Roof Holes

How to maintain your roof holes? Here are top 3 things to check.

1. Consistent Maintainance

Investing in roof maintenance goes a long way towards the long-term health of your roof. Even with a properly installed roof, it’s important that you have at least an annual maintenance inspection. 

When you get an annual maintenance inspection potential problems are caught, your roof’s life is maximized, and you get peace of mind. 

Roof maintenance prevents future problems 

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The most important reason for roof maintenance is preventative measures. A minor issue that's left untouched can turn into a major issue in just a matter of a year or two, maybe even six months. 

For example, if they find a crack in a pipe boot, it’s a simple and inexpensive fix. But if it isn’t caught because you don’t get regular roof maintenance, it can cause $300, $400, or even up to $500 worth of damage to your ceiling. 

The same goes if you have critters in your attic. Trying to get them out is one thing, but the biohazard they leave behind gets extremely expensive. When your roof has maintenance, a contractor can catch the problem and will prevent the critters from getting into the attic or make it so hard for them that they give up on your home. 

With roof maintenance, you can head off a lot of expensive problems on the front end by your contractor finding potential problems during the inspection.

Preventative measures like regularly scheduled maintenance are often disregarded. Any hidden roof problems are uncovered during maintenance, allowing you to fix them immediately. 

During upkeep, you could discover things like a water log on the roof that might otherwise go unnoticed.

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This puddle will persist, putting unnecessary strain on the roof and increasing the likelihood of leaks. Regularly maintaining your roof can keep it in good shape and prevent potential problems.

2. Prune Trees Around Your Home

It's essential to trim the trees and bushes surrounding the home, so they don't fall on the roof. Damage to roofs is typical after windstorms because of falling branches.

Regular tree cutting is required to ensure the roof and interior's safety.

When your local contractor comes out to do roof maintenance there are certain things they check right away. Below is a list of 6 of the most common ways your contractor maintains your roof:

Check pipe boots for cracks and wear: Cracked pipe boots are the most common reason for roof leaks. The drastic drop in temperature in the winter is when the neoprene (synthetic rubber) gasket around a plumbing vent stack is most likely to crack and create an area for water intrusion. 

Remove debris from the roof, valleys, and gutters including sticks and leaves: If debris, such as leaves and sticks, are left on your roof, it can create a dam. This will cause the water to back up under the shingles and create a leak.

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Leaves in gutters can clog the downspouts or slow the flow of water which can cause the gutters to overflow and create unwanted moisture in the crawl space or basement.

Inspect the roof for animal intrusion: The attic in your home is the perfect safe home for many small animals. They can cause severe damage to a home by causing a leak, chewing on the electrical wiring (which is a common cause of house fires), and creating a biohazard with their waste. Early detection is the key.

Inspect ventilation for properly working fans or turbines or any obstructions in ridge vents: If condensation isn't vented out of your attic, it will dissolve the adhesives in the plywood decking. This will cause delamination of the layers which weakens the nail holding capabilities and possible shingle blow-offs in the future and possibly full decking replacement as well.

Inspect loose or missing caulking and all flashings: Caulking is essential to keeping exposed nail heads on roof penetration flanges (the exposed area on top of the shingles) watertight. It is also essential to keeping metal flashing in brick walls and chimneys watertight.

Have your chimney inspected by a chimney sweep that has been certified by the Chimney Sweep Institute of America (CSIA): It is extremely important if you burn wood to have your chimney inspected every year by a CSIA Certified chimney sweep.

The complete laundry list of roof maintenance items could go on and on, but these are the 6 most important roof maintenance must do's so that you get the most life out of your roof. 

3. Safely Putting up New Roofs

If you have rooftop equipment like a satellite dish or solar panels, secure them well in case of high winds.

Roof shingles, flashing, and underlays may be blown off a poorly installed roof if the wind is strong enough.

Your seasonal roof clearings create perfect opportunities for general inspections and repairs. You just have to know what to look for while you're up there.

The first part of roof inspection starts inside your home. First, check in the attic for any stains that may indicate water leakage caused by a roof issue.

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Have you noticed any stains on the ceilings in your home? Make note of where they're located because they could actually be roof leaks.

Here's the rest of the checklist for what to look for on your roof:

Missing shingles

Loose shingles

Lifted shingles

Signs of moss or mold

Worn spots

Cracking, peeling, or curling shingles

Loose flashing

Loose nails or metal roof bolts

Be sure to replace any loose shingles, flashing, or hardware as soon as you notice the issue to prevent damage. Shingles that are displaced could be signs of mold growth and water damage beneath your shingles. This will require an intervention. 

If your roof is still in the early stage of its lifespan, and you notice a few shingles are peeling and curling, you may have a ventilation problem. A roofer can confirm if there’s a venting issue, and offer a solution.

But if you're seeing excessive peeling, curling, and lifting in shingles throughout your roof, it's possible that your roof has simply reached the end of its lifespan.

It may be time to bring in a local roofing pro to confirm that it's time to move on from trying to extend the lifespan of your roof to picking out a new roofing option. 

If you're seeing excessive debris, consider if it's time to rethink your landscaping plans. Tall trees located near your roof could be giving leaves, twigs, and small animals a direct pathway to your roof. Shade allows mold and moss to grow.

Conclusion

Swadley Roof Systems offers the best roofing services in the Houston, Austin, San Antonio and Dallas area.