Dumb Things People Do To Their Roofs
Maintaining your roof is very important and very sensitive too, as a home owner you need to be aware of the correct ways that you should use to maintain your roof when it comes to cleaning, patching, replacement and other general maintenances. Where the problem arises when dealing with the roof is the misconceptions that people hear about roof maintenance and they go ahead to try them without even proving from the experts that they work better, as a result, many people end up damaging their roof. Here are the most common mistakes people do to their roof.
Using extra high pressure to clean the roof
You might just think that because the high pressure is good in removing dirt from anywhere else and so it is suitable with roof cleaning, well, there is where everything goes wrong. The high pressure will easily damage your roof materials, for instance if your roof is made up of shingles, the top protective layer that has been installed will be destroyed by the pressure and as a result they will easily rot, this is the same with the metal roofing materials which when the protective layer is removed, they will easily rust making them to wear out faster. Another problem with high pressure is that it will force water through the overlaps of the roof which will in turn cause damage to the roof. It is advisable that you do a soft wash.
Taking off the materials to check for problems
This is just one of the biggest mistakes you can do. If you are not sure that you can do an inspection by yourself, it is better you hire a roofer to help you with it. If you decide to pull of all the materials from your roof just to check for a leaking place, you may just be exposing your roof to more danger than you can think of, first you may not be able to replace the materials as perfectly as they were and as a result, you will have even more openings that will cause leaks. It is advisable that if you experience any kind of leaks, you should call in an expert roofer to help you in the identification of the problem and solve it.
Walking on your roof
As you know roof are commonly slanting and very slippery, there are more chances of falling off than coming down safely especially if you are not a professional. Sometimes you might be tempted to climb on the roof in the name of looking for leaks, or just inspection of the possible problems, which might bring you very many problems if you fell down. Some roofing materials like clay tiles and even metal roofs are very slippery when it rains which is even more dangerous, other materials become extremely hot when the sun is shining because they absorb the heat from the sun and if you climb on your roof at this particular time you many suffer injuries from burns. For these reasons it is advisable that you look for as expert to help you in the inspection and repairs.
Installing satellite dishes and solar panels on your roof by your self
If you are an expert in roofing and installation of these devices then you are good to go, but if you know nothing about this, it will be the most dangerous thing to try doing it on your own. This is because the process involves drilling of holes or drilling studs into the base of the roof which is a very sensitive thing to the safety of the roof. There are very many risks that comes with that, for instance you might fail to replace a flashing metal in a correct way which will let in water into your house. It is highly advisable that you get to a professional roofer to come and help you with the fixing of the devices on your roof, alternatively, you can consult the solar company you are getting the device from because they normally have installation services just for free.
Leaving your gutters with dirt
The worst thing you can do to your roof is failing to clean the gutters or just neglecting them, the gutters are very important to the roof, when you leave the water to accumulate, it will force itself into the roof hence causing a lot of damage to the roof and the roof support. It is very necessary that you look at the gutter and unclog them if they are clogged. Cleaning of the gutter should be done regularly especially in times of too much rains that comes with a lot of storm because it carries all the debris to roof which then is washed away to the gutters.
Failing to trim branches
This is very important too, if you fail to trim all the branches that are around your roof, you will be doing a very big disservice to the roof. This is because heavy branches are very dangerous to the roof, in the times of storm they might just break off and fall on the roof causing a great damage to your roof. Apart from that, the leaves from the branches falls on the roof causing accumulation of debris which holds a lot of water on the roof that in turn causes rusting of the metal roofs and decomposition in other types of roof materials.
In conclusion, there is a lot of importance in doing things the right way; if you are sure that you can manage all the roofing activities you can go ahead, but if you have never done it before it is better that you look for a professional.
In Awe Roofing Limited is an Award-Winning, family owned and operated Vancouver Roofing Contractor with over 17 years of roofing experience. We serve the entire Lower Mainland area, from Whistler to Chilliwack, employing a team of professional staff members. Our team has won numerous awards including Best of Homestars for the last five years, and Three Best Rated six years in a row. Learn more
