 7 2016, 04:38 AM.
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| wildie | Nov 7 2016, 11:06 AM Post #29 |
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Veteran Member
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Campy, your idea about using the warm attic air has me thinking! I installed a heat recovery system in my home. As stale household air is exhausted its used to warm the incoming fresh air. If this fresh air was drawn from the attic, rather than directly from outside, less energy would be required to bring its temperature up by the furnace. This heat recovery unit has a HEPA filter built in, so anything that could be drawn from the attic wouldn't be circulated in the home. Watcha think! |
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| Dialtone | Nov 7 2016, 11:33 AM Post #30 |
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Gold Star Member
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You guys should have a read on this discussion. http://www.diychatroom.com/f97/any-thoughts-using-attic-heat-98654/ In our house we have about R50 between the ceiling and attic, so not much heat loss and good circulation to keep humidity low. Edited by Dialtone, Nov 7 2016, 11:35 AM.
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