As a homeowner, you are familiar with the ongoing maintenance required to keep your home in good condition. Yard work, painting, changing air filters – these are all important tasks that need to be completed regularly.
Roofing maintenance is also necessary to protect your investment in your home. A regular inspection of the roof can help catch potential problems before they become serious and costly repairs. Visit https://www.northportflroofing.com to learn more.
Gutter cleaning is one of the least-fun and most often overlooked home maintenance tasks. It’s usually dirty, requires a ladder, and can be dangerous when done wrong. And yet, it’s an important task that can prevent water damage to your walls, roof, fascia, and foundation.
If you don’t clean your gutters, they fill with leaves, twigs, debris, and blossoms, which clogs them. Over time, this clogging can cause the gutter to pull away from the roof. This can create a gap where water gets trapped, which leads to dry rot and other problems. It’s also an inviting place for insects like wasps, ants, and rodents to nest.
Rain gutters collect rain that falls on your roof and diverts it through downspouts away from the home’s foundation. Without them, water would pour down the side of your house and seep through the siding or into the basement and crawlspace. It can also erode the landscaping around your foundation, causing soil erosion and other issues.
Ideally, you should clean the gutters twice per year, once in spring and again in the fall. However, if you have a lot of trees close to the house, you may need to do this more frequently. A telescopic gutter cleaning tool that attaches to a garden hose makes it possible to reach the top of your roof and gutters from the ground, eliminating the need for a ladder.
If you decide to do this on your own, remember to practice basic ladder safety. You should have someone hold the ladder and use a ladder stabilizer to keep it from leaning or tipping. Having a spotter is especially helpful if you’re working on a slanted roof. You can also hire a professional to perform this task safely. They can also trim overhanging branches to reduce the amount of debris that collects in your gutters. This will not only make it easier to clean your gutters, but it will also help prevent them from becoming clogged in the first place. It’s important to do this before winter weather arrives, as ice dams can form in clogged gutters.
Inspect the Attic
The attic is a common area for roof problems to develop. Homeowners should inspect their attics at least twice per year for signs of damage, such as water stains, rusty nails or mold. This helps to prevent the development of serious roofing issues and saves money by catching problems early on.
A thorough attic inspection involves checking for the following:
Electrical wiring should be in good condition with no exposed, frayed or loose wires. Insulation should be in good shape and properly installed. Insulation provides resistance to heat flow, which helps to lower energy costs during the winter and summer.
Ventilation is important to help keep the attic cool and dry. A poorly ventilated attic can cause the formation of ice dams in the winter and excessive moisture throughout the house in the summer.
Check the attic for ventilation outlets and ducts, such as bathroom fan vents, dryer vents and heating/cooling ducts. These ducts should be well-ventilated and properly insulated to reduce the build-up of ice dams in the winter, moisture and heat in attics in the summer, and mold and mildew.
Also check the attic for soffit boards, which cover the underside of roof overhangs, and fascia, the horizontal boards that run along the edges of the roof. These should be in good condition, free of rot, warping or cracking.
Leaks can occur when the attic isn’t adequately insulated or there are gaps around penetrations. The attic should be inspected for areas of insulation that have been damaged and for spliced wires, which should be sealed and covered with junction boxes.
A professional home inspector will thoroughly inspect the attic and roof for problems that could impact a homeowner’s comfort, safety or the structural integrity of the roof. A thorough attic inspection can help homeowners avoid costly roofing repairs and prevent expensive energy bills.
When hiring a professional for an attic inspection, be sure to choose one who is insured and certified. A qualified professional will have a wide range of tools, equipment and experience to inspect the attic for any issues that require attention. Before heading into the attic, be sure to wear a ladder safety harness, use proper ladder safety and watch where you step!
Check the Flashings
A roof’s flashing is a critical part of keeping the home dry. It seals off gaps around chimneys, vent pipes, skylights, and other elements that might leak. Flashings are typically made of durable materials like aluminum, copper, and galvanized steel. However, this type of material is prone to wearing down over time, especially if it’s exposed to constant sunlight and extreme weather phenomena.
The majority of roof leaks originate from deteriorated or displaced flashings. Inspecting your flashings regularly and catching problems early can help you avoid expensive repairs in the future.
Using the right safety gear is essential to checking the flashings. Ensure that you have sturdy work boots and safety glasses, as well as a ladder that is in good condition.
You should also make sure that your ladder is secured to the roof. If you spot any loose or damaged sections, call in a professional to repair them. This can be tricky, since you might need to remove shingles in order to reach the flashings. This is usually not a DIY project, and it’s best to leave it to the professionals to avoid further damage to the roofing system and the rest of the home.
If you notice any rust or corrosion on your roof flashing, this is a sign that it needs to be replaced. Corrosion is especially common in areas with high humidity or frequent exposure to salt, and it can affect metal flashings in particular. It’s a good idea to apply a coating of weather-resistant paint or stain to your roof flashing, which can significantly extend its lifespan.
There are several different types of flashings, including step and counter-flashing. Step flashing involves layered sheets of metal that resemble steps, with one sitting on top of the other. It’s typically used where a flat roof meets a vertical structure, such as a chimney or skylight. Counter-flashing is usually installed at the base of a chimney, and it redirects water to the gutters.
Most roof flashings have caulk around the edges, which serves as another layer of protection against moisture. If the caulk is missing or cracked, it should be replaced as soon as possible to prevent further water infiltration.
Trim Trees
Tree limbs that hang over your roof need to be trimmed regularly, especially after heavy storms. They may rub or scrape your shingles, or they could fall during a storm and damage your home. It’s also a safety concern because dangling branches can break windows, or even cause you to lose your balance and fall. Additionally, if a tree branches over an electrical wire, it could create a fire hazard.
There are a few different types of pruning cuts that can be made to a tree: crown thinning, crown reduction, and structural pruning. Crown thinning is the most common pruning technique used to thin a tree’s canopy by removing specific live branches to reduce overall density. It increases light penetration and air circulation, while reducing stress on selected limbs from gravity, wind, snow or ice. This type of pruning is best performed in late winter or early spring.
Structural pruning is the process of removing diseased, dead, broken, or otherwise unsightly branches and limbs from trees to improve their form and function. It can also be done to prevent a future problem, such as crowding or competing root systems. Structural pruning is typically performed on a wide range of trees, including maples, flowering pears, oaks, and willows.
Lastly, you’ll want to prune off suckers and water sprouts, which are weak and weedy-looking growths that grow at the base of a tree and steal energy from it. These can also lead to rot and insect infestations.
To make your roofing maintenance complete, you should also check that the seals around any roof penetrations, such as skylights and vents, are intact and secure. In addition, you’ll want to inspect the gutter system to ensure it’s clean and free of obstructions. You should also check that the chimney and any other rooftop structures are in good condition. Lastly, you’ll want to ensure that the surrounding landscaping is well maintained and that any mulch is at least 2 inches deep. This will help to protect the roots of your trees from over-watering and fertilization, which can cause them to deteriorate prematurely.