Your roof is no doubt one of the most important parts of your home or commercial space since it covers the building, protecting its contents and occupants from elements. For this reason, it is extremely critical to ensure that it is maintained in perfect condition. Unfortunately, since it is often out of sight, most people rarely think of their roofs until they develop problems. To be on the safe side, you need to be aware of the things that could cause havoc to your roofing and take appropriate action. Below are some of the things that could endanger your roof:
If trees are growing close to your building, their branches can be extremely detrimental to your roof, mainly when there are strong winds, heavy rains, a storm, snowfall or any other disaster that may cause them to break. When such branches break, they might fall on the tiles, shingles or metal sheets, damaging, breaking or causing them to get out of place. To avoid this, it’s best to prune branches or remove trees.
Moss and algae are some of your roof’s worst enemies. They typically thrive in cold and wet areas and mostly grow on the parts of the roof that are beneath the tree shade. Once they are grown, the patches of moss and algae usually act as the sponge that holds water against the surface of your roof. This may cause your roof to rot over time. Depending on the roof type, soft washing or pressure washing may be the best option to use. You should also consider pruning or trimming such branches.
The water that runs off your roof may not damage it as such. However, water leaks and the buildup of humidity can weaken your roof quite significantly. Ideally, the moist condition will provide a suitable environment for the growth of mould. Such mould may invade the timber that supports your roof, deteriorating the wood structure and ultimately causing it to buckle after some time. To avoid such problems, you should have the roof inspected, any potential leaking areas repaired and the mould removed by professionals.
Animals, birds and insects can also cause significant damage to your roof. For instance, insects such as termites and wood borers may eat away or bore into the timber that is supporting your roof, causing severe damage. On the other hand, woodpeckers may pock into your shingles in search of insects, hence causing breakages or distortions. Raccoons, on the other hand, may damage the shingles and vent covers by lifting as well as pulling them off the roof. Moreover, bats, mice and rats may gnaw at the supporting materials, causing your roof to collapse.
Other things that you need to look out for include strong winds, malfunctioning gutters and downspouts, ultraviolet rays as well as roof debris. If you want your roofing to remain in good shape, functional and serve you many years to come, you need to look out for these agents of roof damage and make sure that they are addressed before causing severe damage to your roof.
If you’re in Brisbane or Sunshine Coast, Dragon Roofing (www.dragonroofing.com.au) can help you mitigate such problems.
