It's hard to tell what's the most important aspect of your home than your roof. It ensures you're secure and safe from the elements, but more importantly, it keeps the various components used in the construction of your home dry.

This means that you don't have to worry about your home's materials getting damaged or rotting, and best of all, you'll never need to fix it. One method to ensure the roof you have is durable as it can be is to keep in the good repair of the vital elements of your roof's system: the flashing. It's wise to be cautious and get an experienced roofing professional in your area to assist you with this task.

What is flashing?

Flashing is the metal tie-in used on homes as well as other construction projects to keep water damage from happening. It is available in a variety of different types: it's possible to find copper, aluminum, PVC, lead, and galvanized steel flashing, to name a few of the options. It's a very thin product that's available on a roll. It's among the essential elements to ensure a long-lasting project that doesn't get damaged before its time.

Why is it used?

Flashing is utilized to join two distinct sections of a building project as well as to stop water from entering the process. For example, when you build a deck for the property, it's crucial to install flashing in between the band, which is the wooden side panels of the deck, that is attached to the structure of your home and the deck. Flashing stops water from causing damage to the wood framing that is underneath the deck. Each time it rains, water seeps into the back section of your deck, and without flash, it could dampen the wood inside your house and cause it to become rotten and wearing.

Locating Leaks

The majority of times, when you spot a leak around a chimney or in the edges of your roof, the cause is due to issues in the installation of your flashing. This is usually a need for an intervention from a professional; however, if you're willing and patient to try a new DIY project, you may be able to fix the problem yourself and save a few dollars while doing it. Have a look through your home and climb into the loft to determine whether you are able to identify the exact area which is suffering from an issue with a leak.

Maintaining Your Flashing

It's a good idea to check your flashing every when you're on your roof, or at least once a year, to determine if it's not in good condition or has gaps or leaks. There will be any signs which require fixing or replacement, and often detect the issue early enough before the damage is actually done.

Lock it down

It's normal for flashing to loosen and remove from your house over time. The screws that hold the flashing to the wall loosen and pull away, or the steel gets worn away at the edges of the hole where the flashing was originally fixed. In either case, it leaves the flashing in a loose state and is unable to do its job properly. To fix this issue, you can simply buy screws made from the same metal as the flashing and then screw them to the framing underneath to secure the flashing into the frame. Cover each screw head with a roofing cement to prevent water from entering your home.