A roof inspection is a hands-on examination of every surface and detail that sheds water off your home, and it ends with a written report instead of a sales pitch. We walk the rooftop, check the attic from inside, and photograph what we find.
The inspection covers shingle, underlayment, flashing, and ventilation as one system, because water rarely enters where it first lands. It seeps past a pipe boot, wicks beneath step flashing, and rots the roof deck weeks before you notice a ceiling stain.
Most homes here carry asphalt shingle or architectural shingle over synthetic underlayment or roofing felt. Older three-tab shingle, wood shake, and cedar shake fail faster in salt air, and clay tile or concrete tile can hide cracked underlayment until water reaches the sheathing.
- Chimney flashing, step flashing, counter-flashing, and apron flashing are checked by hand, since those joints fail first where a roof meets a wall or a chimney.
- Every pipe boot, pipe flashing, vent boot, and boot flashing is tested, along with any skylight, dormer, parapet, canopy, or awning that interrupts the field.
- Ridge, ridge cap, hip, valley, rake, eave, verge, and drip edge are inspected for wind uplift and open laps after a Nor'easter.
- Ridge vent, soffit vent, and attic fan are reviewed together, because poor ventilation traps moisture and saturates the insulation.
- Gutter, downspout, fascia, and soffit are checked for overflow, and we look at the overhang at the eave where an ice dam can form.
- Roof deck, plywood, and OSB sheathing are probed for rot and decay, with a moisture meter reading logged at every soft spot.
- Flat and low-slope areas get the membrane, TPO, EPDM, PVC membrane, built-up roof, modified bitumen, tar, bitumen, and coating inspected for ponding, blistering, and alligatoring.
- Drone imagery and an infrared scan catch what a ladder angle misses, including algae-stained slopes and blistered or peeled surfacing.
From inside the attic, we look at the framing that carries the load: truss, rafter, joist, ridge beam, purlin, batten, and counterbatten. A sagging roofline or a settling ridge usually traces back to moisture in the wood, not to the shingles on top.
We flag anything that fails current building code, from a missing ice-and-water shield at the eave to a valley hand-sealed with mastic. Fasteners matter too, because a ring-shank nail or screw set at the wrong depth leaves the substrate exposed.
Steep-slope systems run from slate and standing-seam panel to corrugated panel and metal panel, and each one wants its own fastener pattern and snow guard placement. Mansard and gambrel roofs also need anchors set for fall protection before anyone steps on the slope.
Homes built in the 1950s through the 1970s often carry one layer of tar paper or roofing felt under the shingles. That underlayment usually crumbles once it dries out, which is why so many of those roofs start leaking at a valley.
Vapor barrier and insulation work alongside ventilation, since without both, moisture condenses on the underside of the decking and stays there long after the rain stops.
Roof pitch changes how we reach the work and which waterproofing and weatherproofing materials go down first on your roof.
After a storm, the findings matter for insurance. We document buckled, curled, and cracked shingles, blistered surfacing, and any damaged decking with photos and measurements, then hand you a free estimate.
- Storm damage repair gets documented with photos, measurements, and storm dates, which is what an insurance adjuster asks for before approving a damaged roof.
- A roof estimate follows the inspection as a free estimate with line items, so you compare materials and labor instead of one lump sum.
- Emergency roof leaks are triaged first, since a tarp stops interior damage while a full repair waits for better weather.
- Pre-purchase inspections give a buyer an unbiased written report, and we say plainly when a roof is near end-of-life wear.
- Annual maintenance resets a ridge cap, reseals a vent, and clears a valley before small items turn into a full replacement.
Our crew works off a ladder, scaffold, and safety harness. On tear-off days we stage a dumpster, so debris and old roofing shovel scrap leave the property the same week.
We handle the small details a homeowner should not: recaulking with the right sealant or caulk, resetting a popped fastener, and using roof cement or adhesive only where the manufacturer allows it.
Our trucks carry a nail gun, air compressor, pry bar, roofing square, and torch for the flat work.
On flat and low-slope roofs we also check the scupper, coping, and chimney base, because a clogged scupper turns an ordinary storm into ponding water that finds a seam.
Not every roof needs work. When the findings show usable life, we say so and note what to watch, because a repair you did not need costs the same as one you did.
