Although winter may not be widely regarded as the ideal time of year to have a roof repaired or replaced, the choice may be out of your hands if your roof develops a serious leak in the middle of winter. With your entire home and possessions at risk, not to mention everyone inside the property, you can’t very well wait for the work to be done.
But, while most homeowners won’t want, or need to schedule any kind of work for their roof during the winter months, should you need repairs or a full replacement to be carried out, it is entirely possible at this time of year, and most experienced roofing contractors will definitely consider the work. In fact, it may be that you can schedule the work far quicker during the winter time, as most roofing and construction companies will be facing a quieter period.
That said, there are some conditions involved with a winter roof replacement or extensive repairs, such as the following:
The performance of tools
Some tools typically used by a roofing contractor can be affected by humidity in colder conditions, such as nail guns and air compressors. In layman’s terms, when the climate is humid, it can turn into water and during temperatures that are below freezing, freeze in the airlines of the air compressor, that powers the nail gun. This can go on to reduce the line’s airflow and impact the installation process in a negative way, because the nails must be flush when driven in.
The performance of shingles
While shingles can be professionally installed during winter, they must be done with exceptional care; here are some issues that can occur:
- Asphalt doesn’t bend well in colder weather
- Brittle shingles are a lot more likely to be over-driven by nails
- The exact pressure required to drive the nails can be trickier to gauge
- The sealant strip that comes with shingles may not activate during cold weather, increasing the risk of blow-offs
The performance of humans
It’s not unreasonable to mention that working outdoors in freezing or very wet conditions isn’t fun for anyone, and if the crew fixing your roof don’t feel safe or are unable to keep themselves warm and dry, it could hamper their ability to complete the job successfully. Even worse, they could have an accident while working on your roof.
Ultimately, repairing and replacing roofs is highly dangerous work, and if conditions aren’t suitable, roofing contractors will likely postpone the work until the weather is more favorable.
So, while a roof absolutely can be repaired or replaced during the winter months, a lot will depend on the conditions at the time. Your local roofing contractor may not be able to commit to the work if they can’t reasonably predict that the weather won’t hamper their efforts, and above all else, their safety is paramount. Additionally, an inexperienced roofing team may automatically turn down your request, so it pays to reach out to contractors who have been repairing roofs for some time.
