Trees are a mainstay of most landscape designs, and we all like the look of one or two in our yard. But if they’re not looked after or planned and planted carefully, they can also pose one of the biggest dangers to a homeowner’s roof. Today we’ll be talking about the risks a tree can pose, and how to avoid them!
Dealing with roof damage in Georgia? Contact the roofing team at Horizon Roofing today!
Horizon Roofing has been providing top-class roofing services here in Georgia for years. We know well just how important a roof is to the structural integrity and beauty of your home, and we want to help you preserve it in any way we can. To keep your roof safe, be sure to keep an eye out for these:
- Dangling and overhanging limbs. Probably the most common of all risks from a tree, if limbs grow to where they hang over your roof, you run the risk of the limbs snapping off, be it due to age or storm, and these limbs can do a lot of harm. In order to avoid this, take care to trim back overhanging limbs, particularly before winter and the stormy summer season.
- Clogged gutters. Leaves and dead plant matter can clog up a gutter in a matter of hours, rendering the gutters essentially useless. This can hurt your roof plenty, but it can also lead to foundation damage, and landscape damage, and even can impact your siding. This is a hard problem to stop, but we’d recommend looking into gutter guards for the ideal fix.
- Leaves and needles. Fallen tree bits can pose a risk to the gutters, sure, but they also put your roof directly at risk as well. Dead plants will decompose, leading to a presence of rot, and creating a great place for mold to grow. Left alone for too long, mold can start eating up roofing materials like shingle and shake.
- Too much shade. Just like the leaves, a tree that casts large shadows on your roof can also create mold growth problems, since it shields fallen mold spores from the UV light of the sun, which is what protects most things from mold infestation. If your roof begins to develop mold specifically in the shade, you might want to get the tree professionally moved or removed.
- Critter and pest infestations. Birds, squirrels, bugs, and even worse all frequent trees as their chosen abode. Naturally, if your tree is a bit close to the home, these pests can find their way onto your roof, making a home in the gutters or burrowing into the roof itself.
- Trees in danger of falling. While not the most common, a fallen tree is easily the most damaging and disastrous. If there are trees near your home, take care to monitor their age and health. If the tree begins to sag, lean, or begins to develop disease, it’s wise to look into having it removed altogether. Getting rid of a tree is a pain, but it’s a lot less of one than a total roof replacement!