Winter weather brings some wonderful things: snow days, ice skating, and beautiful scenery (to name just a few). However, it also can bring some hazards for your roof. In fact, the roof will likely suffer more than any other part of your home from the wintertime. Knowing the specific risks to come can help you mitigate them, so we’ve put together a list of the top 5 elements to keep an eye out for this season.
1. SNOW:
Heavy snow can put excess pressure on the roof, leading to cracking of opening points (windows, doors, etc.) and ultimately even the ceiling or roof collapsing. To be safe, here’s a great resource from the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety that helps you know what level of snowfall is dangerous to reside on your roof: LEARN MORE
2. ICE:
The biggest danger from ice is ‘ice damming’, which is essentially a hump of ice that forms at the edge of a roof and can damage both your roof and the inside of your home.
The best way to prevent ice damming is to prep the roofing system before winter hits. Ask us about our Ice and Water Shields, Drip Edges, and Gutter Aprons that we can install for your home to protect it. We put these features on every new roof we construct (in the eaves, valleys, and trouble spots on the roof), but can also add them on to existing roofs.
3. WATER:
If your home gets backed up from an ice dam, water can freeze into crevices instead of running off as it should, creating points prone to leaking. This will be bad news throughout your home (ceilings, drywall, and anything else inside that the leaking can drip to such as furniture).
4. HAIL:
Hail can cause visible and invisible damage to your roof. The most obvious sign of hail damage will be dents, but this can lead to greater problems. These imprints left behind will weaken the roof’s shingles, which leaves them susceptible to damage (i.e., water soaking underneath) and ultimately lessening the lifespan of the roof.
If you’re not sure just how bad the damage to your home was, give us a call. We provide free insurance assessments to the greater Indianapolis and Kokomo areas and would love to be of assistance.
5. WIND:
With winter comes strong and windy storms. If shingles are not in good condition or strongly connected to the roofing system, they will be more susceptible to blowing off. In fact, they may already be loosened up by a storm from last year. We also offer free insurance assessments for wind damage, and we’d be more than happy to take a look if you’re concerned.
If you have any questions or would like us to help protect your home from the winter elements, please give us a call. We’d love to work with you.
