Hailstorm Damage Checklist

Hailstorm damage is part of spring in Indianapolis.  As a homeowner, the morning after a severe hailstorm there is probably a lot going through your mind. What got dinged up? How bad did it get damaged? What should I do next? Because of the seriousness and potentially devastating qualities of a hailstorm, these are important questions to ask and, most importantly, to get answered.

What makes hailstorms so dangerous is both the immediate and future repercussions they bring about. The sheer speed and force at which hail falls, coupled with the strong winds that usually accompany them, can cause serious harm to your roof by damaging or knocking off shingles from your home. 

That is just the immediate impact. If the hailstorm damage isn’t taken care of in a timely fashion, future hail, thunder, rain, or wind storms can be magnified because of the damaged integrity of your roof due to missing or damaged shingles. Even more shingles can be damaged or removed, or even worse the previously exposed areas become at extreme risk of damage to your actual roof or creating leaks into your attic.

This is why following a hailstorm it is important to make a proper assessment of any damage to your home so you can reach out to the right people and act quickly. Here is our checklist of essential tasks to do and what damage to keep on the lookout for following any hailstorm.

Check around your home

The first thing you should do is to have a look around your home to see if you can identify any damage caused by hail. This is a good place to start because oftentimes the condition of your yard and surrounding area can be a good indication of the condition of your home. For instance, if your car was parked outside make this the first place you look. If there is any hail damage to your car, chances are pretty high you will be facing damage elsewhere to your roof or other exteriors.

Other hail damage indicators to keep an eye out for are fallen tree branches or twigs, shredded plants or flowers, dings or dents in your mailbox, and chips or scratches to any porch or wooden patio your home has. All of these are signs that the hail fell with a significant enough impact to potentially do similar damage to your home. Also, if at this time you notice any loose shingles scattered around your yard with all the twigs and branches, you can safely know at this point your roof has been damaged.

Check your siding, gutters, and windows

After you have evaluated the condition of your yard, before you pull out your ladder and consider heading up to the roof, start by a safer evaluation of your home by looking at other areas that may have been harmed by hail, mainly your siding, gutters, and windows. Damages to these areas may be subtle, but just like hail damage to your roof they can be serious problems if not addressed. They are also a good indication of what you may find once your roof is eventually inspected.

Hail impacting your siding can result in minor dents, cracks, or some paint chipping if you have fiber cement board siding. Similarly, look for dents in your gutters as well as any drooping caused by them becoming dislodged by the repeated impact. Window damage is probably the least subtle of the three in determining the extent of damage, and if your windows got damaged during the storm, you probably already know about it! However, check any exterior windows for any cracks.

Carefully check your roof for hailstorm damage

Now that you have had a chance to survey the scene around your home, it’s time for the moment of truth and evaluating the hail damage done to your roof. While we recommend having your roof inspected by an expert, if you choose to go up on your roof at any point it is important that you exercise the utmost caution and care when doing so to avoid injuring yourself. 

There are a handful of hail damage signs to keep an eye out for once your roof is being inspected. Damaged shingles can be identified by darkened areas that have been dented, splitting or cracks along these areas, an excessive amount of give when you push on a damaged area, as well as any areas where shingles are missing and the roof itself has become exposed. 

Call in help

Damage of all kinds to your roof is important to take care of. However, when it comes to roofing damage there is a difference between “cosmetic damage” and “functional damage”. As you may imagine, cosmetic damage doesn’t look pretty, but it may not actually be a threat to the condition of your roof. Functional damage isn’t just ungly, it is dangerous too. 

It isn’t always easy for someone without a background knowledge in roofing to know the difference between the two or how to identify exactly what the extent of your roofing damage is. Whether you don’t want to or can’t get on the roof yourself to inspect the damages, you aren’t sure how bad the damages are, or you don’t know what to do next, call Lathrop Contracting.

Lathrop Contracting specializes in storm damage repair for roofing, gutters, siding, and windows. Our evaluation can determine the extent of damage to your home and recommend the best solution, whether it is taking care of some minor repairs or a complete replacement. If you think your insurance should cover some of the cost of repair, we are also more than happy to work with your insurance company to provide the information you need to get your claim approved. Call (317) 783-6929 today.

[sc_fs_faq sc_id=”fs_faqq8tqynamb” html=”true” headline=”h2″ img=”” question=”What should I do after a hailstorm?” img_alt=”” css_class=”” ]After a hailstorm it is important to evaluate damage to your house and property by looking at you roof, gutters, siding, and windows before calling a roofing repair contractor.[/sc_fs_faq]