Roofing: Look for dents, cracked flaps, and missing granules on your shingles
Roofs are the first place to get pummeled during violent storms. Hail over 1/2" that comes down forcefully will almost always damage asphalt and fiberglass shingled roofs. An experienced professional should inspect the roof for damage. (Homeowners! Don't climb roofs yourself, a slip could be worse news than the house damage!) It takes an experienced eye to see all the problems. The first thing to look for on the roof would be dents, then the top edge of the flaps for cracks. Hail can weaken the flaps, and the wind will cause them to crack. There may be a lot of loose granules that also might be concealing the dents. New roofs that have not been cured by the weather yet are actually more prone to damage.
On older roofs, enough granules are usually gone to allow dents to be easier seen. A major hail this year may not cause the loss of granules until next year and the damage continues. A bad hailstorm can knock a decade of life off your roof. A fierce storm will loosen shingles, and it may take a while for them to completely let go. If there are cracks, dents, and missing granules, you have had a really bad storm and sustained a lot of damage that needs to be remedied. Most roofing warranties do not cover hail.
What should you look for if you need a new roof?
One way is to look for Underwriters Laboratories’ measuring stick: the UL 2218 standard. The UL test involves dropping steel balls of varying sizes from heights designed to simulate the force of free-falling hailstones. Four impact-level designations will help you compare products: roof coverings that show the most resistance earn a Class 4 rating; the least, a Class 1 rating.
You put a lot of time, work and money into your home. Naturally, you want to use the best products available. In terms of roof coverings, this means a UL 2218 rating of Class 4. A Class 4 rating tells you that a sample of the product did not crack when hit twice in the same spot by a 2-inch steel ball, which, in a storm, would translate into quite a hailstone. A Class 1 rating signifies resistance to a 1 1/4-inch steel ball; Class 2, a 1 1/2-inch steel ball; and Class 3 a 1 3/4-inch ball.
If you are putting on a new roof covering or replacing an existing one, it’s up to you to make sure your new roof covering will resist impacts, especially if you live in a hail-prone area.
Contact Colonial Remodeling for expert roofing inspection, answers, and repair after a severe weather storm damages your home before it gets worse. Unrepaired damage can become more costly in time!
