How To Spot Hail Damage On Your Roof

While it’s important to report damage, such as broken shingles, immediately after a storm passes through your area, there are usually subtle signs of hail damage that homeowners can look for during routine inspections of their roofs.

Check out this article for more great homeowner roofing tips that can save you money!

One of the most common types of hail damage is dents and pockmarks on your roof’s surface. However, hail can also do a number of other things to your roof that goes beyond cosmetic damage. For example, while some roofing materials might have a bit of give when struck by hail, others can be slightly flexible and bend under the pressure of the drifting ice chunks. Similarly, certain types of vents and satellite dishes may become harder to remove from your roof over time.

 However, the area where you’re most likely to notice damage is around a hail-struck shingle. If you have a tile or tar and gravel roof, tiles that have been hit by hail will usually break apart from the force of impact whereas other types of roofs might experience what’s called “fusion damage.” This is when the metal or asphalt in your shingles becomes fused together, creating a lump that’s impossible to remove (and thus requires replacement).

Whether you find broken tiles, dents and pockmarks, or fusion damage on your roof after a storm passes through will depend largely upon the size and velocity of the hailstones. In most cases, a number of small stones will cause a lot less damage than a few very large pieces of ice that come hurdling out of the sky at high speeds.

3 Quick Ways To Spot Hail Damage on Your Roof

 Don’t be afraid of hail damage, just stay safe! Here are three ways to spot hail damage on your roof:

1. Rubber Mallet Method

 Use a rubber mallet on your shingles. Believe it or not, this is the best option for checking if you’ve had hail damage to an individual tile (or pieces of tiles).

2. Pencil Test Method

Insert a pencil into the shingle and try to slide it around. If you can move the pencil even the slightest bit, you probably have hail damage.

3. Shake Test Method

 This is my least favorite way to check for hail damage since it doesn’t usually work on old tiles. For this test, grab your shingle and try to shake it back and forth. If the shingle moves more than one inch, you probably have hail damage.

Summing up: 

Remember: just because you can see a spot of damage on your roof doesn’t mean that the rest of the roof is damaged! You may need to hire professionals or check around your house carefully before you start repairs.

Call 832-449-3247  now to get a free estimate on your project.