By: Pete Dall, Sherriff-Goslin Roofing, Muncie—
How do you know when you might need to have a professional look at your roof? First and foremost —is your roof doing it’s number one job, keeping your house dry? If you have an older roof, it’s always smart to keep an eye on your ceilings inside the house. White drywall and plaster will visually signal you immediately when it gets wet. If you see leaking, you need to call a roofing professional right away.
Another obvious sign anyone can see is missing shingles. In East Central Indiana, some days it feels like we are in a wind tunnel and your roof is the most exposed part of your home. If your shingles are coming off in the wind, they may be able to be repaired. Over time a shingle expands and contracts with the hot and cold weather, and the sealants will break down. Once a shingles sealant is no longer effective, the shingles will start to fly off in the wind and the roof may need to be replaced.
Here is an example of a home that has experienced some roof damage from recent high winds in Muncie. Photo by: Mike Rhodes
If you can see the shingles curling excessively, the mat or skeleton of the shingle is probably receding, and the roof is probably close to being replaced. Fiberglass shingles will generally not curl like older organic shingles typically did, but they will crack across the shingle when they are near the end of their useful life. If you see a lot of white in the shingle that was not there before, you might be seeing the fiberglass mat on the edges. This might happen at the end of the life of a fiberglass shingle.
When cleaning your gutters you will always find a little bit of the granules that shed from the shingle. If it seems that you are finding an inordinate amount of granules, that may be a sign that the shingle is wearing down.
It is possible that you might need some roof attention— and can’t see any of these signs from the ground. It is always wise to call a roofing professional to inspect your roof.
Most companies will give free inspections and estimates upon request.
