Nailing This Down

Posted on: 24 January 2023

You might expect some roof damage when a bad storm with hail passes through, but when you get roof damage from birds or animals on your roof, you may be taken by surprise. Depending on where you live, rats, raccoons, woodpeckers, pigeons, vultures, and even peacocks can get on your roof and cause damage by pecking, clawing, or gnawing on your shingles. Even their bodily waste can cause roof damage due to its acidic nature.

Here's how to deal with animals and birds on your roof and what a residential roof repair contractor can do to fix the damage the pests leave behind.  

Solve The Pest Problem First

The first step is to bring in a pest control professional to get rid of the animals or birds causing all the problems. There's no use making repairs if the damage will keep on happening. The pest control company may trap and relocate the pests, or they may set up deterrents to scare them away.

You may also need to trim back tree branches or take down a trellis on the house so animals can't get on your roof as easily. Once the pests are gone, call a residential roof repair contractor to inspect the damage and make repairs.

Inspect For Damage

A pest problem on your roof could cause damage to the shingles, underlayment, plywood deck, fascia boards, or rubber boots. The type of damage found depends on the type of pest problem. For instance, a woodpecker might drill several holes in your roof. Pigeons might destroy your shingles with their waste, and raccoons can rip off shingles and chew through the deck. Once all the damage is found, the contractor can plan the repairs.

Repair The Damage

If damage is limited to the shingles, replacing the shingles gets your roof back in good shape. However, if the pests pecked holes in the roof or gnawed through it, the roofer will need to tear off the old shingles and rip off the underlayment to get down to the deck.

The contractor might fill in the small holes to seal them, but if there are several small holes together or if an animal chewed a hole through the deck, the contractor may cut out the damaged plywood and patch in new wood. The deck can then have new underlayment put down over it and then new replacement shingles put on top of the underlayment.

Fortunately, damage from animals may not be widespread since animals tend to use the same entry holes. That makes roof repairs easier and less expensive than if the roofer finds damage all over the roof.

Contact a local residential roof repair service to learn more.