Has a recent storm hit your neighborhood and your being asked by local roofing companies if you want a free roof inspection for your Houston home, while the word free may sound enticing you have also been told “Nothings ever really free?” so maybe you’re a bit apprehensive to take the roofer up on his offer plus we have all been through our fair share of sales pitches by the time our home buying days roll around so let us share what a roof inspection is, why it’s a important part in the process, and what the hook is to the word
“free” so the next time you get an offer you will know rather or not you should consider accepting it. Sound good? Keep reading and our buddies over at EDR Roofing of Richmond will share all the information about storm roof inspection for Houston homeowners.
How Often You Need A Roof Inspections?
Aside from storms, you want to have your roof inspected once a year since its exposed to the outdoor elements and incurs a great deal of wear and tear. Generally the best time to get a roof inspection is before the storm season arrives to make sure if there is any hidden issues that are not yet giving you the signal that your roof is due for repairs you catch them before they lead to water damages. If you missed your spring roof inspection in Houston prior to rainy season then make sure you get this on your to-do list quickly.
What a Roof Inspection Entails
If a recent storm left your roof needing repairs due to a leak, broken shingle, or even if your suspect your roof has been damaged the first step to knowing the extent of any roof repairs necessary is a roof inspection. Consider if you were driving down the road and suddenly your car lost all power, you would likely call a tow truck who would take your vehicle to a mechanic shop where they would diagnose what the issues were, so they knew what to order. While you can’t take a roof to a repair shop, you can google “roof repair company near me” and they would schedule a convenient time to meet with you, often the same day to insect your roof. Since many homeowners have little to no knowledge about the condition of their roof you may think your roof has significant damages when in fact all you need is a few minor roof repairs not a roof replacement or just the opposite but wither way the entire process of fixing your roof starts with a roof inspection. You wouldn’t want to repair a roof today and a week from now come home from work to discover shingles lying on your yard because if you have lived in Houston any length of time then you know during storm season its like ground hogs day, the rain just keeps coming. There are two ways a roof inspector will investigate your roof:
1. Climb onto the roof
2. Drone Inspection
Drone Roof Inspections in Houston TX
Drones are rather new, being released in 2015 they have been used for a variety of things including roof inspections because they are fairly easy to navigate to retrieve the data about your roof without ever having to climb a ladder which is especially useful if you have a roofing material such as slate tile roofs. The inspector will fly the drone close to the structure of your roof without it hitting the roof to let you know safely and precisely with photographs what your roof look like and rather you need a roof replacement or roof repairs. These photos are actually thermal images that will spot anomalies on your rooftop and can even pick up minor damages to other home components such as an HVAC unit. To learn more about drone roof inspections visit this great article
What Elements are Covered in A Roof Inspection
Here is a sample of some of the things that a roof company are going to look for during your storm roof inspection:
Water Damage: This can be from improperly installed flashing, gutters that were filled with debris, or missing shingles that allows water to seep inside the home
Mold: In Houston mold can grow easily from a few spores to a old outbreak due to our climate, the inspector will look for mold as this is a sign that water could be sitting somewhere on the roof without draining, this often occurs around chimney and gutter areas. Mold can eat up your roof and actually shorten your roofs shingles by as many as 25 years.
Clogged Gutters: often when granules get knocked off the roof, they end up in the gutter system so by closely examining the gutters this will allow the inspector to know if there are bare spots on the roof that UV rays can penetrate.
Other Areas that a roof inspection entails includes:
Loose seams
Rust
Damages Flashing’
Wet Underlayment
If a roof inspector can do all this via thermal imaging, great but many roofing companies trust their own eyes via a camera because something are almost impossible to tell via a drone. Whatever method works best to determine the scope of the project, once the roof estimator has done a thorough roofing inspection of your Houston home and identified the problems the second part of the roof inspection is to provide you with an upfront cost to repair your roof or replace the roof. If the roof damages can be proven to be storm related the roofing company should offer claim assistance. For some homeowners a roofing inspection can trigger an emotional reaction as they had no idea their roof was in bad shape from hail or wind damages so fixing it quickly is imperative. Depending on the extent of the damages, the age of your roof and the upkeep to your roof over the years will determine what the insurance company will pay out in roof repairs, but navigating the process if you have never done it before can be overwhelming this is why its important whomever you ask to provide you a roof inspection in Houston has the skillset of making sure you get the money you are owed and in the event your claim is denied they can point you in the right direction to seek assistance from a public adjuster. Once you have filed a claim, it doesn’t take long before they arrive at an answer and during this time the roofing company will pull the necessary permits needed if you’re replacing your roof. However, we are getting just a little ahead of ourselves so let’s go back to the other things you need to know regarding your roof inspection.
Other thing you want to learn during your roof inspection to make sure you are working with the right roofing company in Houston.
Project Details: During the roof inspection if you are having shingles or even an underlayment replaced you want to know what type of product they will be using and what warranties if any the manufacture offers. It’s important to know not all roof shingles are the same quality. The two most trusted names in the roofing industry that stand behind their shingles with a lifetime warranty are CertainTeed and Owens Corning. If you do have to have a roof replaced then the first key to having a quality roof is to know while any roofing shingle you choose ay look good there is a difference in how long they will last and assuming you only want to replace the roof once, these two products are far superior to other manufactures you may have heard of and what the shingles are made of is what determines if your roof is going to last for les that a decade or two or even three decades. While CertainTeed is more expensive then say GAF the name CertainTeed owns the shingles category when it comes to a superior product.
Schedule: During your roof inspection for your Houston home, you will also agree to a schedule so you know when the project will start and end, all of this should be included inside of a contract. To learn more about contracts read this article on what a contract should include before signing your name on the dotted line. Without a clear schedule if you happen to hiring a shoddy roofing company in Houston you may discover you have no fighting power in a court of law should it come to this.
Budget: Also, during the roof inspection things like payments will be discussed. If you are paying out of pocket you may need financing or to have payments split up instead of one large lump sum in the event of a roof replacement. As for roof repairs generally your going to e spending somewhere in the ballpark of $240 to $350 per square and squares can add up rather quickly especially if you had a major storm damage your roof.
During a roof inspection other important thing you want to do is ask about insurance, training, and licenses information, after all you do not want to leave your roof to the hand of fate but rather a qualified roof company that has the credentials and expertise to repair or replace your roof .During the roof inspection is the time to speak up because once the project has started you don’t want something going wrong only to find out that your roofing company was under insured or ill equipped to handle your project.
Are you needing a roof inspection in Houston, Richmond, Sugar Land or anywhere in the greater South Texas area? If so contact EDR Roofing for a free quote.
Why Free? What’s the catch? This is what a roofing company in Houston should be willing to do to earn your business, if they cant do this… what other nickel and diming may they decide to do?