Roof inspection in Chesapeake

Who books a roof inspection in Chesapeake

Buyers. A general home inspection notes "roof appears serviceable, recommend evaluation by a roofing contractor" on about half the homes in Greenbrier and Great Bridge. That line is the inspector telling you to call us. A roof estimate Chesapeake buyers can hand to their agent lets you negotiate a credit with a real number instead of a guess.

Sellers. A report showing the roof has 8–10 years left, with the pipe boots and a valley already fixed, takes the roof off the table before a buyer's inspector puts it there.

After a storm. If you're not sure whether the nor'easter did damage, an inspection tells you before you file a claim — or tells you not to.

Owners of 20-year-old roofs. The question we hear most: "Do I need to replace it this year or can it go a couple more?" The answer is on the roof, and the honest one is often "two or three more years, fix these two things now."

What we look at

On the roof:

• Shingle condition — granule loss, cracking, curling, thermal splitting, creases from wind
• Seal strip adhesion — we lift a few shingles by hand on each slope to see whether they're still bonded
• Every pipe boot, vent, and satellite mount
• Chimney flashing, step and counter-flashing, crickets
• Valleys — open or closed, and what's under them
• Drip edge and the first course at the eaves, which is where wind-driven rain gets in
• Decking softness, felt underfoot
• Skylight flashing kits and seals

In the attic:

• Water stains and trails on the underside of the decking, especially around penetrations
• Daylight through the deck
• Ventilation — is the ridge vent actually cut through, are the soffit vents blocked with insulation
• Moisture, mold, and rusted nail tips, which tell us the attic isn't breathing
• Rafter and truss condition, and whether hurricane straps or clips are present at the top plate

What you get

A written report, usually within a day: photos of every issue with a plain-English note, a repair price for each item, and an honest estimate of remaining life. If the roof is fine, the report says so. We don't write reports that talk you into a roof — that's what the storm chasers are for.

Inspection cost

A standalone inspection with a written report is $150–$300 depending on the size and pitch of the roof. If you go ahead with a repair or replacement we quote from it, the fee comes off the job. Inspections after a storm for claim purposes are usually free if the damage is obvious, because we're quoting the work anyway.

Drone or walk?

We use a drone on roofs too steep or wet to walk safely, and for the overview photo. But a drone can't lift a shingle to check the seal strip, can't feel a soft deck, and can't see into the attic. A roof inspection Chesapeake homeowners get from a drone flyover alone is a photo, not an inspection. Our post on finding a roof leak from inside shows the attic side of what we do, and the roof repair page covers what happens next.