Typical Causes For Leaking Roof

A leaking roof demands immediate attention. How can a homeowner work to prevent development of a leak in the home’s roofing structure?

One preventive measure: Hiring professionals for installation of roofing

Do not take for granted a contractor’s familiarity with installation of all parts of a roofing structure. An error made during the construction of any part of that same structure could lead to formation of an opening in some section of the rooftop. That would allow the entrance of water.

A second preventive measure: Never procrastinating, once an inspection of the rooftop has led to discovery of a problem.

Any problem should be fixed just as soon as possible. Homeowners that choose to delay performance of that task simply invite the creation of leaky areas on and under the roof’s surface.

A 3rd way to prevent leaking: Arrange for introduction of a satisfactory ventilation system.

Two areas of any home are certain to serve as a source of moisture: the kitchen and the bathroom. That warm moisture enters the air and travels upward. Then it can accumulate on the underside of the rooftop, unless a ventilating system pulls it away from that region, and carries it outside.

A 4th way to prevent leaking: Avoid creation of a cracked chimney.

Such a crack usually appears in the chimney’s mud cap, or in the mortared area of that rooftop element. A skilled and professional roofing contractor in San Mateo should understand how to keep such a crack from forming.

A concept that offers another clue on how leaks form.

Every roof has both a slope and a pitch. A professional contractor should have learned how to calculate each roof’s slope and pitch. Certain of those calculations require utilization of calculus.

The slope is the degree of deviation from the horizontal. The pitch represents the degree of slope; it could be abrupt or gentle. In order for rainwater to roll easily off of a rooftop, that structure must feature slanted areas that are sloping in the correct manner, while being pitched properly.

In roofs that have shingles, the ability to match those 2 features becomes especially important. If there were too much slope and not enough pitch, then the rainwater would not roll off of the surface in a way that it should keep leaks from forming.

Final words of advice for all homeowners

Understand what action to take, after noting a leak’s presence. Schedule an inspection, one that should be carried out by a professionally trained roofer. Roofers know what sorts of weaknesses in a home’s roofing have the ability to encourage the leaking of water into that same residence. Roofers make a point of checking for the existence of such potential and unwanted problems.