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What to Do After a Storm: A Chicago Homeowner’s Roof and Gutter Checklist
By Headlines Team Chicago storms can be unpredictable and fast-moving. A line of thunderstorms can roll through in under an hour and leave behind wind damage, hail impacts, downed branches, and flooded gutters before you’ve even had a chance to react. Knowing what to do in the hours and days after a major storm is one of the most practical things a homeowner can have in their back pocket.
This checklist is designed to walk you through exactly that, from the immediate safety steps right after a storm passes to the longer-term follow-up that keeps small issues from turning into expensive repairs.
Step 1: Wait Until It’s Safe
This one sounds obvious, but it’s worth saying. Don’t go outside to inspect your property while a storm is still active. Lightning, high winds, and falling debris are all serious hazards, and no inspection is worth putting yourself at risk. Wait until the storm has fully passed, winds have died down, and you’ve confirmed there are no downed power lines near your home before stepping outside.
If a tree or large branch has come down on your roof during the storm, stay inside and call a professional. Do not attempt to remove it yourself. Debris on a roof can mask structural damage underneath, and moving it without knowing what’s supporting it can make things worse or cause injury.
Step 2: Do a Ground-Level Visual Inspection
Once it’s safe to go outside, start your inspection from the ground. You don’t need to get on the roof at this stage, and in most cases you shouldn’t. A pair of binoculars can help you get a better look at areas that are hard to see from street level.
Walk the perimeter of your home and look for the following:
Missing or visibly lifted shingles are one of the most common signs of wind damage. If you can see bare patches on your roof or shingles that are curling up at the edges, that’s something that needs attention before the next rain event. Shingles on the ground around your home are another obvious indicator.
Granule accumulation is subtler but worth noting. If you see a significant amount of small, sand-like material washed into your driveway or collecting at the base of your downspouts, your shingles may have taken hail damage even if they look intact from a distance.
Gutter damage is often visible from the ground. Look for sections that are sagging, pulling away from the fascia, or visibly bent. Check whether downspouts are still attached to their wall brackets and whether any sections have separated at the joints.
Debris in gutters and on the roof is common after a storm. Leaves, twigs, and small branches can accumulate quickly and block drainage if they’re not cleared out. Even a partial blockage can cause water to back up during the next rainfall.
Flashing displacement is harder to spot but look for any shiny metal sections around your chimney, skylights, or roof vents that appear to have lifted or shifted. Flashing is what seals the transitions between your roof surface and these penetrations, …read more
Source:: Social Media Explorer
