Fix That Leaky Roof Now!

A leaky roof can cause serious damage if not found and fixed properly. A major part in getting your roof leak taken care of is knowing where to look and what part of your roof is leaking. Is it the flashing around a vent? Do you need to replace your shingles? Before you haul yourself up there, know the different parts that make up a roofing system and where to look for issues. Plus, we’ve got some tips on how to fix minor leaks.

The roofing system is made up of many different parts. Depending on the type of roof you have, they could be slightly different than our list below. Check out our guide to discover the different types of roofing. We will be discussing a common shingle roof and its components.

Parts of a Roof

• Beams and rafters. This is the main structure of your roof. Beams or horizontal joists support the roof and transfer the load to the walls. Rafters are vertical or angled beams that give the roof its structure and shape. Trusses are popular alternative for rafters and beams. They are a web of individual lengths of lumber engineered into a series of triangles that form the shape of the roof. They are constructed before they get to the jobsite and are installed as singular units.
• Ridge board. This is a horizontal member of a pitched roofing system. The rafters extend from the top of the building’s walls on an angle and are fastened to the ridge board. The ridge is the very top of the roof.
• Fascia. This is another horizontal member, but at the bottom of your roof where the rafters end.
• Solid decking or sheathing. On top of the beams and rafters is the decking. These are typically panels of OSB or plywood that are fastened to the rafters below. This makes up the base for all the other materials that will be added.
• Underlayment. After the decking, an underlayment is installed. This is a layer of felt or synthetic material that helps prevent moisture from reaching the deck.
• Ice and water barrier. An extra water-proofing barrier is added along the edges of the roof and other areas.
• Ridge vent. Venting is important for any roof to allow hot air a place to escape from your attic. These vents are installed near the peak of the roof. Other roof vents include pipe from the plumbing system or an under-eave vent.
• Flashing. This provides a weather-tight seal around openings like vents or around chimneys.
• Drip edge. Drip edges are strips of metal installed on the edge of a roof to add further protection from water and moisture.
• Soffit. This is the underside of your roof from the side of the house to the end of your roof. This gives a completed look to the roof and provides additional ventilation for the attic with soffit vents.
• Shingles. This is the most common type of roof covering. Others include tile, metal, or slate. This is the very top layer of the roofing system that serves as another weather barrier and adds to the appeal of your roof.

Areas of a Roof and Other Terms

• Rake. If you have a gable, this is its roofing edge.
• Hip and Valley. These are the angles that your roof follows. The hip is where roofing lines meet at a concave angle whereas a valley meets in a convex angle.
• Pitch. This is the slope of your roof or how steep it is. This is shown in fraction form with a denominator of 12. A roof with almost no slope would have a 1/12 pitch and a roof with a very steep roof can even have 14/12 pitch.
• Gable. This is where your wall extends up into the roofing plane in a triangle. This can even add extra attic space and ventilation.
• Eave. This is the part of the roof edge that hangs over the side. This is where gutters should be attached.
• Dormer. This can be an extra living area in an attic or just for design, but dormers are little versions of your walls on the roof with their own roof line. They often have windows.
• Abutment. Instead of a hip or valley where two sections of roofing meet, this is where a section of roof meets the side of the house.

Sometimes it’s easy to see where your roof is leaking if you have an unfortunate waterfall in your living room. However, some leaks could slowly develop over time and it’s important to catch them quickly.

6 Ways to Identify a Leak

1. If you have an attic, look for wet spots, a musty smell, mold, or rotting on the sheathing. Your insulation might also be wet.
2. Look for wet spots or dark stains on your ceiling or, of course, drips from your ceiling.
3. When up in the attic, check to see if there’s daylight coming through. Any opening other than a vent should be sealed up.
4. Pay close attention to roof vents and areas around flashing as that is where leaks tend to occur.
5. Check asphalt shingles for curling, cracking, or granules being washed away.
6. If the leak is hard to detect, you can mimic rain by strategically and carefully watering your roof with a garden hose. Have a helper inside to look for where the water goes. Be sure to give the roof a good soak.
7. If the leak is hard to detect, you can mimic rain by strategically and carefully watering your roof with a garden hose. Have a helper inside to look for where the water goes. Be sure to give the roof a good soak.

Once you’ve identified the culprit, determine if it’s something you can fix yourself. If you are unsure, the problem area is too big, or if the roof is unstable, it’s best to call a roofing contractor.

If you have a roof leak from a storm and there’s debris on your roof making the job more complicated, call in a professional. Don’t try to remove any big tree limbs yourself as you don’t want to cause more damage. You can place a tarp over the problem area in the meantime. It’s also best to contact your homeowner’s insurance.

Asphalt Shingle Damage

Metal roofing has a specialized installation process, and any leaks should be fixed by a professional. However, asphalt shingles can be replaced by an experienced homeowner. Before you start, check the weather as extreme hot or cold temperatures could tear or crack the new shingles. Plus, being on a hot roof during the summer can be dangerous.

1. Use a flat bar to break the seal on the damaged shingles by moving the bar under the flaps. Be careful not to tear the good shingles around the damaged ones.
2. Use the bar to then pop out the nails. You might need to remove the nails in the next shingle up.
3. Take out the old shingle and slide in the new one (one-tab or three-tab). Nail down the new shingle. The shingle should be nailed slightly below the adhesive strip in the common bond area or the nail line. Typically, four nails are used, but six may be required for steep slopes or high wind applications. Nail down the shingle above if you had to remove the nails there.
1. You need the nail to come through your roof deck 3/4 of an inch. Typically, you will need a roofing nail that is 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 in length.
4. If you have loosened the edges on surrounding shingles, use roofing sealant to secure them back down. If you loosened the seal on the shingle above, you will need to add sealant there. The new shingle will self-seal when it heats up.
5. Seal the nail heads with the roofing sealant.

Quick Tip: The color of your new shingles may not match your old shingles entirely as the sun tends to lighten the color overtime. If your damaged area is in an obvious spot, you can take some shingles from an inconspicuous area on your roof as your replacement shingles. You can install other shingles in the less-noticeable area. Or you can order a lighter color replacement shingle instead of the original color of your roof.

Pipe Flashing Damage

The pipe flashing or your vent boots are a reason for most leaks as they seal around the pipe with a rubber gasket. These can crack overtime from the elements.

• To remove the old flashing/boot with a flat bar, loosen the shingles around the pipe. Then pop the nails up from the old flashing boot and pull it off over the pipe.
• You can reuse the shingles around the pipe if they aren’t damaged. If they are, you will need to replace them, too. Remove the shingle tabs with the flat bar. If you have a three-tab shingle, it is ok to remove only two tabs.
• Slide the new flashing over the pipe being sure to have the bottom of the metal flashing in line with the roof slope. The flashing typically will say which is the bottom and which is the top. Make sure the top is under the shingles closest to the pipe. You can use a bead of roof sealant under the flashing.
• Slide in your new or current shingles and cut a semi-circle out, if necessary, to fit around the pipe. Nail down the new flashing and shingles with neoprene washers or seal the nail heads.

Other types of flashing, such as around your chimney or a skylight, will be more involved to fix. You can use roofing sealant on the crack for a quick fix. Otherwise, removal and replacement of the flashing along with shingles and even siding could be necessary.

Ready to get started? Use our easy buy online and pickup in-store option, so all you have to do is swing by and we’ll load you up to get you back to your roof.