Every other year or so, hail storms hit a different area of Atlanta. If you live in the path of one these hail storms you have most likely received numerous offers to inspect your roof for hail damage so that you can get a “free” roof. If you are wondering how hail affects your roof and things to look for this article is for you. While you must inspect the shingles themselves, many times you can find signs of hail damage without ever getting on your roof. If you are looking for a free inspection check out our free 15 point inspection process here.
Has Hail Hit My Roof?
The first thing you should do is verify that hail has actually been reported in the area. If a recent storm hasn’t hit your roof you have nothing to worry about. Many times storms come when we are at work or out of town on vacation so it’s not always clear if a hail storm has been in the area or someone is trying to push you into making a claim on your homeowner’s insurance. A great resource to check for hail location and dates is the NOAA storm reports page here. The navigation can be a bit confusing but keep in mind that green dots represent hail, red dots are tornados, blue dots are wind reports and black triangles represent large hail over 2” in diameter. The NOAA considers any hail above 1.50” to be severe hail, which can damage property. Another way to find hail reports is to search sites such as Twitter with hail+city.
How Does Hail Damage A Roof?
Most homes in the Atlanta area are roofed with asphalt shingles, while these shingles are durable they don’t always stand up to hail and wind damage very well. To understand how hail damages a shingled roof you must first understand how asphalt shingles work. The shingles on your home are basically a fiberglass mat that is protected from UV light by small granules that are embedded in asphalt. When large hail strikes your roof it can knock away the granules and expose the fiberglass mat to UV light and shorten its effective lifespan. It’s important to note that some insurance companies require the fiberglass mat to be “bruised” which is an arbitrary measure of damage.
Others Ways To Spot Potential Hail Damage
While some homeowners are comfortable getting on their roof, many are not. Below are a few different ways that you can spot potential hail damage to your property without the help of a roofer.
- Dings on Mailboxes
- Tears in window screens
- Dents in the fins of your AC unit
- Splatter on your siding.
- Splatter on dirty concrete.
- Dings in gutter downspouts.
- Chips in your deck handrail.
- Holes in vinyl siding.
- Dents in Aluminum siding.
Even if you see signs of hail on all of these items it does not mean there is damage to your roof but without signs of damage on at least some of the things listed it is a good sign that you don’t have sufficient hail damage to warrant replacement.
If you have looked over your property and believe that you may have hail or storm damage feel free to contact Fowler Homes for a free 15 point roof inspection where we go over your entire roof looking for signs of any trouble you may face. To schedule your free inspection click here or give me a call at 770-744-5992.