Winter is brutal– snowy, icy and windy weather can definitely damage roofs. Extreme cold and heavy snowfalls challenge the structural state of all roofs, and if you are not vigilant enough, you will need to replace your roof completely or pay for expensive repairs. To safeguard your roof during or after winter, carry out the following maintenance steps…
Remove Snow Build-Ups
The moment you begin to notice snow pile-ups on your roof, do not give a second thought about getting rid of them. Snowfalls, combined with cold chunks of ice, can damage your roof if left unattended. The weight is so heavy that it can cause damages.
When snow and ice are left on the roof, they form an ice dam that melts later and refreezes on the same roof. When this happens, the weight only keeps accumulating, and the real destruction begins to take place.
The activity of the ice dam occurs mostly at night. During the day, it melts out, and at night, when there is a sudden fall in temperature, it refreezes. This can lead to loosened or missing shingles, and when shingles begin to loosen or disappear, you will encounter leaking roofs.
Although it is good to carry out regular roof maintenance, it is risky for you to take a ladder and climb up on top of your roof to remove deposits of snow and ice during winter. To avoid accidents, there are roof experts you can contact for their professional help to get the job done safely.
Look Out For Damaged Shingles And Repair Them
Loosened, misaligned, and missing shingles can happen after winter subsides. You might start to notice leaks in your ceiling or walls. Or you find pooled water where you don’t want to see pooled water.
If your shingles are loose, strong winds can blow them out of place. Loose shingles should be fixed before they fly away.
If the shingles are loosened in multiple locations of your roof, or some are missing, and you know you cannot handle the problem on your own since you may not be able to walk on your roof, hire an expert roof contractor and the problem with your shingles will be solved.
Damaged Flashing Should Be Repaired
Roof flashings are very crucial components when describing a well-maintained roof. Most homeowners do not know how efficient their flashings are, so they ignore problems relating to them. Roof flashings can protect the home by stopping water damage.
With your roof flashing intact, water is led away from entering certain regions of the roof. Be particular about your roof valley, chimney, and overhangs because they are all roof protectors. Ensure that they don’t suffer any bad conditions, and they will help protect your home from leaks.
Ice dams would normally form on overhangs and roof valleys, so you must be on the lookout to get rid of them. If it is easy for you to work on your roof, you can repair your flashings by yourself, ensuring you take precautions– otherwise hire a roofing expert.
Get Debris Off The Roof
Make sure your downspouts, gutters, and flashing are debris-free. Debris on the roof may include fruit blooms, leaves, pine needles, and other specks of dirt that can get heaped on the surface of the roof. When all these grimes are off your gutter, and a storm occurs, the moisture will hardly have an effect or a grip on your roof. If a storm meets debris on the roof, water sticks to it, and this can lead to pieces of the roof getting water-logged, causing roof rot over time and finally exposing your home to leaks and other damage. Rake debris off your roof whenever possible.
Inspect Your Gutters
During cold seasons, gutters can easily experience damages. If you notice icicles suspended somewhere around your gutters, this can mean that there is a pile-up of ice in your gutter that must be dealt with. If you ignore clearing out ice from your gutter, the aftermath will be a weak gutter due to the heavy weight of the ice. A weak gutter cannot hold on too long. It will collapse.
Collapsed gutters means your repair cost goes up. This is because the regions around the gutter also suffer damages. Therefore, when you see any ice dams building up in your gutter, quickly get rid of them.
Hire A Professional
Although you can perform a few roof maintenance jobs by yourself, it’s probably better to hire a professional contractor who is used to being on top of roofs, making repairs, etc. Let them deal with the problems!
Conclusion
In Minnesota, cold, winter-like weather can occur in months when other places don’t have issues. For instance, even in April… or May… there can be days when it snows and/or ice is on the roof! During and after winter, it’s important to pay attention to how well your roof is holding up. If you need a professional to climb up there and inspect it, clean it, or repair it, call Born Carpentry at 612-747-8003.
