My next project was to close the leaky area in the utility room. I started by cleaning off dust and taping the Siga membrane to the back header.
I had expected to get the drywall fixed on the ceiling but the drywall guy said it wasn’t worth it. Too much work for small fix. I bought spray on insulation for this area.
There was a lot of air coming from behind the washer and dryer. These machines are really heavy and Dave helped me push them out enough to get behind them. To my dismay I found the dryer vent pipe was disconnected at the ceiling! I had disconnected it at the dryer to clean it out but was surprised there was little to nothing in the pipe. I went out to the roof and took off the vent cover and put the snake inside but it stopped only 3 or 4 feet into the pipe. That’s when I found that the vent was completely disconnected and the whole area coated with dryer lint! That was bad news.
At first I could not figure out how to get high enough to push the vent back in. The six foot ladder was too long and wide to fit through the gap between the wall and the machines. Overnight I remembered I had a foldable ladder from the old RV. It folds vertically so I could get it into position and then open it. Then I had to get my legs over the 3’ high gas pipe and squeeze between the air conditioner lines and the wall. I had barely enough space to drill a new hole to put in one screw and retape the joint. Then the next pipe joint came apart too. It had been held with just tape. I also drilled a hole for one screw in that joint, retaped and secured it with a pipe ring clamp.
I didn’t think to take a closer photo, I was too cramped. And I had to vacuum all the dryer dust from inside the little alcove. It coated the drywall below and above and on the walls. Luckily my son-in-law left an ancient but small shop vac that worked perfectly for this.
Then I stretched the pipe to connect to the dryer again and reinforced that connection with a little more vent tape. Now I can address the actual task at hand back there-to eliminate drafts. It is such a slow process.