Your Mobile, AL home’s roof is a key line of defense between your family and cold winter weather. If you don’t keep the roof in good repair, the lack of attention can hurt its longevity and cost you money in higher energy bills. When you’re working through your fall home maintenance checklist, don’t forget to include a roof inspection to identify any needed repairs or maintenance. Here are some of the key things that you will want to check while winterizing your roof.
Check the Attic Insulation
Your home’s attic insulation plays an important role in helping the roof keep warm air inside and cold, humid air outside. In Mobile, AL, the type and amount of insulation will differ from climates with freezing winters, but it’s still an important component of keeping your home comfortable and your energy bills minimized.
The insulation in your attic should match your local climate’s R-value. This calculated value is higher for insulation that has increased thermal resistance, which means keeping warm air inside during the winter, and cold, dry air inside during the summer. Check to ensure that you have enough insulation in your attic to keep your home temperature stable.
Trim Tree Branches
Prepare your roof for upcoming winter storms by trimming overhanging branches or branches close to the roof. Trees can add to your yard’s beauty, but they create a hazard for the roof itself. Tree branches contribute to falling leaves on the roof, which can accumulate and become a home for mold, algae, and fungus. This growth on your roof can shorten the life of the shingles and cause other issues. Branches that hang over the roof can also tear shingles during a wind storm, and a branch that breaks off and falls on your roof can dislodge shingles or even cause holes in your roof.
Clean Out Rain Gutters
Each fall, prep your roof for winter by cleaning out all of the muck that has filled up the rain gutters. During fall, when trees lose their leaves, many of them end up in the rain gutters that surround your roof. When it rains, the compacted leaves and other organic debris can clog up the gutters, forcing rain runoff from your roof to seep in between shingles and potentially into the ceiling of your home.
Piles of organic matter in your gutters can also cause problems in dry weather. Bats, wasps, and bees love to build nests in and around these leaves, which can contribute to clogs and water leaks when the rain comes.
Check Flashing and Caulking
Flashing is a type of metal strip that you’ll find surrounding certain roof features, such as chimneys, skylights, and vents. The flashing protects the join between the feature and the roof, keeping water and debris from your home and moving down the roof into the gutters. The gap between the flashing and roof is often sealed with caulking. Improperly sealed flashing is a frequent cause of roof leaks.
Fall Is a Great Time for a Roof Inspection
For the safety of your family and the longevity of your roof, fall is the best time to schedule a roof inspection for your home with our professional, qualified roofers. We will recommend any necessary repairs and maintenance, and the sooner you have your roof inspected, the sooner it will be safe and ready for the winter weather.
Guy Brothers Roofing & Siding has been serving homeowners in southern Alabama and Louisiana for decades, performing minor repairs to full roof replacements. Call Guy Brothers Roofing & Siding to schedule your inspection today!
