Homeowners are often influenced by an unfortunate number of myths or misconceptions when it comes to caring for their home. While they may think they’re doing the right thing, in all actuality they may actually be harming their home or setting it up to sustain more serious damage without even realizing it. When it comes to roofing, maintenance is one of these areas where far too many homeowners don’t know the truth regarding several key facts. So on blog, our Phoenix roofers will set the record straight on five of them.
Myth #1: When It Comes to Cleaning, Power Washing Reigns Supreme
Power washers are great for cleaning a lot of things, including your car, your deck, your patio, the sides of your house, your windows, and so much more. Your roof should never be on the list of things you clean with a power washer. Too much pressure from the power washer can actually damage your roof tiles, and the pressure can force water down beneath your tiles, resulting in mold or mildew growth. Do yourself and your roof a favor and use your regular hose, with an added gardening nozzle attachment if you do need a little bit of extra pressure to get the job done.
Myth #2: A Visual Inspection Reveals All Damage
When it comes to checking your roof, doing a quick visual once-over might seem like it can reveal anything you need to know. However, just because you can’t see anything immediately doesn’t mean nothing’s there. The outside of your roof can hide damage to the underlayment or insulation layers, and an attic inspection may not reveal small cracks or chips that are allowing water to drip in and cause a leak. It’s highly advised that you allow your roof to be inspected by a trained Phoenix roofer who can spot signs of damage and figure out their root cause.
Myth #3: Summer Is the “Easy” Season for Your Roof
It’s not raining, so your roof has nothing to worry about, right? Unfortunately, we hear this from a number of homeowners and it’s so, so far from true. In fact, in an arid, desert climate like Phoenix, the scorching triple-digit temperatures mixed with cool-ish nights that our summers are known for are downright brutal on most roofs. The constant expand-and-shrink cycle the materials in your roof go through each day eventually cause them to wear out, crack, and lose their ability to protect your home. Unfortunately, most homeowners don’t discover this until the next big rainfall when water starts dripping into their home.
Myth #4: Gutters Don’t Do Anything
If gutters didn’t do anything for your home, they wouldn’t install them in the first place. The truth is, your gutters are one of the most important parts of your roofing system. Your gutters not only collect the water that flows off your roof and carry it away, but they prevent water from sitting stagnant on your roof or on the ground around your home. Without gutters, your home could sustain foundation damage during heavy rainstorms from the water collecting on the ground because of your roof. So yes, your gutters do have an extremely important job, and for that reason it’s important that you clean them at least once per year!
If you need your roof inspected or a repair conducted, contact Lyons Roofing today by calling (602) 497-0717 to request an appointment or receive an estimate!
