by Russell Hayes

Created on: January 08, 2009

Determining hail damage to your roof depends on several factors. The type of roof you have will make a big difference in identifying damage. Asphalt roofing tends to get damaged more often then slate or tile roofs, for obvious reasons. It doesn't take an expert to see a roof is damaged if the hail was 3 inch's in diameter (baseball size) or greater.

I'll use Asphalt shingles for our example's as this type of shingle is the most used product for the residential market. Before we begin let me explain a little about the composition of asphalt shingles, this will help us understand how hail can damage them and to what degree.

Asphalt shingles are composed of: A base mat which is usually fiberglass but can be organic. Fillers and granules, which make up the color of the shingle. The granules serve much more then an aesthetic appeal, they protect the underlying asphalt from harmful UV light and also make up most of the fire resistance abilities of the shingle itself.

So what is hail damage and how do I identify it? First and foremost you can not properly identify hail damage from the ground. You must physically inspect the roof to determine if it's been damaged. What we're looking for are areas that are bruised, the bruise will have exposed the underlying asphalt and removed the granules from the surface. A very important factor in identifying hail damage is to rule out other factors that may appear to be damage but are not. This includes damage caused by the those who installed the roof, foot traffic damaged caused by any one who may have been on your roof, and possible material defects.

Here's a link I've provided from pictures I've personally taken while assessing hail damage. You'll first note what's not hail damage and then what hail damage actually looks like. Enjoy.

Examples of cupping, blistering and real hail damage.

OK your back! It's important to know that hail does not have to be large in order to damage your roof. If the hail storm was accompanied by high winds hail as small as a pea can still damage your roof. Use the pictures as a guideline, the bruise does not have to be large to be considered damage, it can be as small as a pea. As long as the granules are displaced and the underlying asphalt is exposed it's most likely damaged. Another important factor is how the exposed asphalt looks, it should look black like a freshly paved street. It can take up to a year or even longer for the UV to begin breaking down the asphalt which will turn it gray so it's important to note the difference. This is very important for insurance reasons, but that is a different topic altogether.

Learn more about this author, Russell Hayes.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.