A lot of homeowners take their ceilings for granted and don’t check them often, but we recommend you inspect them regularly for signs of moisture seeping through. Even if you see something that looks minor, you need to get on it and check it out. This article will discuss tips for taking care of water stains quickly and effectively.
When you spot moisture, the first thing you need to do is find out the source of where its coming from. Most of the time, the area directly above the stain is the best place to start. If you can’t see anything on your roof that looks like a problem, you could have a pipe thats leaking. There could also be moisture running along some pipes or trusses that will come from a source somewhere else and drop onto your ceiling.
Are they water stains? There are other causes for stained ceilings including:
If the leak is coming from your roof, it could be that there are other sources of moisture other than obvious leaks. If you need a professional, experienced roofing company to inspect your roof for leaks and determine where any moisture spots may be coming from, give us a call at (623) 465-1068.
You don’t want to repair any moisture stains, no matter how bad they look, until you know the source and have it repaired. If you fix it first then find the source, chances are you’re going to be repairing another moisture stain. If there’s permanent damage, you might have to take out part of your ceiling or wall to fix the issue. So the stain doesn’t seep through, when you’re dealing with a cosmetic stain, you should use a stain covering primer before painting over the spot. Depending on how much damage there is and the stain itself, you may need to contact a professional to help fix the issue.
Make sure you don’t let moisture stains and their source go unchecked. Always take care of the issue as soon as possible, or what could be a minor cosmetic and roof repair could turn into something major and much more expensive. Here at Mikku and Sons Roofing, we can put you in touch with financing options, if the need for it arises.
For your roof to drain properly, you need 3 things; proper placement of drains, proper slope on your roof, and proper sized drains, which on a sloped roof would mean gutters. Also, consider the amount and intensity of rainfall you would normally encounter during storms.
What gutters and drains do is detour the water falling from your roof away from the exterior walls and foundation. If you have gutters, its critical that the materials they’re made of, how they’re installed and the maintenance you perform on them are needed to prevent damage to your roof. Blocked gutters or drains can cause water to back up below the membrane or pool on the surface in areas that could take a long time to dry out. You never want standing water on any roof surface.
For gutters, aluminum and steel are the most common material choices. They are durable and resist cracking, bending and corrosion. These are 3 of the most common cases of damage to a roof. Corrosion, cracking and bending of gutters are one of the most common causes of damage to roofs.
Proper maintenance and regular inspections of your downspouts and and gutters is crucial to keep water flowing away from your property. The downspouts that carry that water away tend to clog and back up and must be kept clear. Proper maintenance and regular checks of the downspouts and gutters is essential to keep water flowing smoothly away from your building.
One of the most common causes of roof damage is a clogged gutter. Most gutters are open-top, which tend to accumulate debris (leaves, sticks) along with nesting birds and rodents. When your gutter gets blocked, water stops flowing and spills over the edge in the wrong places. The pooling and spilling water can soak your roofing material and make it rot. Locations where the gutters or downspouts are blocked also make a great place for mold, mildew and algae to thrive and grow.
Proper installation of the roof drain and gutters is also extremely important. If they aren’t installed right, they will almost certainly fail. they have to be installed with the roof’s pitch and angles taken into account. You’ll have damage to your roof line, or the gutters will crack or pull away from your property if they aren’t installed properly.
If you have a commercial building, where and how many roof drains or gutters you place is critical. Drains should be located no more than 100 feet apart and no more than 50 feet from the roof’s perimeter.
Your city or state surely has building codes that need to be checked before you make any changes or additions to your building.
If you think your drainage apparatus isn’t working the way it should, you should call a professional roofing contractor to inspect it as soon as possible. they will be able to pinpoint any problems for you and should be knowledgeable about the type of drainage thats appropriate for your property and the areas applicable building codes.
No matter what type of property you own, the roof on it will usually have some sort of warranty. Actually, there are two types of warranties – the actual one and one that’s inferred or implied. Let’s learn more about roof warranties.
The materials manufacturer will issue a warranty guaranteeing that their product will perform to certain standards over a specific period of time. It could be 10, 15, 20 or even more years, depending on the type of material they’re made of. They are taking for granted that the installation was performed correctly and that routine maintenance is being done. Let’s say your roof is looking like it needs to be replaced and the materials were warrantied for 10 years. Also, lets say your roofing contractor did a good job following the installation instructions and installed your roof perfectly. If the materials fail during your 10 year warranty period, the manufacturer is guaranteeing that they will be replaced with no cost to you.
A roofing installation contractor should provide a warranty that their workmanship will be guaranteed over a specific period of time. The most common is 2 years. So, if your contractor makes a mistake in installing your roof, and it fails from their bad workmanship, the professional roofing contractor will honor their warranty and supply the materials and labor to fix the problem. Make sure you scrutinize this one very carefully, making sure both labor and materials are covered, not just one or the other.
This means that a product will do what its designed to do. An example would be a roof membrane keeping water out of your home. Another term for this warranty is merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. They usually come with some instructions (and warnings) from the manufacturer. An example would be if you or someone else that walked on the roofing membrane and caused it to leak or fail. If you don’t follow these instructions or warnings, you’ll have a problem getting the manufacturer to honor their warranty.
You’ll need to make sure you do whats necessary to maintain your roof once you’ve signed your warranty. With commercial roofing, property managers and building owners will hire facility managers and on-staff maintenance teams to make sure they comply with their maintenance requirements. Experienced professionals are aware of what they need to do (and avoid doing) to make sure they maintain their roof and hence, their warranty. Overall, improper maintenance will cause damage to your roof, so when you hire someone to do repairs, or any work on your roof, make sure they are competent and familiar with your roof system, along with the manufacturers specs and maintenance instructions.
When your roof has a problem and you think your warranty has been violated, property owners generally have 30 days to notify the manufacturer or roofing contractor. If you don’t, you’ll void the warranty. If you wait too long, the manufacturers and roofers won’t be legally required to fulfill their obligations (which includes repairing or replacing your roof). So, if you suspect something is amiss with your roof, get it inspected by a competent professional roofing contractor as soon as possible, so you can make your notifications in a timely manner.
