Answers · Is something wrong?
What does wind damage to a roof look like?
The short answer
Missing shingles are the obvious case. The one people miss is creasing: a shingle lifted by wind and laid back down carries a horizontal crease across it, the seal underneath is broken, and it will leak or blow off in the next storm even though it looks fine from the ground.
What to look for
- Missing shingles, and the exposed nail heads and underlayment where they were.
- Horizontal creasing across a shingle, which means it lifted and came back down. The seal is broken whether or not it looks it.
- Shingles lifted at the edges that do not lie flat, especially along rakes and ridges.
- Debris impact damage, which is common and is often what actually causes the leak after a wind event.
- Damage concentrated on edges, corners and ridges, which is where uplift is highest.
Why edges fail first
Wind does not push a roof down; it lifts it, and the pressure is greatest at edges, corners and the ridge. That is why proper edge detailing and nailing pattern matter more than the shingle's wind rating, and why a roof rated for high wind but nailed badly fails at ordinary speeds. A rating is achieved by installation, not conferred by the box.
Also asked
- Is one missing shingle an emergency?
- Not usually, and it should not be left. The exposed area is underlayment, which is a temporary water barrier rather than a roof, and the adjacent shingles have lost the edge that held them. It is a small repair now and a larger one after the next storm.
General information about roofs and about hiring, not advice about your building. Roofing contractor licensing, permits, insurance practice and deductible rules are set state by state and province by province across the United States and Canada, so your own authority is the current answer.