The cold seasons are finally behind us, and with them the rain, cold, and dark we’re all so used to. As a roofing solutions company, we know how severe the damage that winter can wreak on your roof. If left too long, this damage will degrade your roof to the point of no return.

So, what can you do? You re-roof in summer! Here at Roof Auckland, we’re experienced in remedying the damage done to winter-torn roofs with a fresh, brand-new summer re-roofing job. From the perspective of some people who have seen many damaged roofs in their time, get the lowdown on what winter can do to your roof and what you can do to fix it.

Winter—while a season that many love—is a time of rain, darkness, and cold. In other words, it’s filled with the prime conditions to do some serious damage to the roof over your head. Your home’s roof functions as an umbrella of sorts, keeping the bad weather out and keeping the warmth in on those cold winter days.

But even the toughest roof can start to give in when it’s battered by rain day in and day out. There are three big problems a constant barrage of cold weather can cause, including leaks, rot, and warping. Let’s look at those in some more detail.

First off, we have leaks. On their own, leaks present an annoyance that can sometimes be fixed with a patch, but it’s not always the leak you have to worry about. It’s what’s behind it that counts.

A leak in your roof means water can make it into the timbers, the roof deck, and the inside of your home. By nature, water spreads through any available means. Once it makes it in through the crack in your roof, water will soak into all the wood and insulation housed beneath your roof’s surface.

Over time, this will significantly weaken the wood and cause it to sag, splinter, and rot. Not only does this present a major safety issue for anyone living in the home, it also draws pests like rodents and insects in!

With water comes dampness, and if you combine that dampness with the winter chill, you’ll soon see the appearance of rot, mould, and rust in your home. Rust is known to plague long-run roofing that hasn’t been properly maintained, and it can put your roof out of commission quickly.

Timber rot is particularly dangerous, as it weakens the structural integrity of a home’s timbers. In other words, it makes it harder for your house to stay standing, which is dangerous!

Mould carries its own set of dangers and inconveniences, most of them health related. Black mould is formed in cold and damp conditions, and once it spreads into your home it can cause short-term breathing problems, heart issues, and even long-term respiratory problems.

Finally, warping is caused by temperature changes or dampness where it shouldn’t be. Your shingles, timbers, and flashing can all warp under the right conditions. This in turn causes worse leaks and structural issues that are difficult to “patch”.

If your roof has come out the other side of winter with a few bumps and bruises, then now is the perfect time to get a re-roof. Summer offers the ideal chance to re-roof your home with no interruptions from rain, cold, or early nightfall. Some benefits of re-roofing in summer include:

• Faster. With no interruptions from rain, quicker drying times, and longer days, summer gives us the chance to get your re-roofing job done quickly.
• Cheaper. Summer means never needing to shrink-wrap your home to protect it from unexpected rainfall, which is usually a major expense!
• Allows for other jobs to happen simultaneously. If you’re saving money on shrink-wrapping, you can choose to use it to give your roof a new coat of paint instead. Alternately, replace your insulation, double-glaze your windows, or paint the outside of your house. With the sun beating down for hours longer than it does in winter, you have the time to get more than one job done!

Most importantly, a re-roof completely removes all the damaged parts of your previous roof and replaces it with a fresh, newly weatherproofed, protective structure. In fact, getting this job done right as summer starts allows your roof to settle and dry without the threat of impending rain, making it even stronger once winter rolls around again.