Can Loose Roof Nails Cause Leak

Winter is here, and then is the flavor of roof leaks. Whatsoever roof can leak if the conditions are right. Nonetheless, older roofs are more likely to encounter the sorts of problems that cause leaks. If you discover yourself running for a saucepan every time it starts to rain, you are in need of a serious roof inspection and at least some repairs. The adept news is that about leaks are fixable without a complete replacement. But it'due south difficult to know without a proper inspection. So if you take h2o coming through your roof and into your dining room, information technology's fourth dimension to call Eagle Picket Roofing. We'll run downward six common causes of roof leaks, many of which you lot can check for yourself. Simply leaks are notoriously difficult to track, so calling in a professional person is crucial earlier making whatever repairs.

6 Common Causes of Roof Leaks [infographic]

1. Damaged or Broken Shingles

If your roof is nearing 20 or 30 years onetime, the shingles are the first place to await. Over the decades, exposure to sun, wind, and pelting can cause shingles to rot, crevice, and come loose. In many cases, the harm is visible from the basis. Wait out over your roof and look for any discolored patches. Later on a heavy storm, y'all may fifty-fifty run into bits of shingle littering the basis around your house. Some damage, like cracks, is harder to spot, so an inspection may exist in order.

A damaged shingle lonely does not cause an firsthand leak. Yet, when a shingle is damaged, it tin start a chain reaction. First, the fissure or tear is slowly fabricated larger by weather and erosion. Equally the hole gets bigger, the underlayment beneath the shingle is exposed. Underlayment that is exposed can start to rot or soak through. In one case the underlayment has been penetrated, there is zero that stands betwixt the atmospheric condition and your roof decking. Roof decking is usually made of plywood and is not meant to get wet. If you exit the damage lone for long enough, it volition go a leak.

If you have a leak due to a damaged shingle, the damage may go well beyond the shingle. However, it notwithstanding may be salvageable. An aging roof that has leaks can commonly be repaired to buy plenty fourth dimension to program a scheduled roof replacement.

ii. Croaky Flashing

Flashing is the canvass metal that protects vulnerable areas of your roof from leaks. Flashing is always installed in valleys where two roof slopes run across. It is also installed around dormers, chimneys, and skylights where the roof is penetrated. So it is somewhat ironic that flashing, which is meant to foreclose leaks, tin become the cause of a leak.

Two main problems can crusade a leak in your flashing. The beginning problem is with the seal around the flashing. Depending on how your roof was constructed, it may take flashing that is sealed with prophylactic. Both the edge of the flashing and the joints in the flashing are sealed with tar or rubber, and that safety tin dry and cleft over time. If your seal cracks, water can get under the exposed edges of the flashing and soak through to create a leak.

Some other problem is with the flashing itself. Flashing is made of metallic, and it can rust and corrode. This is especially common where flashing has been dented by large hail, falling droppings, or a careless roofer's boot.

Resealing flashing is ordinarily an piece of cake gear up. Replacing corroded flashing is a bigger task, but it is much cheaper than replacing your roof.

3. Cracks in the Vent Booting

Plumbing vents and other features that penetrate the roof may be fitted with a rubber kick. The boot works like flashing to seal the area effectually the penetration and go along h2o out. Simply prophylactic will somewhen dethrone when exposed to the elements. Years of hot sun, driving rain, and blowing air current can dry out and crack a rubber boot. Once the material is compromised, information technology doesn't have long for h2o to work its way in. Water that gets past the boot tin easily make its way through the joint with the roof and through your living room ceiling.

It may not exist easy to spot a cracked vent boot from the basis. Just if you lot feel comfortable climbing onto your roof, it is usually pretty piece of cake to spot upon closer inspection. If your vent booting is croaky, it will need to be replaced. The costs involved can vary widely depending on the size and type of boot and whether information technology tin can be replaced with a standard kicking or needs a custom size. Nonetheless, this kind of repair is usually one of the cheaper fixes.

four. Covering Nails That Are Backing Out

On nearly roofs, the shingles are attached to the decking with nails. Over time, the nails tin loosen and beginning backing out of their holes. When a nail backs out, it literally wriggles its way loose and starts to extricate itself from the pigsty where it was nailed in. If a nail backs all the manner out, it can leave a tiny hole that is a conduit for rainwater. Backed out nails tin be hard to spot, even from up close. A proper roof inspection past a professional roofer is usually required to notice nails that take back out.

5. A Cracked Chimney

At that place are several ways that your chimney is protected from rain. First, a chimney is most ever surrounded with flashing to keep rainwater for seeping between the seam where the chimney meets the roof. Second, on the "uphill" side of the chimney, many chimneys are fitted with a cricket. A chimney cricket is a pocket-size ridge behind a chimney that runs perpendicular to the slope of the roof. Information technology directs water to either side of a chimney, so information technology flows around the chimney instead of collecting behind it. Finally, well-nigh chimneys are fitted with a cap that keeps out rain.

However, virtually chimneys are fabricated of brick and mortar, which is susceptible to harm over time. In older homes, shifting ground or even modest earthquakes can cause cracks in the walls of the chimney. The mortar is also a weak point for the chimney. Mortar can last a long time, but on older homes, it can eventually be eaten away, and small penetrations tin can appear. If your dwelling house is older than 30 years, it may be worth checking the chimney for cracks when trying to trace a leak.

vi. Condensation in the Attic

The air in your attic is sandwiched between the climate-controlled air of your home and the air exterior. When the temperature within your dwelling house is hotter or colder than the air outside, the clash of temperatures can crusade condensation in your attic. If your attic has acceptable ventilation, it is usually sufficient to forestall condensation. Unfortunately, many homes are built without the necessary cranium ventilation. Also, if at that place is excessive air leakage from your domicile to your cranium, it tin outpace the ventilation.

If you call back you are getting condensation in your cranium, just open up the attic and have a sniff around. If you notice a musty smell, it's a sign of subconscious water damage. Of class, if there is any visible mold or rot, there is definitely water in your cranium. Water in your attic does not necessarily come from condensation—it can come from the roof, as well—just it is a sign to check your ventilation.

Getting Your Roof Inspected

Leaks are notoriously difficult to rails down. H2o will always menstruation to the everyman point before information technology pools inside your ceiling and becomes a leak. Often, a leak in your ceiling can develop far from its source on your roof. Finding the cause of a leak and fixing it is all-time done by experienced professionals. We've seen some cases where an inexperienced roofer thought they had found the source and fixed it, only for the leak to reappear with the next heavy pelting.

If you have a leak, contact u.s., and our experts volition inspect your roof and detect the source. Once we spot the source of a leak, nosotros will determine how much work needs to exist done. We can help you decide between minor repairs and replacement of an aging roof. Eagle Sentry Roofing experts also help with any claims against your insurance. We want to brand sure y'all get everything you deserve and spend equally little out of pocket as possible. And so don't expect to have care of your roof. Telephone call us today!