Spring is here, and with it comes the need to protect your home from the elements. A roofing emergency can be an expensive process, but it doesn’t have to be. With these simple tips and tricks you can save yourself time, money and stress when it comes to an emergency roof repair.
Whether you’re dealing with a roof leak from a window, missing shingles, roofs granules or water spots on the ceiling, you’ll learn about restoring your roof quickly and affordably.
Plus, we’ll cover what qualifies as an emergency roof repair and how to select a qualified contractor for timely repairs.
So don’t put off getting your roof checked – read on for ways to save money on emergency repairs!
Types of Emergency Roof Leaks and Damage
A roof leak and window damage come in many forms, from simple cracks to large holes. Common types of emergency roof repairs include:
- Missing shingles – Missing shingles can be caused by wind, age, animals or improper installation and can lead to water stains on the ceiling, mold growth, rot and insect infestations.
- Roof Granules – Granules are the top layer of a roofing material and provide protection against UV rays and moisture. Over time, granules wear down due to weathering and need to be replaced. Otherwise they can lead to a leaking roof if not maintained.
- Poor Flashings – Poor flashings refer to the strips of metal or plastic placed around edges to help keep out moisture. If these aren’t properly sealed they can lead to bigger issues like mold growth and rotting wood.
- Clogged Gutters – Clogged gutters can cause water to back up under the shingle line which leads to major structural damage if not taken care of right away.
All of these issues require professional attention as soon as possible in order to ensure your home is adequately protected from further damage. One of the best ways to have your roof windows looked at is to get a roofing contractor to come by and do a roof inspection.
It is recommended to inspect your roof at least twice a year, usually in the early spring and late fall. You should get a professional to inspect it every year or 2.
What Qualifies As Emergency Roof Repair?
Emergency roof repair typically refers to any issue that requires immediate attention in order to prevent further structural integrity damage to the home.
Common examples include visible water leaks on the ceilings or walls, wind damage, storm damage, hail damage, a fire, wide holes in the roof, punctures and missing shingles.
It’s important to take action right away in order to reduce potential damage and keep your home safe throughout the year. We will go over how to identify some potential roofing emergencies you may come across during your time as a homeowner.
Missing or Loose Shingles 🏚️
Missing or loose shingles can be caused by a variety of factors, storm damage, ice dams, a wild fire, weathering, improper installation, the age of the shingles and quite often, animals.
Over time, shingles become brittle and weak due to sun exposure and other weather conditions and this can lead to missing or loose shingles. It’s important to have an experienced roofer inspect your home periodically in order to ensure that all shingles are secure and not damaged in any way.
Especially around your roof skylights and windows as the glass is more susceptible to hail and water damage.
Roof Granules Missing 🪨
Roof granules missing can be caused by age, fire, wind, storm, hail and weathering. As shingles age, some of the granules start to loosen and come off the shingle. Additionally, strong winds can blow away granules and heavy hail can loosen them as well.
Weathering is another common cause of loss of granules on shingles. Ultimately, it’s important to inspect your roof periodically in order to ensure that there isn’t any water damage that needs to be addressed as soon as possible, to avoid further significant damage.
Wind Whipped Elements
Wind whipped elements are typically caused by a storm with high winds creating too much pressure on areas of the roof that weren’t designed to handle this level of force. This can cause shingles to become loose, torn away or completely removed from the roof. This requires immediate action.
Additionally, it can cause flashing and other elements to become bent or warped from the wind force. Inspecting your roof regularly for damaged elements is critical in order to ensure that any damage caused by a storm passing is quickly addressed by professionals.
Nonemergency Roof Damage
Nonemergency roof damage typically includes any small areas of damage that don’t require immediate attention. This can include small cracks, missing shingles and minor damage to the flashing and or roof skylight windows.
Nonemergency repairs should be addressed eventually, but they can usually wait until it’s more convenient or economical to do so. It’s always a good idea to call one of our roofing contractors to have someone come out and have a look at the repair to make sue the home’s interior is safe form any further damage.
Steps To Dealing With An Roof Window Emergency Repair
Dealing with an emergency roof repair can be stressful, but it is important to take the right steps in order to properly address the issue.
You always want to remain calm yet act quickly. As the temporary solution may help when disaster strikes therefore hopefully reducing a whole roof replacement and will require only minor repairs.
- Assess the extent of the roofing emergency: An inspection of the roof should be conducted in order to determine the exact cause of the damage and what roof repairs are needed.
- If possible a temporary fix could be as simple as having a tarp in place, to keep your attic and family safe from any storm debris. You will want to act fast on this as to stop any further damage. It is always wise to keep some emergency roof tarping in the shed or basement for events like this.
- Obtain estimates from our roofing contractors, by calling our number we will be able to send someone out within 24 hours for a professional roof inspection. They will be able to assess the emergency repairs needed to fix your damaged roof and let you know which roofing materials will be required.
- It will be up to you to then decide if you will buy the material yourself or have our contractor do it for you, but act fast. Sometimes a contractor will get favorable pricing at the wholesaler.
- In the mean time it is important to contact your home insurance company and to make sure your roof repairs fall under the insurance coverage.
- Schedule your repair: After completing the roof inspection and having your insurance company alerted, let our team know when you are able to have them come work on the affected area, so that they can fix the water intrusion.
- Monitor progress during repairs: Stay present during the repair process and ensure that each stage of the process is being completed correctly and thoroughly.
- Clean up after completion: Check over all repairs once they have been completed in order to make sure everything is done correctly, then do any necessary clean up before fully enjoying your repaired roof.
Will My Home Insurance Cover Emergency Roof Repair?
In many cases, home insurance will cover the cost of emergency roof repairs as long as the damage is due to something that is covered under your policy.
It is important to check with your insurance agent to see what is and isn’t covered before filing a claim in order to be sure that you’re protected in an emergency.
File an Insurance Claim 🧑💻
It is important to contact your insurance company when an emergency roof repair situation like this happens as they will work with us to have a free inspection and roof replacement happen.
Typically your home insurance claim will be covered. However is is always best to double check your policy.
Top Roofing Contractors
National Roof-Skylight have some of the top roofing professional working with us in the USA. We are able to help provide you with new skylights, roof windows, emergency roof repair and much more.
If your home requires an emergency roof repair then the best way to have someone sent out is to call our helpline, (844) 941-1059. For non-emergency you can fill the form out on our homepage and we can have a local contractor reach out to you and give a free inspection report.
For all your roof leaks, emergency roofing services, roof repair, tarp repair and keeping your attic safe, look no further than our team of professionals, we have been around for over 35 years and now have full national coverage!