First 48 hours
What to do after the storm — in order
- Stay off the roof. Wet shingles, hidden soft spots, and adrenaline are how homeowners get hurt. Everything below happens from the ground.
- Walk the perimeter. Shingles or shingle pieces in the yard, granules piled at downspout outlets, dented gutters, displaced ridge caps. Photograph everything with your phone — the timestamps matter later.
- Check the attic and top-floor ceilings for new stains or damp insulation. Water from storm damage can take a day to show.
- If water is coming in, call now. Tarping the same day is usually the difference between a roof repair and a roof-plus-ceiling-plus-drywall repair.
- Get a documented assessment before you call your insurer. Knowing whether the damage clears your wind/hail deductible — before a claim is on your record — is worth a great deal. The insurance page covers why.
Storm-chaser warning. The knock on the door comes within days of every major event. Out-of-state plates, pressure to sign "so we can hold your spot," offers to eat your deductible — that last one is insurance fraud in Ohio. A legitimate contractor gives you a written scope and is still reachable in February.
Reading the damage
Wind, hail, and age leave different fingerprints
Wind
Creased, folded or missing tabs — usually on the plane that faced the gust, often the north/west planes here. Edges and ridge lines go first. Frequently claimable.
Hail
Round bruises with granules knocked loose, soft spots you can feel, dents in gutters and vents that corroborate the date. Claimable, and the corroboration is why we photograph the metal too.
Age & wear
Uniform granule loss, curling edges, brittleness across every plane. Not claimable — and an adjuster can tell the difference, which is why inflating age into "storm damage" fails.
Our assessment tells you which fingerprint your roof carries before you decide whether to involve your insurer — with dated photos either way. If it's wear, we'll say so, and you'll have saved a claim on your record.
Get it documented before you decide anything
A post-storm assessment with dated photographs costs nothing to talk about and protects every option you have — repair, claim, or both.