For full protection of you and your family, the exterior of your building needs to be properly maintained. The quality of the exterior of your building also affects the condition of the interior. The roof is an expensive and important part of your building. It requires regular maintenance to avoid expensive replacement or repairs. With the right maintenance and regular inspection, you can protect the roof of your building from damage.
Here are a few strategies for you to prevent roofing damage:
1. Regular Inspections
There is an old saying “stitch in time saves nine” and this holds in case of roofs too. Regular inspection of roofs can help you prevent or avoid costly repairs or complete replacement by just making small fixes. A regular inspection is the most important thing by which you can protect the roof of your building from serious damage. After a major storm or harsh weather condition, you should inspect the roof of your building properly. It is also recommended to get in touch with a professional roofing expert to get a professional inspection every year. Moreover, you should also avoid climbing on the roof by yourself to prevent yourself from injuries. Walking on the roof may also cause some damage to the roof. Hence, nowadays, roofing experts make use of drones to inspect the roof.
2. Trim the branches of Trees
If the branches of the trees fall on the roof, it may damage the shingles during a storm. This may cause minor or serious damage to the roof. To prevent this, you should trim down the branches that may touch the roof before winters.
3. Gutter cleaning
The drainage system along the roof helps in collecting and removing water from the roof. Clogs can result in water pooling and when such things happen, mildew and mold can grow with time. When the clogged water freezes due to weather, it can worsen the situation. Keep the gutter clean to avoid clogs.
4. Keep the roof free from Debris
A lot of debris and other objects can collect on the roof over time like small objects swept by the wind, wet leaves, berries, nuts, and many other small objects. All these can dissolve or break the shingles. Wet leaves can result in the growth of molds, berries or nuts can tempt the growth of pests. The roof must be cleaned regularly to avoid any kind of damage. While cleaning, make sure that you do it carefully and not damage it.
5. Treat Mold and mildew properly
Is there a yellow, black or green shine on the shingles of your roof? This could be an indication of the growth of algae, mold, moss or mildew. All this can cause serious damage to the shingles and the sheath under the shingles. Remove these from the roof only by using an effective and safe product in the market.
6. Broken Shingles
Replacing the broken and missing shingles can help prevent the moisture leak into the internal of your house and can cause damage to the interiors. When such signs are noticed, you might have to spend a huge amount of money on repairing it. While you go for repairing the shingles, you should also get a professional inspection from an expert.
7. Seal around the pipes and fixtures
Every puncture made on the roof for installation of an appliance makes inflow of water into the building. To keep the moisture from entering the building, multiple kinds of products are required. These products might require having an occasional touch-up. The perfect time for resealing these punctured points to keep the moisture from entering into the interiors would be during the fall.
8. Repair or replacement of the roof
During your regular inspection, if you find any issues with the roof, due to human error or harsh weather, it should be immediately repaired. Damaged shingles or seals can lead to water damage that may require an extensive amount of work or complete roof replacement if left unresolved. Warping or ponding in a commercial building can also result in serious damage. While your regular inspection looks for signs of mold, missing or broken tiles, damaged ridges, or worn flashings. The roofing experts advise checking the interiors for moisture, leakage and other signs of roof damage that require immediate repair.
9. Never use Power washing
Power washing can cause serious damage to the roof. Too much amount of pressure on the roof will force the water to go under the shingles. This may result in the growth of mold, algae, and mildew. Pressure washing can also damage the granules that protect the roof from leaks. To remove the algae line from your roof, you should consider hiring professional roofers but never use power washing. The roof is an important part of your building. Follow the above-mentioned strategies to prevent the roof from damaging.
