Most roof problems are visible long before they become expensive, but only if someone knows where to look. This checklist covers what a thorough professional inspection includes, and what you can safely check on your own.

What you can check from the ground

Walk around the house with binoculars or a phone camera zoomed in. Look at each roof slope separately, and do it again after any significant storm.

• Missing, cracked or lifted shingles, especially along ridges and edges where wind gets underneath
• Granule loss: bald or shiny patches on shingles, or piles of granules in gutters and at downspout outlets
• Dented metal: gutters, downspouts, vents and flashing show hail hits more clearly than shingles do
• Sagging rooflines: any dip or wave in what should be a straight ridge or slope
• Damaged or missing flashing around chimneys, vents, skylights and where the roof meets a wall
• Debris or standing water, particularly in valleys and on any low-slope sections
• Overhanging limbs touching or scraping the roof

What to check inside the house

Interior signs often show up before exterior damage is obvious, and they’re the ones that mean water is actually getting in.

• Daylight in the attic: any light through the roof deck is a hole
• Stains on decking or rafters: dark rings or streaks, even if they’re dry now
• Damp or flattened insulation, a sign of repeated wetting
• Ceiling stains: brown or yellow rings, especially near outside walls and chimneys
• A musty attic smell, often the first sign of a slow leak
• Peeling paint near the roofline, inside or out

In the attic, step only on the joists, never between them. Found water? Go to the roof leak guide.

What a professional inspection covers

A thorough inspection goes well past the shingle surface. Here’s what should be examined and documented:

Unfamiliar with a term? The roofing glossary explains each one.

Extra items for metal and tile roofs

• Exposed-fastener metal: backed-out screws, cracked or dried washers, rust at panel laps and around penetrations.
• Standing seam metal: seam integrity, trim and ridge closures, and sealant at penetrations.
• Tile: cracked, slipped or missing tiles, and the age and condition of the underlayment beneath, which is usually what fails first. A tile roof should be checked by someone who knows how to move on it without breaking tiles.

See metal roofing in Pflugerville and the roofing materials guide for more on each system.

How often should you have your roof inspected?

Once a year is a good baseline in Central Texas, especially once a roof passes about ten years old, plus after every significant hail or wind storm. If you’re buying or selling a home, get a dedicated roof inspection separate from the general home inspection. A general inspector usually notes the roof in a line or two without checking flashing details or attic moisture.

Between inspections, the roof maintenance guide covers the seasonal upkeep that keeps a sound roof sound.

After hail, inspect before you file a claim

Hail damage to shingles is often invisible from the ground. An inspector checks each slope for bruising, often counting hits inside a marked test square, and photographs the soft metals that show the storm’s size. That tells you whether a claim is worth filing, and gives you dated evidence for the adjuster. Next steps are in the storm damage guide and the roof insurance claim guide, and repairs are covered under hail damage roof repair in Pflugerville, TX.

Signs you should stop looking and call

Any of these means the roof needs eyes on it now. Start with a free roof inspection in Pflugerville, or go straight to emergency roof repair in Pflugerville, TX if water is coming in.

• Any active drip or water getting into the home
• Daylight through the roof deck in the attic
• A visible sag or dip in the roofline
• Shingles scattered in the yard after a storm
• Widespread granule loss with bald patches

What happens after the inspection

Pflugerville Roofing Pros offers free roof inspections across Pflugerville and nearby communities, with a photo report you keep whether or not you hire us. If a roof repair in Pflugerville is all your roof needs, that’s what we’ll tell you. If it isn’t, the roof replacement in Pflugerville quote will show you exactly why, line by line.

See all our Pflugerville roofing services for the full range, from roof installation in Pflugerville to commercial roofing in Pflugerville.

Roof inspection questions