Storm Damage Repair

Storm Damage Repair, Step by Step

We run every storm call in the same order, because skipping a step is how a small leak becomes a deck replacement. Hail and wind open the surface; water does the rest within a day.

1. Emergency tarping comes first. A tarp over the open slope stops water from wicking into the roof deck while your claim is still being filed.
2. A rapid damage inspection follows. We walk the rooftop, photograph bruised asphalt shingle, cracked tile and dented metal panel, and note the storm date for the adjuster.
3. Debris removal clears limbs, granule piles and wind-blown debris so the field course is readable before we measure or order anything.
4. Replacement shingles, tile or metal panel get matched to the existing roof, then fastened with ring-shank nails in staggered courses.
5. Ice-and-water shield goes into the valley and along the eave before synthetic underlayment is rolled out. Roofing felt and tar paper will not hold up to Phoenix UV.
6. Flashing is rebuilt wherever wind tore it loose: step flashing at sidewalls, chimney flashing and counter-flashing at the chimney, apron flashing at the headwall, and drip edge along the eave and rake.
7. The closing roof inspection covers ridge cap, ridge vent, pipe boot and vent boot, and we clear the gutter and downspout before granule loss dams them up.

Insurance paperwork runs alongside the work. We build line-item estimates in the same format adjusters use, coordinate the adjuster inspection, and file a supplemental claim when the first insurance scope misses hidden decking or flashing damage.

What a Roof Inspection Turns Up After Hail or Wind

A storm inspection is mostly about what you cannot see from the driveway. Hail bruises the asphalt shingle mat, wind lifts the rake, and heat has already softened the rest.

• Granule loss shows as bald patches where asphalt has eroded, and those shingles are at end-of-life wear even if hail never touched them.
• Bruised or missing shingles look intact until you press them, and a bruised mat will seep and wick water into the underlayment.
• Wind uplift peels the rake and verge first; once the sealant bead breaks, the next gust takes the whole field course.
• Water intrusion at chimney flashing and step flashing usually shows as a ceiling stain before it shows on the rooftop.
• Decking rot and decay read as soft spots around pipe flashing and skylights, where a failed boot flashing has leaked for years.
• Sagging or settled deck sections mean a truss, rafter, joist or ridge beam took on moisture, which is structural repair, not shingle repair.
• Ponding water on a low-slope section points to a blocked scupper, parapet coping pulling away from the wall, or a membrane that has begun to peel and delaminate.
• Corroded fasteners and backed-out screws at the vents tell us the roof was patched before, not repaired.

Materials We Match to Your Roof

We match what is already on the house. A mismatched field course is visible from the street, and it can complicate an insurance claim.

• Architectural shingle is the standard on most Valley homes, laid in staggered courses with a starter course at the eave.
• Three-tab shingle is still right for older roofs and small repairs where color match matters more than thickness.
• Wood shake and cedar shake get replaced in kind in historic districts where the roofscape carries the character.
• Slate, clay tile and concrete tile take hail better than asphalt, but they crack at the underlayment and the fasteners beneath.
• Metal panel, standing-seam panel and corrugated panel dent instead of tearing, and often need only a re-seal at each fastener.
• Flat and low-slope work means membrane systems: TPO, EPDM, PVC membrane, built-up roof or modified bitumen, each with its own torch, adhesive or roller method.
• Substrate and framing parts include plywood or OSB sheathing over the truss, purlin, batten and counterbatten, plus the vapor barrier beneath.
• Ventilation parts include ridge vent, soffit vent, attic fan and the insulation that keeps an attic from baking through July.
• A color-matched field course keeps the roofline reading as one plane instead of a patchwork of repairs.

Why Storm Damage in Maricopa County Behaves Differently

This valley gets roughly 3,872 hours of sunshine a year, and that UV photo-degrades shingles, coatings and underlayment long before rain reaches them. Heat does the slow damage; hail and wind do the fast damage.

The 2025 monsoon season dropped hail across the area and damaged more than 500 homes in a single community. With about 111 days a year at or above 100 F, asphalt shingle oxidation is the baseline we work against.

• Ice dam damage is rare here, because an ice dam needs a freeze-thaw cycle at the eave that Phoenix does not get, so we say plainly when a quote for one does not apply.
• Monsoon wind hits from the southeast and lifts the rake before the field, so the gable end and verge get checked first.
• Snow guards belong on mountain homes, not on a Valley rooftop, and a roofer who sells them here is not listening.
• Dust and debris pack into the valley and behind the chimney, holding moisture against the flashing through the dry months.

Timelines, Cost Drivers and What We Skip

Most storm damage repair is a one-day job once the scope is settled. Emergency tarping happens the same day you call; the permanent work waits on materials and often on the adjuster.

• Roof pitch and access drive labor hours. A steep mansard or gambrel needs scaffolding, a ladder and a safety harness on every trip up.
• A roof estimate counts in roofing squares, so a hip or gable roof carries more surface than its footprint suggests.
• A recover or overlay over an existing layer costs less than a full tear-off, but building code caps how many layers a roof may carry.
• Rotted sheathing is priced by the sheet. We photograph the decking before we cover it, so you see what was replaced.
• Chimney, dormer, parapet and skylight details add time, because each is a penetration with its own flashing, caulk and sealant work.
• Gutter, downspout, fascia, soffit, overhang, canopy and awning repairs are usually storm damage too, and we price them on the same estimate.
• We do not do interior drywall, painting or solar panel removal. Better to hear that before the dumpster lands than after.

Crews work off a nail gun and air compressor for fastening, and a pry bar and roofing shovel for tear-off.

Modified bitumen gets a hand torch and squeegee. Every penetration gets a finish coat of mastic or roof cement over a waterproofing layer, and each fall-protection anchor is checked before anyone steps onto the roof.