The Dark Side to Leaves on Your Roof

house-beside-the-trees
The Dark Side to Leaves on Your Roof

During fall, leaves provide a beautiful kaleidoscope of colors not even a painting can capture, but while leaves on your roof may seem harmless, they can cause problems. You may think “they will eventually blow off” or “snow will hide them.”  But when they don’t, costly repairs may be down the road for the homeowner.

Roof Damage from Leaves on Roof?

There are several ways leaves on the roof can cause damage:

  1. When leaves, especially wet ones, begin to pile up on your roof for an extended amount of time, they start to collect water.  The standing water will eventually trap moisture in your shingles, which can lead to mold and rotting. If your shingles have rotted through, the boards underneath begin to rot as well.  This can cause damage inside your house, beginning with destructive leaks.
  2. The added weight from the moisture laden leaves can add pressure to your home’s support beams.  This is another way cracks and leaks can form on the interior of your home and even contribute to a ceiling collapse.
  3. Mold, mildew, and moss will form and grow on your roof until it is removed.  It can eat through roofing materials and damage the structural integrity of your home.
  4. Clogged gutters are the most familiar problem with leaves on roofs.  Clogged gutters lead to a host of issues:
  • Leaves start to decompose and the gutter fills with water, causing rust and damage to the gutter.  The gutters start to break apart from the roof.
  • When leaves fill the gutter, water will overflow. The water flows off the roof with enough force to damage the shrubbery around your house.  The water can seep into your home’s foundation, causing mold, mildew, and basement flooding.
  • The water which overflows the gutters and leaks onto your home’s siding can cause staining.
  • Standing water in the gutters can attract insects and/or animals, leading to infestations.

Solutions to Leaves on Roof

  1. Use a leaf blower to blow leaves off the roof.
  2. You can sweep them off with a broom on an extension pole, depending on roof height.
  3. Use a roof rake to pull them off.
  4. Chemically treat mold that has formed with a bleach solution or place zinc strips at the peak of the roof to fight mold.
  5. Gutter guards are the best solution because they direct water and debris away from your home.  At Pro-Homes, we work with and recommend one of the most reliable in the business, Leaf Relief Gutter Guard System. Their gutter guards are backed by a 25-year “no clog, no overflow” warranty.

The most important considerations to make when it comes to removing leaves on roofs is safety and prevention. In order to ensure safety and prevention, first: have your roof inspected before and after the season hits if you suspect any kind of potential hazard, second: call the professionals like us at Pro-Homes.  We will do the dirty work for you and help avoid leaves on roofs all together.  For questions or to schedule an appointment, give Pro-Homes a call today at (630) 790-0800!

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