Roof Repair in West Philadelphia

What does a box gutter do to a West Philadelphia roof?

A box gutter is a channel built into the roof edge rather than hung from it. It collects water from the slopes and carries it to a downspout, and its lining and joints are the places where it fails. A leak at the box gutter often shows on the wall or the ceiling below rather than on the roof.

A roofer clears the box gutter, checks the lining and the joints, and looks at where the downspout takes the water. That check is part of any repair on a twin with a box gutter.

How are porch roofs flashed to a twin?

A porch roof meets the wall of the house, and the seam where it meets the wall is a flashing line that moves as the wood and the house expand and contract. The seam is often the first thing to leak, and it can be repaired without touching the main roof.

Check the porch-roof seam from the roof and from inside. A stain on the ceiling at the porch line points to the flashing, and a stain higher up points to the main slope above.

What did microbursts mean for West Philadelphia roofs?

The National Weather Service described microbursts with gusts of 60 to 70 mph hitting West Philadelphia in a short window, and it said the damage was straight-line wind, not a tornado. The date has not been confirmed for this page, so it is not given here.

Straight-line wind lifts shingles at edges and ridges and tears flashing at the porch and chimney. After a windy spell, look for displaced shingles on the ground, bent flashing and branches on the box gutter.

How do old box gutters and porch roofs work together on a West Philadelphia twin?

A box gutter runs along the roof edge and collects water from both slopes, and a porch roof often sits under it. Water that overflows the box gutter runs onto the porch roof, and from there into the seam where the porch meets the house. The two problems are linked, and a roofer checks them together.

The box gutter's lining is a long joint, and the lining is most often the weak point after many winters. A roofer looks for splits, lifted seams and old patches, and decides whether the lining can be repaired in sections or needs to be replaced along its length.

The downspout at the end of the box gutter matters as much as the gutter itself. A blocked or undersized downspout backs the water up into the channel, and the overflow then finds the easiest path into the wall or the porch roof.