Re-sealing, replacing and matching shingles after wind has lifted or removed them from a slope.
Fastest: call (833) 751-2102. Or send this and we call you back.
Wind damage shingle repair re-seals or replaces the tabs that wind has lifted, creased or torn away, and checks the sealant strip and nail line under each one. The work starts at the most exposed edges, because wind damage follows the pressure on the roof. When the damage runs across most of a slope, the decision moves from repair to replacement.
Wind is the most common reason a shingle roof on this coast needs attention between seasons, and the damage is easy to miss from the ground. A nor'easter brings gale-force wind off the Sound between September and April. The National Weather Service's unofficial reports from the October 2012 storm recorded gusts of 70 mph at Greenwich and 69 mph at Norwalk.
Asphalt shingles stay put on two things: a sealant strip that bonds each tab to the course below, and nails set in the right spot. When wind gets under a tab, it breaks that bond and flexes the tab until the nails pull through or the shingle cracks. Damage gathers at the eaves, the rake, the ridge and the corners of hip roofs, where the pressure concentrates.
A wind repair is usually small, and the skill lies in matching and checking more than swapping. A technician confirms how far the damage runs and decides whether the covering can be repaired or a whole slope should be replaced. That decision rests on the roof itself, its flexibility and the decking beneath,.
Wind pressure is greatest at a roof's edges, corners and ridge, so the shingles there carry the most load. A correctly installed shingle still depends on its sealant and nails staying sound through many winters and summers.
Sun softens the sealant strip, and cold makes the shingle stiff, so the bond can weaken without anyone noticing. A gust then finds a tab that is no longer bonded and works it loose. An older roof can lose shingles in a storm that a newer one rides out, and the usual reason is aged bonding rather than weak shingles.
A technician checks the seal on the tabs that survived as well as on those that came away, because the same weakness is usually present across the slope before it has failed.
Often it can be repaired. The decision turns on how much of a slope is affected, whether the remaining shingles are still flexible and whether a matching shingle can be found. A repair that leaves brittle shingles in place is not a lasting one.
Flexibility is the simplest test. A shingle that bends without cracking can be lifted, re-sealed and re-nailed. One that cracks on a gentle lift has lost its flexibility, and lifting the course above to replace it will crack others too. The technician tests a few shingles on the slope before deciding.
Matching is the second test. Where a match cannot be found, the choice is between a patch that will show and a replacement of the slope, and the homeowner is shown both with the reasons for each.
Wind damage usually shows as creasing, straight tears and missing tabs on the side that faced the storm. Age shows as curling, granule loss and brittle edges across the whole roof. A technician looks for both before deciding on the repair.
Wind marks cluster on the windward side and at the edges, often with fresh tears where the sealant gave way. Aging marks spread over every slope and show weathering that has been in place for years.
Both can exist on one roof. The record of what a storm did is useful to whoever reviews a claim, and the insurance guide linked on this page covers claims in Connecticut.
Ordinary shingle repair is generally treated as repair, but a larger roofing job may be permit work, and the building department for the address decides. In Stamford the city's guidance says an ordinary repair does not need a permit.
Stamford's Building Department has a roofing track and publishes a list of work exempt from permit requirements. Its frequently asked questions are dated, so the current position should be confirmed before work starts. A roof permit issued without a building permit needs a final inspection called in before a certificate of approval can issue.
Outside Stamford, the building department for the address sets the rules. A Westchester address is in another state, with a different permit office and the county license rules as well.
The cost follows how much of the roof must be worked and the condition of the shingles that remain. The price is explained and approved before any work starts, and this site prints no figure for it.
Slope count and pitch set how much roof must be walked and how much safe access it needs. Several planes, valleys and dormers take longer than a single gable, and the number of tabs to re-seal grows quickly with the area affected.
A match that has to be sourced, or a slope that needs full replacement because the old shingles will not bend, adds material and labor. Each option is explained on the roof before anything is approved.
Do not climb onto a wet shingle roof or walk a slope where tabs are lifting, because a shingle that moves underfoot can take you with it. Keep a ladder off the eave, clear of power lines and on firm ground. Do not pull a lifted tab free to look underneath, since a torn sealant strip cannot be re-bonded from the ground. If water is getting in or a shingle is hanging off the roof, call (833) 751-2102. Check the Connecticut registration number on the contract against the state's elicense.ct.gov system before signing.
