Preparing Your Roof for Autumn: A Guide

With autumn quickly approaching, you likely have a plethora of items on your to-do list. But with the changing season comes new concerns for your home. Read our guide below for preparing your home—specifically your roof—for the coming cooler months.

Have a professional inspect your roof

Your first step should be to schedule a professional roof inspection for your property. These experts can fully check your roof for some common issues such as:

• Signs of warping
• Defects with the flashing or joins
• Broken tiles
• Gaping, corrosion or pitting

During the inspection, you can also have your technician check to see if the roof needs a paint update. Or if you’d like to paint your roof for the first time, an inspection will let you know which repairs need to be made beforehand so you have a beautiful roof that will last as long as possible.

Make repairs and clean your roof

If you’re certified to make roofing repairs and to clean the surface, take that step after the inspection. However, regardless of your abilities, you can have an expert make repairs to your roof to enhance its longevity and functionality. Likewise, you should also clean your roof’s exterior to remove any debris that has built up over time.

Include your solar panels—if applicable

If you have solar panels on your roof, you should have those inspected as well. If the panels sustained any damage, make the necessary replacements so you can continue benefiting from renewable energy. Similarly, if the panels are dirty, have them cleaned.

Clean out your gutters

One of the biggest issues your home will face during the cooler months is falling leaves that can clog your gutters. Given enough time, these leaves can clog the gutters to the point that the system stops working correctly and won’t drain water away from your home. If left unattended for too long, built-up clogs can cause permanent, costly damage to the entire structure of your home.

Maintain your property’s foliage

Another great way to prepare your home — and your roof — for autumn is to prune any trees and shrubbery along your property. Keeping the branches and limbs cleanly trimmed prevents them from growing toward and damaging your roof.

If you have any other plant life in your yard that sheds leaves, trim those as well. Even if they aren’t at roof height, the fallen leaves could blow toward your roof or into the bottom of downpipes in higher winds.

Schedule pest control

In our previous blog post, 5 Pests That Like to Live in Dirty Gutters, we detail which animals pose a risk to your home’s gutters and roof. Aside from cleaning your gutters, you should schedule seasonal pest control to help avoid any complications throughout the season. And if any pests, such as roof rats or mice, have already caused damage to your home, you can have professionals make the necessary repairs, both to your home’s interior and exterior.

If you’d like to hire a professional to do more than inspect your roof, such as clean the gutters or detect leaks, contact Homestyle Roof Painters. We’re happy to provide the roofing services you need to have a fresh-looking, quality roof covering your home.