4 Most Common Root Causes of Roof Leaks
Like having kids, your home will be both a continuous pleasure and a constant stress for you. And, like your family members, issues can in some cases hit your budget – and hard. Preventative repair and maintenance and being knowledgeable of what could occur to your roof might help you ward off issues, but it won’t prevent them completely.
Information is power and primarily when it comes time to knowing when to call in the professionals. So let’s take a look at ways to prevent future problems, but also the most common ways your roof can start having problems. Here are the four most common causes of roof leaks out there:
1. Damaged Flashing
This protects the edges of your roof and is where the roof meets a vertical surface. Damage here can cause leaks which can lead to even further problems down the road. One of the most common culprits for damaged flashing is the wind so if you live in a very windy area you might want to have yours inspected regularly. And that’s really the best solution to heading off problems with your roof’s flashing:
Timely maintenance and repair. This is a job for the experts of course but it is also one of the easier problems for you to spot. Like many items on this list, if it is older then it might also be time for replacement in general even in the best conditions.
2. Damaged Rubber Seals
This seals off anything that comes out of the roof from leaking into the interior space below. It is a seal against environmental hazards like heavy rain water and stuff like that. As with anything on your house, they can age and begin to crack which allows for water to leak through. Timely inspection and regular maintenance or replacement of the rubber boots on your roof can help head off this problem before it even starts.
3. Loose, Cracked, or Old Rotting Shingles
Another very obvious item that not too many people think about is the age of your shingles and their condition. If you have an older roof, it might be time to replace the shingles up there with something less prone to leaking or that isn’t in a stage of rot. Cracked shingles can also be a problem as well because the cracks might allow rain water to penetrate the surface below. Also look for bare spots or discoloration on your roof’s shingles.
4.Roofing Nails Coming Out
Roofing nails hold your shingles in place as well as anything else that protects your home’s interior from rain and the elements. When these start to come out – usually due to age but also caused by constant exposure to sunlight – your home loses a lot of its protection because whatever it was holding down becomes loose in the process.