How to Spot It and What to Do
Hail Damage
Are you worried about hail damage which might have recently impacted your roof? Did your roof begin leaking following a weather event? Have you heard horror stories from others about property damage due to hail? Do you want to arm your home or building from future ravages of hailstorms while potentially lowering your property insurance premiums? If so, you’ve come to the right place.
Hail is formed during thunderstorms. Updrafts of air push raindrops into very cold parts of the atmosphere. There, held aloft by these updrafts, the raindrops freeze into hail and then collide with other precipitation to grow bigger and bigger. The largest, officially recorded hailstone fell near Vivian, South Dakota during the summer of 2010. It was approximately 8 inches in diameter. Its circumference was over a foot and a half! The icy monstrocity weighed nearly 2 pounds, six times the weight of a major league baseball. Large hail can travel faster than a pitch by Minnesota Twins’ Sergio Romo or the Brewers’ Josh Hader… up to 100 mph!
While most hailstones are much smaller than the earthly “meteor” that crashed in South Dakota, the damage that hail causes can be severe. Hail is commonly marble-sized and hits ground at about 20-25 miles per hour, enough to cause hail damage to roofs, which happens regularly in northern Wisconsin. Believe us. At Renew Roofing we have seen the ravages of hailstorms many times and we’ve acquired special expertise in assessing and fixing roofs impacted by their assault.
It’s not at all unusual that hail falls during spring and summer months here in places like Green Bay, WI; Hinckley and Forest Lake MN. Hail is different from sleet. Sleet usually forms in the wintertime as a mixture of snow and rain. It isn’t as much of a threat to roof damage caused by hail.
HOW HAIL AFFECTS PROPERTY OWNERS
- Hailstorms wreak havoc on all sorts of property, from cars to homes and buildings, machinery… even to agricultural assets.
- Shingle cracks and punctures can allow water penetration to the roof decking leading to rot and eventually roof leaks
- Asphalt tile “bruising,” cracking and dislodged surface granules (an important shingle component) equate to critical, premature wear and tear to roofing material
- Dents and fractures to metal roofs often lead to rust and deterioration of the metal panels
- Damaged or destroyed vents can compromise inside air circulation and cause high utility bills
- In 2016 over 12 million properties throughout the U.S. suffered hail damage
TELL-TALE SIGNS OF HAIL DAMAGE
- Missing pieces of shingle; cracked shingles or tiles. Fix or replace immediately.
- Exposed substrate – the black underlayment beneath the shingles. Immediate attention is required.
- Dimples in the asphalt surface of the shingles. Soft dents mean the material has been compromised and needs to be replaced.
- “Cratering” upon the asphalt surface, determined by impact damage that shows a circular “fissure” surrounding an indentation. Replace the material immediately.
Products We Use
HAIL RESISTANT ROOF PRODUCTS
Several manufactures make roofing material engineered to resist the impacts of hail. Owners of property in Minnesota and Wisconsin should consider the high quality, attractive and impervious materials from brands such as GAF. GAF’s products in the Timberline® ArmorShield™ lines offer impact resistance that rivals anything on the market today. Metal roof products by Metal Sales Manufacturing Corporation are a good choice, too.
By using such material on your home or building, expect advantages when it comes to property insurance policies. At Renew Roofing, we try to remind our clients that property insurance companies offer a discount for hail-resistant roofs, while some insurers even can put a surcharge on deductibles if a property in a hail-prone area does not have a roof that isn’t warranted against hail damage. Renew Roofing is a GAF Master Elite Certified contractor, meaning our workmanship is high grade and our GAF roofs come with warranties of 50 years.
HOW DO I PAY FOR MY ROOF?
The vast majority of home insurance companies cover the reroof cost so the price issues are non factor if you follow the right steps with your insurance. Renew Roofing will walk you through the process to get the best outcome for your pocket and your roof.
So, when icy 95-mile per hour fastballs come your way, call Renew Roofing 833-715-ROOF. We promise that if your roof is damaged, we’ll diagnose the issues quickly and give you a fair price on high quality workmanship. Renew Roofing knows how to handle hail damage.
