Roof repair
A stain on the ceiling, a drip in the garage, daylight through the attic. Most leaks come from a short list of places, and most are a morning's work once they are found. Boe Roofing finds them from the attic first and fixes the cause, not the symptom.
Where roofs leak
Water almost never comes through the middle of a shingle. It comes in where something interrupts the roof.
- Valleys: worn through where two slopes funnel their water together, or packed with pine needles that back water up under the shingles.
- Chimney and wall flashing: rusted step flashing, counter flashing pulled out of the mortar, or caulk doing a job metal should be doing.
- Pipe boots: the rubber collar around a plumbing vent splits after ten or fifteen years of sun. The most common leak in Chico, and the cheapest to fix.
- Ridge caps and the first course at the eaves: the north wind takes them. One missing cap shingle opens the ridge to the next storm.
- Skylights: old curb flashing, or a seal gone on the unit itself.
- Nails: backed-out nails under a shingle lift it; exposed nails on a ridge or vent lose their sealant.
How a repair goes
We start inside if we can. From the attic, a leak shows as a stain or a wet trail on the underside of the decking, and it points at the place on the roof above. Then we go up, find the cause, and fix it with the same materials a new roof would get: new metal flashing, a new boot, ice and water membrane under a rebuilt valley, matching shingles woven in rather than slapped over.
You get photos of what we found and what we did. If the roof around the repair is near the end, we will say so, and the bid for a replacement will credit the repair.
Repairs in the rain
It can be done, within reason. A tarp or a temporary patch goes on in the weather to stop the damage, and the permanent repair follows once the roof is dry enough to seal. On a steep or icy roof we wait, because a roofer on the ground is no use to anyone.
Common questions
A pipe boot or a handful of wind-blown shingles is a service call. A rebuilt valley or new chimney flashing is a half day with materials. Anything bigger gets looked at in person and written up before work starts. We will tell you on the phone which bracket you are likely in.
Wind-driven rain gets pushed up under shingles and flashing that shed an ordinary rain fine. Leaks that only show in a storm from the south are usually flashing or a valley; leaks that show every time are usually a boot or a hole.
Usually close, not perfect. Shingles fade, and a twenty-year-old colour is not made any more. On a visible slope we try to pull shingles from a hidden area for the repair and put the new ones where they are not seen.
Yes. Re-screwing a screw-down metal roof whose fasteners have backed out and lost their washers is a regular job for us, along with resealing laps and replacing rusted panels.
Get a bid: roof repair
Say what the roof is doing, what kind of roof it is if you know, and which town you are in. We call back to talk it through and set a time to look at it. If water is coming in right now, skip the form and call.