Owning a home comes with a lot of maintenance. There are the “must-do” items like fixing leaky faucets or a broken railing, replacing broken appliances or a leaking roof… the list goes on.
All of this is on top of regular maintenance like mowing the lawn, cleaning your gutters, and the week-to-week cleaning that helps keep everything in order! It can all be daunting, and the tasks can easily pile up quickly.
With everything you have to do, it’s tempting to procrastinate on getting certain things done. Maybe you can wait on fixing a squeaky door. But something that you should never procrastinate is needing to fix roof leaks.
Roof leaks affect the entire home and can cause serious damage. Not only that, but the water damage caused by leaky roofs can be extremely dangerous for your safety and your health.
How is that possible? How can a little leaking roof cause such big damage?
Keep reading to find out.
Attic and Ceiling Damage
No pun intended: Let’s start from the top (and perhaps the most obvious). When your roof leaks, it means that water is seeping through and into your home. The roof is meant to keep this water out of the home, so when there’s a leak, it isn’t doing its job.
If you have an attic, the water can leak right into the room itself. This can damage the wood and structure of the attic itself. If you have items stored in the attic, the leak can destroy or damage these items as well.
If you don’t have an attic, the top-most part of your home is still in danger. Water can damage the ceilings directly below your roof.
Think you have a leak but aren’t sure? Look for dark spots or bubbling in the paint on the ceiling. These are signs of water damage that could be a result of a leaky roof.
You could also see damage to nearby walls, plaster, and paint. Have ceiling fans, lights, or hooks? Chances are you’ll see damage there, too, if you don’t fix the roof leak ASAP.
Insulation Damage
Underneath the roof and in the attic are prime spots for your home’s insulation. When insulation comes in contact with water (like it would if you have leaking roof) it becomes much less effective.
Reduced effectiveness of your insulation makes it harder to heat and cool your home effectively, which can lead to increased energy bills. You may also need to replace this insulation if the damage is bad enough, which increases the costs of the overall repair.
As the damage becomes more extensive, the damage to your insulation can spread to the walls and other areas in the home besides just the attic.
Mold & Mildew Growth
Mold and mildew thrive in humid conditions. Guess what’s much more humid when you allow water in through a roof leak? That’s right: your home.
As water seeps into your home through a leaking roof, it provides a breeding ground for mold and mildew to grow inside. Once the mold gets in, it can easily infiltrate your entire home through your vents, HVAC system, and even just in the air.
Mold and mildew can damage your flooring, carpets, your home structure, tiles, walls, paint… the list goes on and on. Not only will mold and mildew result in damage to the home, but it can also cause health issues for you and your family.
These health issues can range from allergy-like symptoms to headaches to serious issues like respiratory problems, lung disease, asthma, and nosebleeds.
Structural Problems
Perhaps the most serious issue caused by a leaking roof is damaged structural integrity of your home. Under extreme conditions, water damage can cause joists, rafters, frames, beams, and your entire home’s structure to deteriorate and rot. This can cause entire walls and ceilings to simply fall or break away, which is very dangerous.
Not only could this hit you or a family member as it falls, the momentum can destroy anything in its path including electronics, floors, beds, and other household objects.
Not only is it dangerous, but it’s also extremely expensive to fix this kind of damage. You may need to replace your entire roof frame, rafters, walls, and parts of the ceiling if you don’t fix roof leaks promptly.
Higher Bills
You might think you’re being smart by putting off your roof repair in lieu of fixing something else in your home. But putting off fixing a leaky roof will actually result in you spending more money in the long run.
First of all, you’ll be paying higher energy bills thanks to the damaged insulation. Damaged insulation means you need to use more energy to properly heat and cool your home.
The increased humidity thanks to the roof leak could mean you need to use dehumidifiers to offset the moisture, which also uses more power (and costs you more money).
Besides the energy bills, as the leak gets progressively worse over time (which it always will), the damage it causes is going to get more and more expensive. What might’ve started as a simple shingle repair could turn into having repairs on the entire structure and framing of your roof or home.
Don’t forget about all the damage that a leaking roof can cause that will also need to be repaired alongside the leak that started it all. This stuff adds up.
Need Roof Repair to Fix Roof Leaks? Call Farina Roofing
Have we convinced you to fix roof leaks ASAP? We hope so.
Roof leaks might seem small and innocuous, but they can actually cause immense (and expensive) damage throughout your home.
Make sure you keep up with your roof maintenance before you need an entire roof replacement.
If you’re in need of a roof repair, call us. We can come and evaluate your problem and work out the best solution for you.