When it comes to maintaining your roofing system, knowing about the common causes of damage is vital. For this reason, we’ve asked the professionals of New View Residential Roofing to give us some insight on what these are. Check them out below.
Common Causes Of Roof Damage
1. Rain
Rains, whether they fall in heavy storms for a short period of time or fall lightly but in an extended per-season frequency, may wear down the materials of a roofing system. Left unattended, this may very well be a recipe for a roofing disaster.
Moisture can, over time, penetrate through the shingle material and can seep through the underlayment. Once the layers are compromised, they may add to the weakening of the overall structural integrity of your roof.
In the event that the moisture permeates the shingles, they may also cause rotting not only on the roof but within iron beams.
2. Extreme Cold (Ice And/Or Snow)
Winter weather can bring about ruin to overhangs, gutters, shingles, etc. Frozen water can expand and its weight may cause cracks on the roof. They can also impede proper drainage in gutters.
Whenever snow melts, it’ll flow through the eaves and once there, refreeze and restart the expansion process mentioned above.
Additionally, once ice and snow are melted, their now liquified state will, like rain, seep through shingles and into your home’s interior.
You might be wondering about snow collapsing your roof, too. Well, experts say that some roofs, regardless of material type, can actually withstand a maximum of 20 pounds of snow per square foot.
However, for most roofing systems, every square foot can approximately hold a total of 5 pounds. And 5 pounds of snow is equivalent to 10 inches of snow. Therefore, your roof will probably be able to carry about 4 feet of it. Any more than that and you’ll risk roof collapse.
3. Extreme Heat (Sun)
High waves of heat from the sun (summer season, or places that experience very high degrees of sunlight) emit high levels of heat and ultraviolet light.
Generally, deterioration from UV occurs over a long span of time. On the other hand, there are shingle materials that are more susceptible to quicker deterioration than the rest. One of them is asphalt.
The components in asphalt shingles, when hit with UV, cause a chemical reaction that weakens their capacity to seal off moisture and/or water. Oxygen mixes with the asphalt’s hydrocarbons which breaks down the shingle coating.
The oil protection found on said coating evaporates and leaves the layer underneath exposed to the weathering elements. Mainly, the sun. Subsequently, these exposed portions will begin to dry, turn brittle, crack, and later on, corrode.
Apart from this, extreme heat on asphalt may activate expansion. And when temperatures drop in the evening, a contraction will take place. This recurring expanding and contracting will lead to what’s referred to as “thermal shock”.
Continuous thermal shock will eventually set off degradation. What’s more, downspouts and gutters may be impacted by this as the slow degradation will cause them to separate from the roof. Hence, water damage will occur even faster and shall add to the damaging effects of thermal shock.
