5 Tips for a Roof Inspection

If you are ready to inspect your roof, you should realize that lots of works are involved in the task. Besides, you need to be careful to avoid damaging your roof while trying to inspect it. In view of this, there are certain tips that you can follow to ensure that your roof inspection is effective.

In this post, we will describe 5 proven tips for a roof inspection.

• Check your roof from a close distance

While trying to play it safe, you may want to inspect the roof from a far distance. But this will prevent you from seeing some of the issues that your roof is having. So, you should use a ladder to have a clear view of the roof. Pay attention to damaged, missing, or corroded flashings as they could allow water to get into your house and destroy various things.

• Look for old, missing, or damaged shingles

Like flashings, deteriorating shingles can serve as a passage for water to leak into your roof. Therefore, it is crucial to inspect wooden shingles or shake for signs of any problem. For metal roofing, you should focus on signs of wear and tear, rusting, or corrosion. If you have slate, asbestos, or clay tile roofs, you want to ascertain whether they are broken, missing, chipped, or cracked.

Also, to find damaged or missing shingles, you shouldn’t hesitate to check the gutters.

• Check leaves, moss, or algae

Take a walk around your house and look for algae, leaves, moss, mildew, mould, and other houseplants around your home. If these houseplants are left to breed, they can damage your roof. They usually accumulate moisture which can enter into the shingles, flashings, and other parts of your roof. In many cases, you should need to remove the houseplants. However, if they have caused serious damage to the roof, a residential roofing expert has to help you to replace it. Ask the roofer to use moss-resistant shingles as a replacement.

• Ensure the sealant is good

The sealant and caulking materials can open, crack, fall off, or deteriorate. So, you need to check the penetrations and perimeter flashings for any issues with the sealant. Luckily, the deteriorating sealant doesn’t usually require you to replace the whole roof. A residential roofing contractor can repair or replace the sealant.

• Check the attic

Does your home feature an attic? If yes, you have to check the attic during your roof inspection. Due to the proximity of the attic to the roof, it can show you some of the earliest signs of a damaged or deteriorating roof. Although you may not see these signs when inspecting your roof with a ladder, the attic will give you a better view of the whole area. You should check the area during or immediately after heavy rainfall.

While a DIY roof inspection can help you to notice some issues with your roof, you may never get it right like a professional. Therefore, you should hire a residential roofing contractor to inspect your roof.