If your roof is leaking, the first thing that a roofing contractor will do is locate the leak. If the leak is caused by damaged flashing, vent boots, or collars, those items will simply be replaced to stop the leak. However, if the leak is in your actual exterior roofing materials, such as your shingles or shakes, there are different types of repairs that may be completed. Here are three different ways that residential roof leak repairs can be done.
Filling In the Hole
If you have a small hole in your roof that is causing a leak, the hole may be filled in with roofing cement or silicone caulk. Small holes may happen if something small punctures the roof, such as a nail. Filling in a hole on the roof is a fast and inexpensive repair, but these types of repairs do not last a long period of time. As such, you may need the hole refilled after a few years, or the problem may come back.
Patching a Roof Leak
If the leak is caused by a tear in your membrane, or if you have membrane-style roofing materials on your roof, such as EPDM, TPO, or rubber roofing, your leak can be fixed with a patch. A patch basically involves cutting out a small piece of the same type of membrane or material that your roof or membrane is made from and heating it up so that it adheres into place over the tear. This patches the tear, preventing water from leaking through the material.
Replacing the Area Around the Roof
The final way that residential roof leaks are repaired is to replace all of the roofing materials around the leak. A roofing contractor may pull up all of your shingles, tiles, or shakes around the leak. They may then replace all of the roofing materials in that area. This is typically done for larger leaks or leaks that have been present for some time and the water has spread to the surrounding roof materials, damaging them.
There are different techniques that can be used to repair leaks in a residential roof, depending on the size of the leak and the type of roofing material that you already have in place. If your roof is leaking, you want to get the leak repaired quickly, or the damage can worsen. If the decking or sheathing is damaged by water, replacing your entire roof will be the only option available to you. Reach out to a roofing contractor who offers residential roof leak repairs to schedule an appointment to have your roof leak repaired.
When you develop a roof leak, you don't have time to ignore it. Issues with leaks can cause problems as simple as incoming water and as wide-ranging as mold accumulation inside your home, which is why you should never let an issue sit. However, if you aren't careful, you could develop problems with roofing that is simply open to the elements, allowing rain and snow to enter your home, melt, and contribute to problems like mold growth. On this blog, you can learn more about the kinds of roofing issues that you could be faced with, and what to do about them.