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Try or Not to Try: DIY Roof Repairs

Roof Repairs

Roof repairs to the home can be quite costly with some fixes even running into thousands of dollars. For this reason, a lot of homeowners are deciding to take matters into their own hands and take the DIY approach in the hope of avoiding large repair bills.

However, the “how hard can it be” approach can sometimes lead to even more expenditure if the DIY job is not done correctly or damage is caused during a rather hasty repair. The golden rule to follow is, if the job involves excessive head scratching, it may be best to call in a professional team of roofers.

That said, there are still a number of roof repairs and general maintenance jobs that can be carried out safely and successfully by even by the most inexperienced of DIY handymen. Below we will look at a few of these jobs, along with some others that are probably best left to the professionals.

  • Gutters: House GutterThe guttering attached to the underside of your roof can be easily maintained by just about anyone that can climb a ladder. Generally, you only need to scoop out dead leaves and other detritus to keep the gutter preforming how it should. Always make sure that you stand you ladder on a firm level surface, or better still have someone hold the ladder in place.
  • Tile Cleaning: Tile Cleaning With the correct ladders, tile cleaning can be done by anyone. All that you need to do is scrape away any moss or other organic matter to get the roof tiles back to their original condition. If your roof is particularly high with a steep pitch, you may need to call in a professional roofer, as the reach could be rather long for standard leaning ladders. You can also use chemical sprays to clean off algae stains but this again relies on accessibility.
  • Flat Roof Repairs: Small flat roof repairs are fairly easy to carry out. You can now even buy DIY kits from many builder’s merchants that contain all of the necessary materials for a quick patch. These, however, will deteriorate over time, so you may find yourself repeating the procedure a few years down the line. If you don’t fancy this temporary approach, there are some great companies that offer waterproofing Auckland for more permanent repairs.
  • Ridge Tiles: If you have damaged ridge tiles and no experience on high roofs, this job would most definitely be best left to the professionals. Ridge tiles straddle the apex of your roof and are generally fixed into place with cement. They are high and can only be reached by roofing ladders that hook over the ridge and sit on pads directly on your roof slope. Most roofers use a scaffold to make the job as safe as possible.
  • Sky Light Repairs: If you have a leak around a skylight, chances are it is caused by damaged or worn lead flashing around the unit. Unless you have experience with this type of repair, it is probably best left to a professional. A well meaning but inexperienced pair of DIY hands could easily make the situation worse, leading to even higher repair bills.
  • Leaks Around Your Chimney Stacks: If you have leaks coming from around your chimney stack do not try a DIY repair. This area is high, difficult to get to and needs experience to remove the lead flashing surrounding the stack. Most roofers even use special scaffolding for this job, as it is almost impossible to work safely from any other platform.
  • Replacing Slates: Most experienced DIY enthusiasts can successfully carry out slate replacements on the lower part of a roof. All you need to do to take out the damaged tile is use a slate ripper to remove the nail holding it in place. You can replace with a new slate, fixing it into position with a galvanized slate nail. Once you have done a few, it really is quite a simple repair that can be carried out in no time at all.

Knowing what can be done and what is best left to the professionals is one of the best ways to avoid costly roofing repair bills.

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