As the seasons change, high-pressure and low-pressure systems often converg to create intense storm fronts. The resulting effect of warm and cold air, changes in atmospheric pressure, and moisture in the air show themselves in the form of events such as tornadoes, thunderstorms, and hail storms.
Aside from the tornado, hail is possibly one of the most destructive meteorological events that can affect your home. A home after a hail storm definitely needs to be evaluated for repairs and replacements. Repairs can be expensive, but doing nothing can run into tens of thousands of dollars in repair costs and beyond. If your home has been hit by hail, here are some things you need to do to make sure the damage done is repaired.
Do a Visual Inspection of Your Home After a Hail Storm
Hail can fall in various sizes, from pea-sized hail to marble, golf-ball-sized, and even softball size. Falling from miles up in the atmosphere, it comes down with quite a bit of force. Depending on the size of the hailstone, your roof might not stand a chance. Your first clue will be seeing how big the hailstones are.
A standard asphalt shingle roof can typically withstand smaller hail, but the larger the hail gets, the worse the damage can be. Because hail usually melts quickly, it can be difficult to tell how big the hailstones are, especially if you weren’t at home when the storm hit.
Storm Damage Is All Around
Looking around your property, you can find a good indication of how severe a hail storm has been. If you have shade trees, you might notice many leaves on the street when they should be up in the branches.
Hail that falls hard enough to damage your roof will take its toll on your trees, which is a good indication of storm intensity. Under this green mess, you might notice other things, like damaged shingles or gutters on your lawn.
Do A Walk Around To Look For Hail Damage
You can check for hail damage in a few places in your home. The first, of course, is your roof. Even without climbing up on your roof, you can get a good idea of the damage that was done. You need to look for missing, torn, or otherwise damaged shingles. Wind and hail can rip asphalt shingles like paper, and large hailstones will make areas of your home look like someone took a hammer to your roof.
Check your gutter for large amounts of asphalt pieces, which would have collected in the runoff. They will look like tiny rocks or sand. If they are in your gutter and not on your roof where they belong, there is likely a lot of damage on your roof. Over time, even small hail strikes can wear down and damage your roof.
The damage will be less obvious for other types of roofing, such as cedar shingles or ceramics. It is safer and better to call a professional to have your roof inspected.
Other Places To Look
Even though your roof is your main concern, hail damage can affect many other parts of your home. Hail damage can impact metal gutters, which can negatively influence water flow. Pits and depressions in your gutters will create areas susceptible to corrosion and reduce your gutter efficiency.
These depressions can create places where debris, such as leaves, sticks, and even asphalt cinder stones that, will clog up your gutters. The backflow from a clogged gutter can work back into your roof, warping eaves and trusses and even running down exterior walls.
Look For Damage To The Siding
Vinyl, wood, and even aluminum siding can only withstand so much damage from a hail storm. Like your gutters, denting these surfaces leaves them vulnerable to the elements, especially water. By damaging the protective coating of paint or other layers, your siding will also become more vulnerable to the destructive effects of UV radiation from the sun.
As winter sets in, the frost action from freezing and melting snow will eventually ruin your siding and leave your home susceptible to even more damage.
Repair Or Replace Broken Windows
From cracks in the glass to pitted window sills, hail damage can affect these weak points in your home’s defense against the elements. Damaged sills are not as effective at keeping moisture out of your house, and without repair or replacement, they could lead to more problems. Water traveling down studs and pooling in other areas of the house can lead to some serious damage down the road.
Flooding
With more intense storms, you might find that hail mixed with rain might overwhelm your gutters and even flood window wells and basements. It is important to remove water from basements and other flooded areas as soon as possible. Otherwise, if left unremediated, it could cause interior damage.
Interior Damage
After a severe storm, you might notice dark spots forming on the ceiling or even walls inside your home. Even if you don’t see these spots, you might notice them by their dank, mildewy smell. When water breaches your first line of defense against the elements–your roof–the water can cause mold colonies to grow.
The mold will be very active, eating cellulose fibers such as drywall paper, insulation, and even the wood inside your walls.
Repair Or Replace
The best way to ensure the continued protection of your home against the elements is to have damaged roofs inspected, repaired, and replaced. The investment you put into maintaining a roof will add decades to your home life. Shingles are expected to wear out over time, and hail storms mostly accelerate the natural process.
You can prolong the life of your home by keeping your roof in good repair. A professional roofer can get the job done quickly and effectively before disaster strikes again.
Contact Us For A Home Inspection Report
Revive Restoration offers free inspections and works with you, our customer, and your insurance company to get the job done right. With our trained staff of roofers, we understand the importance of quality workmanship and timely delivery of our services.
Contact us if you suspect your roof has been damaged in a hail storm. We can provide a home inspection report as well as an estimate for repair costs for your damages.
