If you are a homeowner that has a flat roof then you can have the serious roof problems occur that are very difficult to repair. Your roof is always a potential culprit for leaks, so there is always a need to protect your home from a leak. Rainy weather is often when roof leaks get discovered. New Jersey’s weather is unique because we endure freezing blizzards in winter and extreme heat in the summer.
But what can you do to temporarily stop the leaks from causing more damage until the roofing contractor arrives? Following are the solutions:
Deal with inside the house to minimize interior damage
In most cases, a leak will slowly pool at the ceiling until it finds an escape route — usually a penetration point like at a light fixture or heat register. After several hours, the leak will start to find multiple escape routes, making the leak look much worse than it actually is. Find the wettest spot or a bulge in the ceiling and poke a small hole in the middle and use a bucket to collect the draining water. This will minimize your ceiling damage.
Locate the point of entry
Start with the inside, such as an attic. It will prove to be quite difficult to stop a leaky roof in the rain. Try to locate the leak but keep in mind that the leak in the ceiling and the leak in the roof may not align. If your roof covering is over a layer of plywood, then you should keep in mind that water will generally travel from the leak in the roofing material to the nearest joint in the plywood, depending on how the roof slopes.
Maintain the situation until help arrives
Once you locate the point of entry from the inside, there are a couple of options for temporary roof leaks repair such as roofing cement, roofing tape or a tarp. Available for purchase at any home improvement store, roofing cement or tape can be applied to the inside of the roof decking inside your attic, as well as to the outside of the roof. If you feel confident enough scale your rooftop, tarping is a quick and easy option to control any further leaking until your roofing contractor arrives. When using a tarp to cover your roof, a good rule of thumb is to cut the tarp so that it adequately covers the damaged area. Leave at least an extra four feet of tarp on each end to cover the roof damage. Secure the tarp with 2 x 4 boards. You can staple or nail the tarp to the boards, but be sure to use nails that are not so long that they will go through your roof.
These steps will help you prevent further damage to your home until a professional roofing contractor can arrive. Here, Blue Nail can help you out. Blue Nail is an Exterior Remodeling company with expertise in Roofing, Siding, Gutters, Windows, and more.
Contact Blue Nail for your complimentary consultation, including a digital model of your home and what it can look like with different styles and colors of shingles and siding materials. Call us today at (973) 937-8876.
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