Winter is the Season of Roof Repairs
Now that storm season is behind us, it is a good time to carry out those all-important winter roof repairs and regular maintenance to prevent possible significant roof damage before those heavy rains and strong winds reoccur.
Gutter Cleaning
Cleaning all the leaf mulch and the occasional tennis ball out of your gutters is extremely important. Objects such as tennis balls can cause blockages within the downpipes or stormwater lines. Leaf mulch within gutters will also contribute to water overflowing onto the ground and potentially into your eaves and external walls. In areas where significant mulch build up occurs on a regular basis a good quality gutter guard is essential. Whatever you do don't purchase a cheap gutter guard. They simply don't work. A good gutter guard will allow the leaf mulch and debris to simply blow straight across your guttering without causing any mulch build up.
Broken Roof Tiles
Obviously cracked tiles can potentially cause internal water leaks. Significantly cracked tiles require replacement whilst minor corner damage to a tile could be repaired with silicone.
Damaged Roof Pointing
The tile bed and pointing is what secures capping tiles in position. Damage to the tile bed and pointing could contribute to water entering the roof causing decay and other issues. Poorly secured capping tiles could also dislodge during strong wind conditions. When you engage a roof tiler to repair the roof pointing make sure that the tiler incorporates drainage slots within the roof pointing to help prevent moisture being retained under the tile capping. It is an all too common sight to see a freshly repaired roof done incorrectly.
Loose Valley Tiles
One of the major sources of internal water penetration is where roof tiles have been cut around a valley gutter. Valley gutters are used where a change of roof direction occurs. These cut tiles often dislodge blocking the valley gutter and contribute to significant amounts of internal water penetration during heavy rain periods. These tiles should be re-secured with tile clips to prevent them dislodging.
Damaged Flashing
A common issue is where an ageing lead flashing has started to split or has lifted and subsequently requires silicone repairs to prevent water leaks. If the level of cracking to the flashing is significant, then the flashing will require replacement. Learn more about flashing damage here.
Metal Roof Leaks
A common source of water leakage on a metal roof is deterioration of the small rubber washers that surround the roof sheet screws. In some instances the screws have been over tightened contributing to the deterioration of the washers. Water leaks also occur where pop rivets and silicone deteriorate around joints within the metal ridge capping, allowing water penetration to occur into the roof.
These are just some of the common issues that could contribute to internal water leaks during storm periods. There are also many other issues such as excessively low pitched roofs and incorrect roof construction, but that’s a for another day .
