Roof Inspection in Thornton, CO

After hail, the roofer works slope by slope, marking a test square on each and counting hits inside it. Hail bruises show as soft spots where the granules are knocked off and the mat gives under a thumb. Hail driven by wind can hit one slope much harder than the others, so a count on one slope doesn't speak for the whole roof. Soft metals tell the story fastest: dents in ridge vents, exhaust hoods, gutters and downspouts show the size and direction of the hail. Ask for photos with each slope labeled, because an adjuster will want to see the same thing. Who should be on the roof after a storm, and how the claim works, is covered on hail damage roof repair.

A general home inspector looks at the roof, but InterNACHI's standards of practice for home inspectors let them do it from the ground or the eaves. Under those standards an inspector isn't required to walk the roof, estimate how long it will last, water-test it, check the nailing or certify it. That's where a roofer's inspection fits in a sale: it climbs onto the roof and puts a rough remaining life in writing. For a buyer, that's something concrete to bring into the negotiation. For a seller, it can show the roof's condition before a buyer's inspector raises it.

A roof certification is a roofer's written statement that the roof is free of active leaks and has a stated number of years of useful life left, sometimes after small repairs are made. It isn't a code document and it isn't a warranty. What a certification includes, how long it runs and what repairs it requires before it's issued differ from one roofer to the next. Ask to read the wording before the inspection, and ask what happens if a leak turns up during the term.

A maintenance visit is for roofs that aren't damaged yet. The roofer looks for cracked sealant at hoods and flashing, pipe boots splitting in the sun, nail pops, shingles that never sealed down, granules piling in the gutters, and debris packed in valleys. Small fixes found this way, like a dab of sealant or a reset nail, cost far less than the ceiling they protect. Early fall, once hail season is over, and spring, after the winter's freeze-thaw, are the natural times to book one.

A drone photographs steep or fragile roofs without anyone walking on them, which helps on tile, slate-look and very steep slopes. Federal rules apply: a drone under 55 pounds flown for business falls under the FAA's Part 107, which calls for a Remote Pilot Certificate earned by passing a knowledge test, plus registration and Remote ID broadcast. Ask whether whoever flies it holds that certificate. A drone shows the surface well. It can't feel a soft deck or lift a tab, so a drone survey is usually a first look before someone checks the suspect spots by hand.