Most residential rooftops are made from sturdy, weather-resistant shingles. These shingles are layered in such a way that they seal together to form a completely weather-proof seal over the top of your house. Combined with the gutters that direct flowing water away from your home and the flashing which seals in openings for skylights, chimneys, dormers, and other rooftop features, the shingles effectively keep out the wind, rain, snow, and sun. However, roof shingles don’t last forever and some circumstances are more likely to damage them than others.
The occasional event can even require you to get a completely new residential roof installation. Should something happens that causes extensive roof damage or you’re worried that it might have, be prepared to ask a professional rather than trying to handle the situation on your own. Roofs are dangerous, especially when damaged. Here are seven of the most likely reasons you might need residential roof installation or repair in Plymouth, Michigan.
1) High-Speed Winds
You might be surprised just how much damage fast-blowing wind can do to a roof. However, those shingles are not completely flat like a fish’s scales and wind can catch the edges. This allows the wind to start prying shingles up off the roof and throwing them around in the debris. Even if the wind isn’t completely successful, wind-damaged shingles tend to look like they’ve been bent upward from the bottom or stick out slightly as if pried up away from the line of the roof while remaining flat.
You should also be prepared to get wind damage roof repair after big rain, sleet, snow, or hail storms which often come with high-speed winds. Any time the weather gets extreme, there is a possibility that your roof will take damage from either the wind or debris the wind blows around.
2) Hail Storms
Hail is one of the most dangerous forms of weather our little planet has come up with so far. Balls and uneven wads of ice fall at high speeds from the sky and blow at even higher speeds around in wind storms. Hail has been known to injure people, damage cars, and even shatter surfaces it lands on like wind shields and rooftop vent covers. It’s no surprise that hail can completely wreck your roof shingles as well. A hard landing can crack a shingle right in half while other hail damage may include distinct pock-marks and a destruction of the protective granules on modern rooftops. If it has hailed recently, you may need some serious roof repair work.
3) Falling Tree Branches
Tree branches are heavy and occasionally a dead branch or the weight of heavy snow can cause a single tree limb to break over your roof and fall. The problem is that the impact and scraping on the way down can do a lot of damage to your shingles. Unfortunately, lots of people like the look of big trees with long, reaching branches and forget how dangerous all that heavy wood is when suspended above your home. If a branch falls on your roof, it could take more than a few simple repairs to restore your home’s weather resistance. If it hasn’t happened yet, it’s worth your time to get nearby trees trimmed back away from the room.
4) House Fire
Water damage can be devastating over time, but nothing does more immediate damage to a home than fire. Even if the fire was contained and your home is still livable, the results may have done significant damage to your roof. In the event of a house fire, part of your repair plans should always be getting your roof inspected and be prepared to need a whole new roof installation in the damaged area.
5) Piled Leaves
You might be surprised just how dangerous it is for random crud like leaves, sticks, and debris to pile up on your roof. While the weight is unlikely to become a problem, if these piles are damp, they are effectively trapping and concentrating that moisture to a single part of your roof which is not designed to be wet all the time. This can compromise the integrity of your roof and open up a leaking point that will need to be cleaned, patched over, and replaced.
6) Animal Tampering
The inside of your house and, sometimes, the materials it’s made of are very appealing to wild animals and pests in the neighborhood. Woodpeckers are a particular problem for rooftops if they get it in their tiny little minds to poke holes, but other animals can be just as problematic. Squirrels, raccoons, and bats may all dig into your roof either to gain entry, hide loot, or for some unknown animal reason and insects might decide your roof is perfect to burrow into. If you’ve been fighting a pest invasion or roof critters, the solution may well be a more resistant roof installation in the afflicted area.
7) Melting Snow
Finally, even the gentle approach of spring can spell trouble for your roof because piled up snow becomes a source of unrelenting moisture as it melts in place, causing soft places. Even worse, in the middle of winter mild temperature fluctuations can cause snow to melt into crevices in your roof then expand when they freeze again, creating cracks for later melts to seep into and so forth. If your roof wasn’t completely snow-proof at the beginning of the season, you may need roof repair by springtime.
If your roof has taken significant damage, or even if you just think it might have, call Plymouth Home Pros for expert consultation and fast roof installation and repair. Based right here in Plymouth, Michigan, we’ll work with your schedule so this pesky roof problem can interrupt your life as little as possible. For more information about residential roof installation or repair, contact us today!
