Your roof is one of the most important components of your home. The old saying states that you have to “keep a roof over your head,” and with good reason. A faulty roof can cause huge damage to the interior of your home and expose your belongings to the elements.
That’s why it’s so important to ensure that your roof was made with care and expertise. Roof repairs can be costly, and an improperly installed roof might have a hard time standing up to the elements. Even if you got an amazing price from a newer contractor, faulty installation will cost you a fortune down the road in repairs and eventual replacement.
So, how does one avoid the dangers of epic roof damage? Understanding what causes it. Another old adage you constantly hear is, “know your enemy,” and in this case the enemy in question is catastrophic roof damage. By understanding the major causes of roof damage, you know what questions to ask when repairing or replacing a roof, to ensure that you’re getting the best service possible with maximum protection.
But what are the three major causes of roof damage? What steps can you take to protect against them? What should you look for when trusting the care or replacement of your roof to a new contractor?
Cause 1: Tree Limbs & Falling Debris
This is a fairly easy issue to understand and prevent. Tree limbs can fall during a storm, or just from rot, and strike your roof. This can cause minor damage like cracking some shingles or ripping them away. Or, if the branch is large enough, it could result in some catastrophic damage like a giant hole in your roof.
Debris that falls from a tree can also cause issues where roofs are concerned. Leaves, fruit, pine needles, and pine cones can clog your gutters. When gutters back up, water builds up on the roof. The presence of constant moisture can rot away parts of the structure, causing the materials beneath to soften or weaken. That can lead to severe water damage as a result of leaks. A leaky roof could create a harmful mold that will negatively impact the air quality of your home, or cause damage to the ceilings and walls.
How can you protect your roof from tree-related damage? Landscaping is the easiest and most effective way. Trim away any large limbs or branches that could be in danger of breaking away and striking the roof. If a tree is getting old and dying, consider removing it before it’s too late.
Cause 2: Weather Damage
There’s a lot that goes into the category of weather hazards. It is one of the most severe causes of roof damage. Unlike trees, which can be landscaped to create a safer environment, the weather cannot be controlled. It is the single most uncontrollable force on the planet. All we can do to prepare for damage brought on by inclement weather is to ensure that we have the best possible materials and construction efforts hanging over our heads.
Even sunshine can have a negative impact on a roof, drying out the materials and deteriorating the shingles. Once the shingles begin to soften, your roof is at risk for more extreme issues.
Rain is another major factor in the fight against roof damage. If your materials are rotting away, rain creates the perfect storm (no pun intended) for water to begin seeping into your home. Our aforementioned gutter issues are further exacerbated by excessive rainwater, allowing moisture to build up, even going so far as to submerge areas of your roof for an extended period. Once that happens, it’s only a matter of time before that water seeps into the home.
Ice is another huge issue. Large hail can strike your shingles, cracking them or displacing the granules on the shingle surface. Those granules are in place to protect the layer of asphalt that lies beneath the shingles from sun damage. If they’re exposed, the sun’s rays will quickly begin to eat away at them.
High winds are another massive weather-related risk that cannot be controlled. Wind exposes sensitive roofing materials like nails. Excessively strong wind can also loosen your shingles or tear them away, which allows water to seep inside.
So, if the weather is so uncontrollable, how do you protect against it? That all boils down to the contractor you use. Weatherproofing steps can be taken throughout the roofing process, and higher quality materials will have more success in standing up to the elements for longer periods of time.
Cause 3: Improper Installation
You want your roof installed the right way the first time. That’s why experience is such an important factor. Hiring an inexperienced roofing company or trying to do the work yourself is not just a financial risk, but it places risk on the health and safety of your family.
Proper installation brings protection, leverage, and security to your home. It also increases the value of your property. After all, your roof accounts for up to 40% of your home’s curb appeal.
Blue Nail is an experienced company with a proven track record of success. Our seven-step process is guaranteed to build a roof that will last for life. We plan the process out, remove the old roof, sheath the surface, water guard, underlay the materials, flash the roof to avoid leaks, and lay the shingles systematically to ensure that your home receives maximum protection.
For more information on Blue Nail, visit us online, or call 973-937-8876.