The Ultimate Guide To Dealing With Emergency Roof Repair
If your house recently got hit by a storm, a fire, or any other disaster, it’s safe to say that you require a roof repair or replacement. In fact, in such cases, this may fall under the emergency roof repair category. But what exactly are these?
Well, as the name suggests, emergency roof repairs are any fixes made to your roof after it’s sustained significant damage. The initial repairs are temporary, like adding a tarp to prevent leaks or caulking to fill up holes. But you’ll need to consult a roof repair service as soon as possible to prevent further damage and ensure that your family isn’t in danger.
So, today, we’ll look at how you should deal with such an event. But let’s take a deeper dive into what an emergency roof leak repair entails.
What Is an Emergency Roof Repair
Regardless of the damage your roof has endured, it’s deemed an emergency if you’re in danger. For example, repairing a small leak over your kitchen floor shouldn’t be neglected, but it’s far from a disaster. On the other hand, the same leak over an electric panel will fry up your wiring and put your entire house in peril.
That being said, let’s take a look at some specific examples of roof damage that will qualify as an emergency.
Types of Emergencies That Qualify for Roof Repair
In general, any notable damage affecting your safety is an emergency, but more specifically, these are examples you shouldn’t leave unattended.
Damage Due to Weather Events: From lightning strikes to storms and hurricanes, or the occasional SoCal snow, the damage caused by these should be treated as an emergency.
Fire Damage: While fires may not directly damage your shingled roof, they will have an effect on the shingles themselves, as well as many other roof parts. That’s why you should opt for a metal roof, with fireproofness being one of its many benefits.
Clogged Gutters: When clogged up, your gutters will start leaking. In turn, the water will start seeping through your walls, which will be destructive to them.
Rodent Infestation Damage: Pest infestations are usually reserved for a small place in your attic. However, leaving them unattended can create a huge emergency since rodents and other critters will chew huge holes in your roof and attic.
Neglected Roofs: Without proper maintenance, a roof will be very vulnerable to damage, even from a small hailstorm.
Significant Mold Growth: If you notice a lot of mold growth in your attic or walls, you should immediately contact a roofing contractor to ensure that it gets fixed as soon as possible.
Non-Emergencies That Don’t Qualify for Emergency Roof Repair
While there are several cases where your roof’s damage is an emergency, when you’re dealing with minor damage, leaks, or mold growth, you won’t need to get a professional's help urgently. In these cases, you should still take a few steps to repair them, as they can turn into some of the issues we mentioned right above.
What Should You Do in an Emergency Roof Repair Situation
If you find yourself dealing with some significant damage to your roof, here’s everything you need to do.
Keep calm and assess the damage. No matter what type of damage your roof has sustained, you must stay calm and pinpoint the areas that have suffered. But do so from the ground rather than climbing up.
Don’t take the DIY way. Going DIY in an emergency roof repair situation will only lead to two things. For one, you might void your homeowners’ insurance, so it won’t pay for the repairs. And you risk getting injured or utterly destroying the roof.
Call a roofing company and your homeowner’s insurance. Once you’ve assessed the situation, call up your insurance representative to schedule an appointment with an adjuster. We highly suggest you contact several local roofing companies at the same time to get a few estimates. But beware of the shady door-to-door roofers that come around after a big storm.
Limit the damage inside the house. Instead of going the DIY way on the top of your house, do everything on the inside. Mark the spots that are leaking and place a bucket under them.
The Best Emergency Roof Repair Services in Southern California
Look, we get it. An emergency roof repair can be daunting, especially if it hasn’t happened to you before. But rest assured that any licensed roofing company near you will have dealt with tons of similar cases. And, if you’re in SoCal, you need not trust anyone else but us!
At Roofing Wise, we help homeowners with their roof maintenance and installation the wise way and without breaking the bank. Contact us now at (833) 315-7663 for a free estimate.