Hurricane Season Roof Checklist for Houston Homeowners

Atlantic hurricane season runs June through November, and Houston's recent history — Harvey, Beryl, and the derecho in between — shows what Gulf storms do to roofs. The homeowners who recover fastest are the ones who prepared in May. Here's the checklist we run on our own homes.

Before the season (April–May)

• Get a baseline inspection. Dated photos of a sound roof are your best evidence if you later file a claim. Insurers can and do argue damage was pre-existing.
• Fix the small stuff. Lifted shingles, cracked pipe boots, and loose flashing are where hurricanes start peeling a roof. A few hundred dollars of repairs can prevent a full tear-off loss.
• Trim overhanging limbs. Live oak branches become battering rams in 80-mph gusts.
• Clean gutters and downspouts. Ten inches of rain in a day needs somewhere to go — clogged gutters push it under your shingles and into your walls.
• Check attic ventilation. Proper intake and exhaust reduce the pressure differential that lifts roofs from inside.
• Review your policy. Know your wind/hail deductible (often a percentage of dwelling coverage in coastal counties) before you need it.

When a storm is forecast

• Photograph your roof, ceilings, and attic with your phone — timestamped evidence takes ten minutes.
• Move vehicles away from trees and secure anything in the yard that can become a projectile.
• Know where your water shutoff is if a limb comes through.

The 72 hours after

• Stay off the roof. Wet, damaged decking is a fall hazard. Inspect from the ground and attic.
• Tarp fast. Active leaks get worse by the hour and insurers expect "reasonable mitigation." Our storm crews tarp same-day.
• Document before cleanup. Photograph every shingle in the yard and every ceiling stain before touching anything.
• Beware door-knockers. Out-of-state storm chasers flood Houston after every named storm. Never sign anything on your doorstep, and verify local presence and insurance before hiring anyone.

Want the pre-season inspection handled for you? Call us in the spring — baseline inspections with photo reports are free, and past customers get priority scheduling when storms do hit.