How Hurricanes and Bad Weather Impact your Roof

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Not all heroes wear capes, do they? But do you know what hero wears a cape and protects you all the time? Your house! Your house wears the cape that becomes your roof and keeps you, your family, and your lives’ earnings safe from the elements. 

Now although most heroes can go without their capes, your house most definitely can’t. The roof is in fact the most important shield a house or commercial building has. But roofs are not exactly weather-proof beyond an extent, no matter what you use to do or reinforce them. In this era of global climatic changes, there is also no saying what weather conditions are about to (unprecedentedly) hit an area. Places that have never seen hail are being hurled by them and people who are more accustomed to wool are now supposed to buy summer wear.         

So, although we cannot know what to expect, let us try and understand how bad weather can damage your roof. This way we can be prepared come rain or shine.

Hurricane/ Typhoon/ Cyclone/ Tornado

No matter what the name or origins, these winds on steroids are bound to burst damage across nations. Strong winds speeding at over a hundred miles per hour can do anything from loosening shingles or fasteners to peel away whole roofs. Gulfs and coastlines see the most wind damage upon roofs, although brief inland tornadoes can wreak similar havoc too. 

Rain

Heavy downpours or drizzles and moisture can age your roof considerably. Heavy rains can cause damage in various ways. For instance, they will directly soak your roof and seep in, use the smallest crevices to leak in, and pool in places you don’t expect and cause additional problems. 

How is a drizzle a threat to your roof? During light showers you hardly notice the moisture building up in fissures and soaking walls that house electrical wires. Also, moisture allows rust, mold, and moss mass up.

If all that is not enough threat, Thor might have a wildcard up his sleeve in the form of lightning bolts. Lightning is not only a threat to life, but also to buildings and especially roofs.

Snowfall, Hail, and Snowstorms

As romantic or freezing as snow can be, it can be savage all of a sudden. Snow can be heavier on the roof than rainwater and hard to get rid of. Since snow would not melt as evenly as seen in animated cartoons, you can expect it to cause pooling and leaks, just like rain. 

Light frost, just like drizzles, can penetrate your walls and be hazardous too. Also,  hail damage seems to be more likely to damage your roof than lightning bolts as hail will hit every inch within square miles, once it plans an attack.

The more undiscussed damage to roofs from snow is when melted ice freezes again within crevices and joints. Ice expands a bit when it freezes. This expansion can easily loosen up shingles, joints, fasteners, etc. Yes, your roof does not like it either when winter is coming, and coming for it!     

Vegetation

You will no longer want to lovingly call vegetation “flora” once it gets hold of your roof! Wind can deposit shrub seeds, leaves, and small branches on your roof, making it difficult for rain and snow to drain off and dry out –  as though the added weight alone is not too much for the roofing structure. 

If the seeds somehow manage to germinate on sensitive parts of your roof underbody and infiltrate shingles, joints, or metallic parts with roots, moisture will never dry away, its roots will cause additional pressure, and the plants will ruin the look of your roof.

Not to mention trees growing above your roof’s level! They can be a threat during strong winds, rainstorms, thunderstorms, and snowstorms.     

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Roof Algae

Roof algae or Gloeocapsa magma is a kind of bacteria that can perform photosynthesis and produce enzymes rather than the common algae we know. Yes, those black and green streaks on your roof are not just ruining the looks, but also causing damage to the roofing material in the long run. Unless your roof is not deep cleaned regularly, you may need to replace it sooner rather than later. Find a local roof repair near you that offers professional roof wash, soft wash, pressure wash, and window cleaning services to ensure the health of the roof above your head.    

Sun and Heatwaves

Heatwaves can cook your roof! At least it can crack shingles, scramble the shingle grains, and curl the tiles up into rolls.

There are very few roofing materials in the industry that can withstand the average global temperature for long, let alone survive heat waves. Most materials employed in doing your roof are prone to cracks and tears, which in turn can heighten the level of damage caused by rain and snow.      

Takeaway

In the case of roofs, combined damage from the elements over time is the worst and most common. We are helpless against the elements when they are raging. Most of the damage is hardly noticeable unless you are cautiously looking for them. 

Now that you have a better insight into the different cases of impact of weather on your roof, you can prevent recurring repair expenses by checking the damages as early as possible.    

How Hurricanes and Bad Weather Impact your Roof was last modified: by