The technician walks the ground around the house, checking the eaves and the sides that took the wind, and looks for shingle pieces in the yard. That look helps decide whether a roof walk is needed. Where the roof can be walked safely, the technician stays off any slope that is wet or slick.
Each lifted tab is lifted gently and its sealant strip checked for a good bond. A broken bond can often be re-sealed. Tabs that have creased or cracked and cannot lie flat again are marked for replacement, so the homeowner sees which shingles are changing and why.
Replacement shingles must match in size, exposure, color and profile. Older shingles may have weathered differently from new stock, so a sample is compared on the roof before ordering. A match that is close rather than exact is said so plainly.
Damaged shingles come out by lifting the course above, and new ones are nailed in the zone the product calls for. Nails placed high or driven too deep are a common reason repairs fail at the next gust, so each nail is checked as it goes in. Loose nails nearby are set again while the course is open.
After wind damage the attic is checked for wet decking, staining and wet insulation. Water under a shingle may have travelled along the deck before it showed, so the check goes beyond the spot where the shingle was missing.
Most calls are like this: a few tabs at an edge or one creased course. The repair re-seals the good tabs, replaces the creased ones and sets back any nails that have backed out. The seal decides how well the repair holds, so the technician checks it by lifting the course above.
When wind has taken shingles across most of one slope, or the rest are brittle or creased, a repair only buys time. The scope becomes a slope replacement, and the shingle match decides how the new slope blends with the rest. The decision is written out with its reasons before work starts.
Caps sit at the top of the roof and take the strongest wind, so they lift and break first. A broken cap lets water into the ridge line. The repair replaces the caps and checks the fixings and any ridge vent beneath them.
Call any hour and explain what is going on. You get a clear price before any work starts.
Wind on this coast comes in two seasons. The nor'easter season runs from September into April, and the June to November stretch carries tropical and post-tropical systems. A Stamford or Norwalk roof must hold against both, so a wind repair is also a check on the sealed edges and metal.
The housing sets the job. Downtown and the South End are dense multifamily, where a lifted shingle on a shared roof is a building problem as much as a homeowner's. Greenwich and New Canaan houses often have several planes, dormers and valleys, and each valley is a place wind and rain can find a gap. In the inland rows of Wilton, Weston, Pound Ridge, Armonk and Bedford, heavier tree cover holds snow longer, adding weight to eaves that wind has already loosened.
Across the state line, a Westchester roof falls under the county home improvement license and New York's rules, and Port Chester and the other municipalities confirm what they require on top of the county's. A Connecticut registration does not authorize that work. The state-line guide explains the split before a Westchester wind repair is agreed.
Making a roof watertight again after wind, surge or a nor'easter has lifted, opened or broken the covering.
Installing and replacing asphalt shingle roofs, with the eave and ventilation detail that decides winter performance.
A written look at covering, flashing, decking and ventilation, used to decide between repair and replacement on Fairfield County roofs.
Pre-season checks of fixings, flashings, edge metal and gutter attachment on houses that face Long Island Sound.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
This coast gets two storm seasons: nor'easters from September into April and tropical systems from June through November.
A roof storm claim turns on whether the damage came from a sudden event such as wind, a storm or an ice dam, and on what the policy covers.
Sometimes a single tab can be re-sealed from a ladder, but the seal is only as good as the surface under it, and a creased or cracked tab will keep lifting. Working on shingles also loosens the ones around the one you touch. Leave it to a technician unless the roof is low and can be reached safely.
Wind pressure is not even. The side facing the storm and the edges where wind lifts and turns take the most load, so damage shows on one face first. A technician checks the other sides as well, because the same bond weakness often exists on all of them.
It depends on how much of the roof is affected and whether a match can be found. A small repair is a short job, and a slope replacement takes longer and needs its scope written first. The technician explains the expected timing once the damage is known, and this page promises no finish date.
They can, where the color, size or profile of the old shingles is no longer made. The technician compares a sample on the roof before ordering and says plainly when a match is close rather than exact.
Waiting lets water reach the decking and the attic insulation. Water under a shingle can stain the ceiling below and soak insulation that stays compressed after it dries, so the damage keeps growing. A missing tab left through a winter is a risk to the structure beneath, not only to the covering.
Coverage depends on the policy and on what caused the damage, and this page does not decide that. The Connecticut storm insurance guide linked here covers claims in the state. Ask your insurer about your own policy before work is signed.