Wednesday, December 11, 2013

Dunn Loring Roof Repair

This video points out all of the things that could be causing the need for this Dunn Loring roof repair job



I’m in Dunn Loring for roof repair. The problem that they’re having is a leak, and it’s located right here, directly above this left window. And there’s many different things that we have to check to solve this problem once and for all, so that they’ll never need another Dunn Loring roof repair again.


What we need to do is first check the gutter out, make sure that it’s pitched correctly. If everything’s good with that, then we move on to the next problem. We check the starter course. That’s the first course of shingles that’s underneath the first layer of shingles that overlaps in the gutter. The starter course and the first course of shingles should always be staggered. If one seam is on top of another, then that means the felt paper’s exposed, and that could also cause leakage here.


Image of a Dunn Loring roof repair job that took some investigating to determine the cause of the leakThere’s many other things that we need to check so that we will not have to go back to this job a second time. One of the areas, we have to make sure the shingles are going underneath the flashing here at the front of the dormer. And that’s called apron flashing. Then we check the step flashing. That’s an L-shaped flashing. Part of that L goes underneath the shingle and another part of that L goes in behind the siding. So we need to make sure that they didn’t put any nails into the flashing, and we have to check where the step flashing joins the apron flashing right at the bottom right corner and the bottom left corner to make sure the flashing was installed correctly.


The next thing we do is we check the step flashing on the left side of the dormer, and any step flashing that has nails penetrating through the flashing, that flashing will be replaced with new flashing. There’s other things that can also cause this leak right in this location, and at the top of the dormer you have a valley directly above. That’s where this roof joins the dormer roof, and you also have a valley on the other side. So, if the roofers put nails anywhere within, like, ten inches of the center point of the valley, that again will cause leakage down to the low point where they’re having that leak above this window.


The very last thing that we would check is the ridge vent directly above. We need to know; did they install the shingles underneath the ridge vent correctly? And to make sure the ridge vent is secured on tightly, so that water will not be driven underneath and cause water to travel down to the lowest point.


Now, you’re probably asking yourself, “How can water possibly travel from anywhere up over here, or especially near the peak of the roof near the ridge vent, and show no signs of leakage on the ceiling on the second level?”


The way that happens, the water travels on the outside of the house, but between the shingles and the felt paper, and it just keeps on traveling, looking for a weak point, and the weak point is where the roof decking and the wood fascia, that’s where the gutter is fashioned to, there’s a gap. There’s usually about a one inch gap, and water will travel between the shingles and the felt paper, then go in between that gap, between the wood fascia and the wood decking, then go inside the brick wall and cause this window to leak.


So what we need to do is check all those areas and any problems that we find, they will be fixed and permanently repaired, and this Dunn Loring home will never, ever have to worry about another roof repair again. To request a free estimate, please fill out our contact form.


Click here for all of our Fairfax county roofing service areas.


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Dunn Loring Roof Repair appeared first on RoofTwins.com.


Oakton Roof Repair

This Oakton roof repair video shows how an improperly fastened ridge vent came right off of the home’s roof



I’m in Oakton for roof repair, and, as you can see, the ridge vent has come off. The reason for that is the roofing contractor who installed the roof when the house was first built four years ago, he used one half inch staples, and that’s why this whole thing has come off.


I’m surprised that they never had problems before with the roof repair to this ridge vent in the past. The homeowner’s been extremely lucky. They’re very lucky that it hasn’t rained since this ridge vent came off. If it had rained, they would’ve had tremendous damage to the inside of the house.


Image of an Oakton roof repair job that should have been preventedWhat we need to do is remove the ridge vent completely from the peak of the roof. Any shingles that are damaged, they have to be replaced, and then apply a Geocel Tripolymer sealant to the peak of the roof, just like this. Once the sealant is applied to the peak of the roof along the entire length, we then embed the ridge vent into the Geocel Tripolymer sealant.


Then we measure off every 24 inches where the rafters are, so now the ridge vent is not just being screwed into the plywood, it’s also being screwed into the rafters as well. Then the fasteners, you seal that with a Geocel Tripolymer sealant to prevent any kind of leakage.


Once everything is all completed, this homeowner here in Oakton, Virginia, will never need roof repair again due to their ridge vent. To request a free estimate, please fill out our contact form.


Click here for all of our Fairfax county roofing service areas.


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McLean Roof Repair

This video outlines several things that cause McLean roof repair to be needed



Hi, this is Steve from RoofTwins.com. I’m at a home here, in McLean, Virginia, that needs roof repair. Now the leak stain on her ceiling is right in this approximate area. Now this home has architectural roof shingles, and they’re very good, but they’re only as good as the contractor who installed them.


What I mean is that when this roof was originally installed, the roofing contractor used a roofing nail gun. Now with a nail gun you can fasten five to eight nails a second, and if you don’t pay attention to where you’re placing each and every nail, there will be nails exposed at the horizontal joints, where the shingles join together.


So we need to lift every shingle in between the red dotted lines, and any nails that are exposed at the joints, we’re going to seal it, flash it, and then reseal the shingle again.


