How can I tell if hail damaged my roof?
Start with what you can see from the ground: dents in gutters, downspouts, vent caps and the AC unit, granules washing out of downspouts, and cracked window screens or siding. Those soft materials dent at the same hail size that bruises shingles. The shingle damage itself is rarely visible from the yard, so if the soft metals are dented, have the roof inspected.
Hail bruises a shingle before it breaks one
An asphalt shingle is a fiberglass mat coated in asphalt and covered in ceramic granules. The granules shield the asphalt from the sun. When a hailstone strikes, it knocks granules loose and crushes the mat beneath, leaving a soft spot that feels like a bruise on an apple.
From the street a bruised roof looks normal. Over the following months the exposed asphalt dries in the Texas sun, the spot loses more granules and cracks, and water eventually works through. That delay is why so many homeowners connect a leak to the wrong storm, or to no storm at all.
The yard shows you what hit the roof
Gutters and downspouts are thin aluminum, and hail dents them readily. Walk the house and look along the top edge of the gutters and down the face of each downspout. Check the fins on the outdoor AC unit, painted metal on the garage door, the tops of mailboxes and fence caps, and window screens.
Look at the ground where downspouts empty. A spray of dark granules there after a storm means the roof is shedding its protective layer. Broken shingle pieces in the yard point to wind damage, which often arrives with the same storm.
Size matters, and so does the roof’s age
Hail around an inch across, about the size of a quarter, is where damage to asphalt shingles becomes common. Larger stones and wind-driven hail do more, and an older roof with dried-out shingles takes damage from smaller hail than a new one.
Impact-resistant shingles rated Class 4 are built to withstand larger hail, and they are worth pricing when a roof is replaced in North Texas.
Stay off the roof and get it looked at
Walking a roof is dangerous, especially a steep or wet one, and walking on hail-bruised shingles can make the damage worse. A drone inspection photographs every slope without anyone stepping on it.
Most Texas homeowners policies set a deadline for reporting storm damage, so an inspection soon after a storm protects the claim as well as the house.
Related questions
Can hail damage a roof without causing a leak?
Yes, and it usually does at first. Bruised shingles lose granules and fail over months, so the leak often shows up long after the storm.
What size hail damages a roof?
Damage to asphalt shingles becomes common at around one inch. Older roofs can be damaged by smaller hail.
Is the inspection free?
Yes. Zeus Exteriors offers a free nine-point roof inspection with drone photos.
