Home / Learn / Signs You Need a New Roof
Look for curling or missing shingles, granules collecting in gutters, bald or shiny patches, a wavy ridge line, stains on interior ceilings, and daylight in the attic. One sign alone often means a repair; several together — especially on a roof past 20 years — usually means replacement is the honest answer. Check from the ground; leave the ladder to us.
Six places to look — five from the yard, one from inside.
Edges lifting or centers dishing — the mat has dried out. Widespread curl means the field is done.
Seal strips that let go once don’t re-bond well in cold. One tab is a repair; a pattern is a warning.
Black grit at downspouts is the roof shedding its armor. The first sign a roof is aging out.
Exposed asphalt ages in fast-forward under UV. Visible from the ground on sunny days.
Freeze-thaw work. Scattered cracks can be repaired; cracking across slopes can’t.
That’s decking or structure, not shingles — get it looked at promptly.
Water travels before it drips — the stain is rarely under the hole. Trace it before repainting over it.
Light through the boards or wet insulation is an open breach. This one’s call-today.
Streaks are mostly cosmetic. Thick moss holds moisture against the shingle — that one matters.
Even with no visible signs, an asphalt roof past 20 in WNY deserves a look. See why →
Granule wash, shingle fragments, overflow stains — the evidence of a tired roof collects at the bottom of it.
Gutters themselves failing? That’s a fixable problem: seamless gutters →
A curtain of icicles at the eave means heat is escaping and meltwater is refreezing — the start of an ice dam, and a sign the attic needs attention before the shingles do.
The full story: ice dams start in your attic →
We photograph every slope and tell you which column you’re in: repair, replace, or good for now. The answer comes in writing either way.
What each path involves: roof repair · roof replacement · what it costs
If the roof is young and the damage is localized, a repair usually holds. If it’s aging or the damage is widespread, replacement is the honest answer. We photograph what we find and recommend the cheaper option when it will actually work.
More urgent than it looks. The exposed underlayment is now the only thing between weather and decking, and it wasn’t built for solo duty. A prompt small repair keeps a $200 problem from becoming a decking job.
No — and please don’t. Every sign on this page is visible from the yard, at the downspouts, or from inside the attic. The on-roof close look is our job, with the right footwear and fall protection.
Then that’s what the report says. The check is free, the photos are yours, and “you’re good for now” is a result we deliver regularly — a new company doesn’t get a second call by inventing problems on the first one.
Tell us what you spotted. We’ll photograph everything and put the verdict in writing — repair, replace, or relax.
We’ll get the close look, photograph everything, and give you the honest verdict in writing.
