Ice, mold and a lazy contractor cause some major problems

Q. I have a two-story home in the Pittsburgh area that was built in 1998. In 2012, we had a new roof installed after a severe hailstorm. In December 2012, when I went into the attic to get my Christmas decorations, I noticed the entire roof on one side was damp, black and covered with mold.

I had the contractor who built the home and replaced the roof take a look at it. He acknowledged there was a humidity problem and said he believed there was too much insulation in the eaves and it should be lifted up with baffles and some removed as well. I also complained (which I had done before) that the bathroom exhaust fans should have never been vented into the attic. He told me they would correct it, vent them outside and spray the mold.

He wanted to install two power vent fans in the roof, but the entire roof has a ridge vent and a vented opening on each side of the house. I did some research myself and told him I felt there should be soffit vents for the ridge vent to work properly and that power fans usually do not work with ridge vents, so I was totally against them.

I suggested raising the insulation from the eaves and removing some, and adding soffit vents for the ridge vent to properly work. The response was: I think that may fix it. He also said he didnt believe the bathroom fans were the problem, but I maintain they are.

I have not yet been able to get them back to correct the issues, even though I was assured it would be corrected prior to this winter.

We had a freeze/thaw last week and obviously my attic was extremely damp and wet and smelled from moisture. The last two days we were 7 to 8 degrees below zero. I had a major ice buildup on the roofing nails, underside of the roof and attic walls. It is now thawing and water is dripping into a bedroom, into the attic and through the siding outside on the second floor of the home.

This has been going on since December 2012. In September 2013, the contractor told me it would be fixed before it got cold, but I am still waiting. I am to the point where I want someone else to fix the problem.

I have contacted my insurance company today and am waiting for the claims adjuster to call me, and I may sue the contractor as well.

Any suggestions on how to correct this before I am replacing the entire top of my house? Any suggestions on finding someone in my area who is an expert on attic humidity and really knows how to fix it? Any and all help is greatly appreciated.

A. There should not be any insulation in cold eaves; it can get soaking wet if ice dams form and water leaks inside the soffits, and if there are soffit vents, the insulation blocks them. The insulation should be removed and there should be full-width baffles in each rafter bay to keep an open-air space between the soffit vents and the ridge vent. There should be full-length soffit vents and no gable vents or power vents. Air circulation between soffit and ridge vents occurs naturally by thermodynamics.

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Ice, mold and a lazy contractor cause some major problems