4 Ways To Prepare Your Roof And Gutters For Spring

The preventive maintenance of your gutters and roof can save you a lot of dollars. A routine inspection coupled with timely cleaning is very essential, especially after a seasonal onslaught. You can hire a professional to inspect and clean your roof, or you can do it yourself.

Whichever way you decide to go, you need to be proactive.

Don’t wait for your gutters and roof to suffer severe damage before taking a definite step. Every roof, no matter the material that it is made of, and all types of gutters must be prepared for winter, fall, summer, and spring. Preparing your gutters and roof for spring is more about examining the impact of winter.

Tips For Preparing Your Gutters And Roof For Spring

Below are some useful tips for preparing your gutters and roof for spring.

Tip 1

Start with a proper inspection of the gutters and roof. Clean the gutters and roof and make sure they are spotlessly cleansed. Leave the harsh or stubborn stains that wouldn’t go even with pressure washing.

Also, make sure the downspouts and eaves troughs are cleaned thoroughly. Don’t leave any debris in the gutters or on your roof. Debris on the roof and gutters may prevent smooth water runoff. This smooth water runoff is needed for the protection of your roof during spring showers.

Tip 2

Examine your gutters and shingles for any physical damage. You may likely find a missing shingle, some might even be damaged, or you could detect granules in the gutters. Make sure any missing or damaged shingle is replaced.

Replace or repair portions of the gutters that are damaged. Also, hammer down any nail popping out somewhere. If your roof is not too weak or old, the normal signs of aging are not a problem. Loose and curled shingles should also be replaced; the sooner you do it, the better it is.

Tip 3

Examine the flashing on your roof. There may be damages to the windows, skylights, or walls of dormers. Cracked caulking or damaged flashing should be attended to immediately. You can apply simple remedies like re-caulking.

If the flashing is extensively damaged and you observe substantial rust, you may need to replace the whole flashing. Your roof will be vulnerable to water damage as a result of fragile flashing. Do not delay or avert replacement.

Tip 4

Once you are convinced of the condition of the gutters and flashing, proceed to the soffit and fascia, both parts of your roof structure. The soffit and fascia may not be seen as being significant as the gutter or the roof itself, but they perform an important function in maintaining the overall durability of the roof.

They must be in perfect condition for your roof to be durable and strong. You should also make sure the soffit or fascia doesn’t have any visible damage, soft spots, or holes. You can replace them or repair them depending on the degree of damage.

Tip 5

Search for signs of water damage, because during winter, roofs are susceptible to ice dams. Some of the damages are visible, while some are difficult to detect. This is the main reason why the majority of homeowners hire an expert to examine the damage caused by ice dams.

The roofing deck, the substrate layer or the roof may be significantly damaged and yet, you may not find any concerning signs. An ice dam can result in the rotting of the underlayment and damage to the insulation. It may also result in leaks that would cause catastrophe during rain.

Tip 6

The winds can be quite violent during the spring months. These wind storms can have a significant effect on trees that are around your house. It is very easy for trees to lose their branches during the storm, especially when the branches are already weakened by the cold winter season.

When these trees that are situated near your house lose their branches, they are likely to fall on your roof and cause a lot of damage that might require you to spend a lot of money to repair them.

So, take your time to thoroughly examine these trees to remove branches that could be dangerous or problematic if they eventually fall on your roof during a high wind storm.

Tip 7

Springtime is a season when most animals love to come out and build nests wherever they can find space. These nests attract animals to your house, where they can inflict significant damage through burrowing, chewing, digging, and creating all sorts of messes.

You must clear out all nests before the animals lay eggs or have babies living on your roof. Animals can become dangerous and aggressive when they’re trying to protect their young ones.

How To Examine The Condition Of Your Roof

One of the ways to examine the condition of your roof is to look at it from ground level by making use of binoculars. You can also ask a friend or a neighbor to help you out with this.

If after examining the roof from ground level you feel there is a need for you to climb up the roof. However, you don’t feel safe doing it, or it happens to be against your insurance policy, then simply hire a professional to help you out.

When climbing up on the roof to clear away and get rid of tiny or large items like branches broken off from the nearby trees and leaves blown onto your roof and scattered around, you need to be extremely careful so you don’t end up getting injured.

Conclusion

You need to prepare your roof and gutters for spring. Preparing the roof and gutters would ensure that the service life of these would last for the entire period. Moreover, it will save you money too.