Guide
The maintenance that actually matters
Most of what shortens a roof is neglect of things that take twenty minutes: a blocked valley, a lifted flashing, a gutter full of grit.
Get it looked at
Three questions, and up to three Westminster contractors. Free either way.
You are on the list.
No provider in Westminster is taking requests through this service yet. We are lining them up, and yours is kept until one can.
- Nobody gets your details yet. Your request stays with us and is not passed to any company.
- One email when someone can help. When a provider covering your area can take it on, we email you once and ask whether you want that company, by name, to contact you.
- Deleted after 90 days. If nobody can take it on, or you do not say yes, your contact details are deleted 90 days after your request.
- You decide, or you do not. There is nothing to cancel and nothing to pay us.
Nobody will call you about this request unless you say yes to a company by name.
Keep the penetrations honest
Pipe boots crack, sealant shrinks, and satellite mounts get screwed straight through the covering. Every penetration is a hole somebody decided to make watertight, and each is worth a look.
Look in the attic after heavy weather
The attic shows a leak long before the ceiling does. After any serious storm, take a torch up and look at the underside of the deck around penetrations and valleys.
Deal with growth properly
Cleaning a roof aggressively does more damage than the growth was doing. Gentle treatment, patience, and a strip at the ridge to stop it returning.
Cut back anything touching the roof
Overhanging limbs cause three problems at once: abrasion, permanent shade that keeps a slope damp, and a highway for rodents into the attic.
Twice a year, from the ground
You do not need to be on the roof to find most problems. A slow lap of the house at a low angle finds nearly all of them.
Clear the gutters before the wet season
Blocked gutters back water up under the bottom course of shingles and rot the fascia behind them. This is the highest-value hour of maintenance there is, and here it wants doing before November through March.
In short
Put two dates in the calendar, one either side of November through March. That is the whole programme.
Related questions
Do you handle commercial buildings?
Yes. Commercial requests go to contractors who do low-slope and flat systems rather than to residential crews. Say so on the property question and it routes correctly.
Should I repair or replace?
It depends almost entirely on how much life is left in the material. Ask any contractor who inspects it to give you a number of years and a reason. If two of them independently say the same thing, believe it.
Are the contractors licensed and insured?
We require a licence number and current insurance from every contractor in the network. Verify it yourself anyway. Your state licensing board has a free lookup, and it takes two minutes.
Get the roof looked at
Free, no obligation, and your details go to no company until you say yes.