This image shows several problems that will need McLean roof repairNow, where you see the red double arrow, there are roof nails fastened too close to this single cut valley, and one nail exposed in the valley will cause a leak as well. So we’re going to remove all of the roofing material on both sides of the valley, install ice and water shield from the gutter line up to the ridge, and then re-shingle this area.


Also, when we fasten the roof shingles into place, we need to make sure that we nail at least nine inches away from the center of the valley. Anything closer than that will cause a leak from a heavy downpour or a melting snow.


After further inspection, I noticed there are nails exposed in the flashing too close to the sides of the pipe on both sides. So we’re going to remove all of the roofing material completely around the stack pipe, seal the flashing under and above, and then re-shingle that area.


Now another thing, very important, you have a ridge vent at the top of the roof. I went inside the attic to see how much they cut the wood sheathing, because if they cut it too much, the water can very easily get underneath that ridge vent, travel underneath the shingles, and find an opening down at the valley. It’s the same thing with the stack pipe. That could very easily cause a leak down at the valley as well.


So we need to target this leak from every possible angle, and once that’s done, this leak is permanently fixed in McLean, Virginia.


Equally as important, where you see the blue dotted lines, the water is traveling down inside the wall cavity of their home, and it was leaking down in the basement. The water traveled between the outside bricks and the drywall, and once the insulation inside the wall became saturated, then the water just let loose and then settled down into the basement.


To request a free McLean roof repair estimate, please fill out our contact form.


Click here for all of our Fairfax county roofing service areas.


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Burke Roof Repair

This Burke roof repair job was needed because of common problems that low sloping roofs have



We got a call from a homeowner in Burke looking for roof repair, and when I went on the roof, I noticed that this is a low-slope roof. Whenever you have a low-slope roof like this, you don’t use a ridge vent like they have here, because what can happen is when you have driving rains or melting snow, the water can be driven underneath the ridge vent, find the opening where the plywood was cut for exhaust ventilation and cause leakage straight down below. Then what could also happen is water will travel between the shingles and the felt paper and cause any penetration at the front and the rear to leak.


The leak from this low slope roof in Burke needed roof repairWe also lifted the shingles up to see what type of underlayment they used, and they used regular 15-pound felt paper instead of ice and water shield. In order for us to correct this problem, we need to remove all the shingles and the ridge vent, go down to the bare wood, and install ice and water shield to the wood decking on the entire roof.


Once that’s completed, then we have to change all the rotted wood underneath the ridge vent that was a cause for moisture. When the wood is replaced, the opening that was cut originally for exhaust ventilation, that will be closed up, so it’ll be solid wood.


Once that’s done, then we can shingle the entire roof. The type of ventilating system that we’ll be using is two attic fans. With these attic fans, it has a thermostat and humidistat for year-round protection against heat, moisture, and condensation. To request a free Burke roof repair estimate, please fill out our contact form.


Click here for all of our Fairfax county roofing service areas.


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Fairfax City Roof Repair

This video explains how a Fairfax City roof repair problem could have been avoided



We got a call from a homeowner in Fairfax City for a roof repair. The homeowner was telling me that they hired a roof repair contractor to come by to stop this leak and it continues to leak. When we arrived, I went inside and I checked the ceiling out and I saw that it was all stained, and the problem area is right here.


The company who did the repair work, he lifted the apron flashing and he repaired the shingles underneath, and he did the same here with the step flashing and everything was done right.


See why this Fairfax City roof repair job could have been avoidedWhat we did then was we went on the upper roof to see if water is traveling from up above and showing up at the lowest point where they have the leak. The first area that we checked was the ridge vent here and also the ridge vent over here, as well. They were installed correctly, they were not an issue.


Then we checked the valley out and we noticed that they put nails within 6 inches of the center point of the valley and that will cause leakage. It can happen right away from the day one that the roof is installed. If any one of those nails is slightly loose, that will cause leakage immediately. If those nails are in there solid, then it could take 5 years, it could take 15 years to leak.


The way that happens is those nails eventually become rusted and they become porous, and that’s when it would leak. In order for us to correct this problem, what we need to do is remove all the shingles on both sides of the valley, install ice and water shield, which will be adhered to the wood deck, then re-shingle both sides of the valley making sure that we don’t put any nails within at least 12 inches of the center point of the valley. Once the valley is completed, we apply an adhesive to the underside of the shingles.


The homeowner brought up a good question and she said to me, “If the valley is a problem, when it’s raining out, would it be leaking inside the attic and wouldn’t I have a stain on the ceiling on the second floor?” I said, “That’s a good question, but no you wouldn’t.” The way that happens is water is traveling on the outside of the house, but it’s traveling between the shingles and the felt paper and it will not show any signs of leakage whatsoever inside the attic or on the second level. It just travels between the shingles and the felt paper then goes inside the wall traveling along the wood stud, then it shows up at the weakest point.


This repair was done a year ago. We’ve had a lot of strong storms and she’s never had a leak again. If you’re looking for a Fairfax City roof repair or a roof replacement contractor, give us a call at 703-997-9200. To request a free estimate, please fill out our contact form.


Click here for all of our Fairfax county roofing service areas.


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Fairfax City Roof Repair appeared first on RoofTwins.com.