If you have recently treated your home for termites, you want to check your roof for termite damage as soon as possible. Termites can damage your roof beyond repair. The damage could be severe enough to warrant a full roof replacement. Learn how termites damage roofs and why you may need to replace your roof now.
How Can Termites Damage Your Roof?
Termites cause billions of dollars of damage to homes each year. Most of the damages caused by termites occur in residential homes. Although termites are most active in the summer, the pests consume large quantities of wood throughout the year. If the damage occurs in typically inaccessible places in your home, like your roof, the devastation can be even worse for you.
Termites can feed on the wooden substrate and other organic materials covering your roof. The pests may also consume the wooden beams in your attic ceiling and walls. All of the materials on your roof and inside your attic can become brittle, crumbly, and weak over time. Your roof and the structures supporting it may eventually sag or collapse from stress.
Once you have successfully gotten rid of all the termites in your attic, check to see how much damage has been done. If it is severe enough, call a contractor to replace your roof soon.
How Do You Replace Your Termite Damaged Roof?
In order to fix your roof properly, a contractor needs to examine it. A roofer can use the examination to determine the:
- amount of termite damage in your roof
- extent of termite damage in your roof
- location of termite damage in your roof
A contractor will also take time to examine your attic during the inspection. If a contractor discovers major termite damage in your attic ceiling, they'll repair it before they replace your roof. The ceiling in your attic must be strong enough to support the replacement materials on your roof. After a contractor addresses the issues in your attic ceiling, they'll move on to your roof.
If small portions of your roof sustained some termite damage, a contractor will only replace those areas for you. The replacement materials will keep your roof from failing in the future.
If a contractor finds severe termite damage throughout the entire roofing system, including the substrate and underlayment, they'll replace the entire structure as soon as possible. At this point in time, your roof doesn't possess the strength or integrity to keep rain and other hazards out of your home.
Don't wait until later to replace your termite-damaged roof. Call a roofing contractor for more information on how to inspect and replace your home's roof today. Keep these tips in mind when looking for a roof replacement service.
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