All homes and commercial buildings have roofs on them to keep out the natural elements, as well as maintain the climate control inside the building (heating and air cooling). Most roofs are made of asphalt shingles and are in fine shape, but sometimes, a homeowner may want a free roof inspection to ensure that their roof is in good shape. Regular, free roof inspections may be done every six months or every year so that a homeowner may check for developing issues in their roof, and call residential roofing contractors to repair or replace the hardware. Local roofers may be found online or through references at a local hardware store. These free roof inspections may reveal cracks, missing or rotted tiles, squirrel invasions, or worse. What comes next after a free roof inspection?
Common Roof Problems
A residential roof is a large and durable piece of hardware, but problems may occur that require roof repair or even replacement. Among the most common problems with a roof is leaks, and water may leak into the house when a roof has cracks, holes, and missing tiles. Rain and melting snow alike may leak into the house like this and wreak havoc inside. What is more, clogged gutters won’t allow water to flow and instead allow too much heavy water to pool in one area of the roof.
Such leaking water may stain and damage drywall, which necessitates repairs from contractors. Meanwhile, that leaking water may also short out electrical components in the walls and damage them. Intruding water may also rot and expand wooden beams and surfaces in the roof, and deeper in the house, leaking water may pool on the floor or in the basement and damage whatever it touches. Such water also fosters rapid mold growth, which is an entire issue in itself.
Roofs may also suffer if squirrels chew their way in through the wood and build nests inside air ducts, blocking air flow. These intruding rodents are also liable to chew on plastic pipes and electrical wires, damaging those utilities, and the intrusion holes may leak water during rain. Meanwhile, houses in the Midwest must contend with tornadoes, and houses along the east coast (especially in Florida) face hurricanes every summer. Such storms such as these may badly damage roofs with strong winds or wind-blown debris, and in some cases may blast a roof clean off the house. Any glimpse of such a ruined roof will make it clear that roof replacement companies must be hired at once.
Roof Repair and Replacement
If a free roof inspection shows rotted or missing tiles, and if the roof has cracks and holes that admit water, then roof repair companies can and should be contacted and hired. Good roofer companies will have their own websites where a homeowner may see articles, videos, and photos showcasing their work. A homeowner may choose between several different local roofers and choose one to hire.
Once on the scene, such roofers may replace missing or rotted roof tiles as needed, and they will also apply liquid rubber and similar materials to seal any and all cracks and holes, no matter how small. This will also prevent new cracks from forming, and this blocks any water from getting into the house again. Such roofers may also remove squirrels and their nests from the house and patch up the holes that such rodents chewed in the attic. Roofers may also trim nearby tree branches and apply a certain paint to the attic to discourage further squirrel attacks.
In other cases, a roof is too worn out or too badly damaged to be repaired for an efficient price, so the damaged roof may be entirely removed and replaced with a new one. A storm-battered roof may be replaced like this, or someone who moves into a very old house may opt for roof replacement. A new roof may be an asphalt shingle tile one to replace the old one, or the new roof may be made of metal. Metal roofs are very durable and may last 50-100 years depending on the alloys used to make them, and they are also efficient with the home’s insulation. Such roofs endure storms easily, and actually cost less to install than asphalt shingle models.