I’ve been pretty lucky the last couple years. After my roof was damaged by a windstorm a couple years ago, my roof has been perfectly fine since then. That is until a severe thunderstorm in June.
I remember it like it was yesterday. The rain was coming down like the monsoons. Lightning lit up the sky. The boom of thunder made the hair stand on the back of my neck.
As a homeowner I’ve learned over the years that it’s important to keep an eye on your most prized possession: your home. It’s a good idea to get in the regular habit of checking the outside of your house for any damage. That way you can catch it early and prevent any further damage from happening. After the roof incident a couple years ago, I always make sure I check my roof for any damage.
When I looked at my roof I didn’t notice anything major. However, I did see that one of the shingles was lifting up. And of course, it was at the highest point, the peak of the roof! (Doesn’t it always happen like that?)
I could have just left it, but it had the potential to cause a lot of damage later so (if my roof started to leak), so I decided to repair it.
Hire a Roofer or DIY?
At that point I had two choices: I could call a roofer or try to repair it myself. Normally, I might have called a roofer, but with extra time on my hands due to the Coronavirus pandemic, I decided to give it a go myself.
I went on YouTube and watched a bunch of DIY roof repair videos. I also watched some videos on safely getting up on the roof. (Since I’d rather not visit the hospital during COVID times.)
After watching a few videos, the roof repair didn’t seem so bad. I had pretty much everything I needed: a ladder, work gloves, sturdy shoes, a rag and a caulking gun. It’s also a good idea to wear some old clothes since these repairs tend to get messy. The only thing I needed to pick up was a $4 tube of roof sealant from my local big box home improvement store. (There are lots of different kinds of sealants. Make sure you buy roof sealant to be on the safe side.)
Getting up on the Roof
I waited for a nice sunny day to repair my roof, when the roof was nice and dry and I didn’t have to worry about slipping. I did the repair myself, but I had my parents there as backup to hold the ladder and in case I got stuck on the roof.
Getting up on the roof wasn’t so bad. I have an attached garage with a flat roof. I used the ladder to get up on top of the garage. I then used the ladder to get on top of the roof of my house. Walking on the roof wasn’t as bad as I thought. (Mind you, my house is a bungalow, not a two or three storey house.)
Once I got used to the height, I made my way up to the peak of the roof with my caulking gun in hand loaded up with roof sealant. I straddled myself on the peak of the roof to get a closer look at the damage. Unfortunately, one of the roofing nails came up out of the roof. I wasn’t prepared for this, so I had to get back down off the roof and retrieve my hammer. (It’s probably a good idea to bring a hammer so you don’t have to do this.)
Repairing the Roof
The repair itself was pretty easy. I hammered down the nail and squirted roof sealant on the roof underneath where the shingle would normally lay. I then proceeded to flatten the shingle with my roof to make sure the roof sealant would hold it down. (Some YouTube videos recommended putting a brick on your roof to hold down the shingle, but I decided against this because I didn’t want to risk a brick sliding off my roof and hitting someone on the head.)
Just a warning that the roof sealant was messy. That’s why I recommend wearing old clothes. Also, don’t forget your rag.
On a scale of 1 (being easy) and 10 (being difficult), I’d rate this home repair a 3. It was a bit intimidating getting up on the roof, but once I was up there it wasn’t so bad. The worst part was the heat of the roof. The shingles from the heat of the sun were burning my legs. (I should probably do this on a cooler or overcast day next time.)
The Bottom Line
In the end I estimate that I saved myself $500. (The cost it would have probably been if I had to call roofers.) And I didn’t fall off the roof and have to visit the ER, so I’d consider this a pretty big success.
I’ll keep a close eye on my roof in the coming months. If more shingles lift, it’s probably time to invest a new roof. But for now my roof appears to be good as new.
Readers, would you do your own roof repairs or have you done your own roof repairs? Did everything go as planned? I’d like to hear what you have to say.