Your Roof, the Heat, and Next Winter

“Do I need a new roof or can I get my roof repaired?” is the number one question Thomas Garvey is asked by homeowners and commercial building owners.

What’s the answer?

Read on to do a brief self-evaluation, but let’s first talk about the weather which has been quite nice in the San Gabriel Valley.

A Roof for All Seasons

Garvey Roofing’s priority is making sure that customers have a roof for all seasons. Here’s how the weather affects your roof whether you live or work in Arcadia, Alhambra, or any of the cities in between.

We had a nice rainy season that replenished our local reservoirs like Eaton Canyon along New York Drive which looked like Lake Michigan for a few months before returning to more of a mud puddle.

If you have an older roof and didn’t have a leak then you’re thinking you’ve escaped the worst of the weather and maybe we won’t have as much rain in late 2023 and into 2024. Not so fast. Here’s what you need to know about the weather and your roof.

The sun’s rays and heat damage an older roof even more than rain.

How’s that?

San Gabriel Valley’s heat, winds and occasional downpours have a way of degrading roofs.

Temperatures on the roof’s surface can reach 150 degrees and higher during the summer months. The sun and heat wear down the adhesive in older asphalt shingle roofs and if the protective granules have been washed away, then the roof begins degrading.

The heat damages older roofs, but the rain gets blamed if leaks appear.

Not fair, is it?

That’s the way the weather cycle works on residential and commercial roofs. One season impacts another.

Heat strikes, weakens the integrity of materials, and lets rain dribble in. Water flows to the lowest point in a structure and it may be years by the time you notice a leak.

Garvey Roofing installs roofs for all seasons and you can see how the process of hot sun, especially from July through October, impacts your roof’s health.

A roof is a system with:

decking
underlayment
the outer roofing material—shingles, tile, metal, slate or other material
ventilation
insulation
plus drip metal
gutters

You might be surprised to see the last four items but they’re key.

The first three items play a key role in reducing the surface temperature of your roof and reducing heat transference from the surface to the inside of your home or commercial building.

In other words, a quality underlayment like Therma Shield will send the sun’s VU rays back into the atmosphere. Combine that with lifetime asphalt shingles or a new tile product and you’ll have a home that’s energy efficient and environmentally friendly.

The bottom line: lower utility bills in the summer and winter.

Your attic is key to a healthy roof and energy-efficient home, too, so keeping the air circulating below the roof’s surface reduces heat transference from the outside in and the right amount and type of insulation keep your home’s interior cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

Drip metal reduces the risk of leaks around vents on the roof and fascia while rain gutters channel water away from your home so the foundation doesn’t soak it up.