Tag Archive for: Severe Weather

Storms Bring Large Hail & Strong Winds To DFW

The first day of spring arrives later this month, but the DFW area already saw some early spring storms late Friday night and into Saturday morning. That included powerful winds and quarter-size hail, both of which can be damaging to your roof. Not only that, but more showers are expected throughout the coming week.

The storm was widespread, dropping hail on homes and businesses in many North Texas cities. Dallas, north Fort Worth, Grapevine, Lake Worth, Haltom City, Keller, Southlake, White Settlement, Flower Mound, North Richland Hills, Coppell, south Frisco, west Plano, Prosper, Allen and The Colony were all among those areas where damage was reported.

A neighborhood in Mesquite even felt the force of an EF0 tornado.

Most of the ugly weather has since pushed past the Metroplex, and the rest of Saturday looks to be warm and dry. But a cold front moves in on Sunday morning, bringing several days of rain to the area once again. Expect showers Monday through Wednesday, but no more severe weather.

Still, the rain alone could be enough to exacerbate any damage caused by the latest round of wind and hail, or damage that was previously caused to any homes and businesses. This is a good time to have your property assessed by a trusted and experienced roofing professional like the ones at Stonewater Roofing.

Got Hail Damage? What You Need To Know

What is hail damage?

It can be hard to tell what hail damage looks like, especially on a roof. Hail damage can be seen as dark spots, or bruises, where the roofing granules have been knocked away (look in the gutters for an accumulation of granules). In some cases, you may find holes, cracking or missing shingles on your roof.

Where does hail damage happen?

Hail size distributions tend to be localized, with some roofs damaged and others not. Wind direction plays an important role, as well as roof pitch. A direct impact of hail on a shingle is more damaging than that of a glancing blow. Hail-damaged roof shingles show a ‘scouring’ effect in which larger, more irregularly shaped areas of shingle surface have lost granules.

Where is hail damage?

Start by looking in your roof gutters and on the ground for large amounts of mineral granules lost from the roof. Roofs are the most commonly damaged part of a home or business in hailstorms. A damaged shingle may allow water to seep through the roof, causing additional damage to the roof deck, support structure, interior walls or windows, and can cause leaking, staining on walls and flooding inside of your home.

Tips on preventing damage.

There really isn’t a way to prevent hail damage. Any roof is susceptible. Once your roof is damaged, it is imperative to get the damage assessed and repaired. If there was a hail event in your area, don’t wait! Stonewater Roofing can inspect your property and get you on the road to recovery.

How To Spot Door-To-Door Roofing Scammers

Springtime weather may be beautiful, but the severe storms we see during this time of year also means door-to-door scam artists are out and about, most acting like contractors.

About 8,000 complaints are reported each year to the Better Business Bureau about the roofing industry alone. It’s the number one scam during the spring. Lots of scam artists pose as roofing contractors, knocking on your door, promising to fix the damage from the last storm for a cheap price.

Some legitimate contractors also go door-to-door, but how can you tell if someone’s lying?

Mechele Mills with the Better Business Bureau of Tyler said, “If they have an unmarked vehicle, that’s something to be watchful for. Also, if it’s really hard to identify what company they’re with.”

Mills said that another red flag is if the person at your door doesn’t have a business card, or won’t give you contact information.

“You also want to check out their reputation, check out their track record,” Mills suggested.

Pay attention to how they’re asking you to pay for the roofing service. “If they ask for money up front, if they ask for cash, be cautious with that.”

Lots of times, these scammers will take your money, and won’t come back.

Mills said, “The safest way to pay is to use a credit card, because you’ll have 60 days to dispute that transaction.”

The most important thing is your safety. If someone knocks on your door, you don’t have to answer it.

The City of Tyler has an ordinance in place saying that solicitors cannot come to your door before 10:00 a.m. or after dark. They also can’t come to your door at all if you have a no soliciting sign — something to keep in mind if you want to avoid these scammers altogether.

The BBB also says to look out for door-to-door scam artists posing as other types of contractors, like asphalt workers.

For more scam information, or to check out a specific business, head to the BBB of Tyler’s website.

A version of this article originally appeared on KYTX’s website.