Your roof plays an important role in the structure of your house, and just like every great investment, proper upkeep is important. While your roof is built to withstand the elements, over time wear and tear and can make your roof vulnerable to damage. Much like the tires on your vehicle, the shingles on your roof will at times require a little extra attention and care in order to keep your roof in the proper working condition. We have compiled a list of some of the most common causes of damage to your shingles so that you can keep an eye out for when your roof might be in need of a little T.L.C.
Hail
Shingle damage from hail is one of the most common types of weather induced damage for roofs. Last year alone, Texas experienced nearly 900 different significant hail storms causing well over one million homes to be damaged.
While the severity of a hail storm can vary, be aware that even small pieces of hail can knock off granules from your shingles – and those should be replaced as soon as possible. Larger pieces of hail, such as quarter sized and even smaller, can cause excessive damage to your roof.
You can often see this damage by standing in your yard and examining the roof’s condition. You might notice dark spots, cracked or missing shingles, or chunks of granules missing from the shingles. All of these should be followed by a call to a professional roofer for an inspection and repair.
Wind
Heavy winds can damage your roof in a couple of different ways. Because the most commonly used shingles are designed to overlap each other, extreme winds can cause the shingles to lift off in sections.
This typically happens after years of wear and tear has made the materials more susceptible to the elements, but very heavy winds can do a lot of damage to even newer roofs as well. This can leave your home vulnerable to water leaks, and odds are, once some shingles start to lift off of your roof, more will follow.
Debris
Be aware of what flying debris can do damage-wise to your roof. This is another good reason to keep any large trees trimmed back away from your roof.
Heavy winds or rain can cause tree limbs, small and large, to disconnect from the tree and fall onto your home. Depending on the size of the limb, this can do extensive damage to your shingles and roof.
Trimming back the limbs will also reduce the amount of foliage that builds in your gutters, which will save you on cleaning and repairs. It will reduce the amount of access that small critters like squirrels, mice, and even raccoons have to your roof, and subsequently, your attic. This can help prevent some future roofing problems.
