Monsoon storms in Tucson arrive fast and hard. Wind pushes rain sideways, water sheds off the roof all at once, and a weak spot that stayed dry for months can suddenly show itself. A careful look after each storm helps you catch small problems before the next one turns them into ceiling stains.
First Defense Building Inspection is owned by Kief Manning, a disaster relief inspector who holds Arizona Board of Technical Registration license #76157. This is the checklist we would hand a neighbor. It sticks to what you can see safely from the ground and from inside the house.
Safety comes first
Please do not walk on a tile roof. Tiles crack under a person’s weight, and a cracked tile you cannot see becomes a leak you will find later. Tile is also slick, hot in the afternoon, and easy to slide off. Foam and shingle roofs can be slippery when wet, and foot traffic can damage a foam coating.
Wait until the roof is dry and the lightning has moved on. Stay well away from downed power lines or anything hanging from the roof. Use binoculars or the zoom on your phone instead of a ladder. If you need to be up there, hire a professional who does this every day.
Walk the outside of the house
A slow lap around the property the morning after a storm tells you a lot. Look for these things:
- Pieces of tile, shingle, or foam coating on the ground or in the yard
- Fresh streaks or dark stains on stucco under the roof edge
- Gutters that have pulled away or hold standing water
- Soil washed out near downspouts, or puddles sitting against the foundation
- Debris such as branches, palm fronds, or loose items that landed on the roof
Tile roofs
From the ground, look for cracked, slipped, or missing tiles. Rows should look straight and even. A tile that sits crooked or sticks up can let water in underneath. Check the ridge and hip caps too, the tiles that cover the peaks, because the mortar or fasteners there can crack and open a path for rain.
Remember that the tile is only the outer layer. The material underneath does a lot of the waterproofing, and you cannot see its condition from the ground. That is one reason a roof that looks fine can still leak, and why an inspector looks closely at older tile roofs.
Shingle roofs
Look for missing, lifted, or curled shingles and for any that look creased across the middle, which is a common sign of wind. Bare patches, exposed nail heads, and dark streaks are worth a photo. Check your gutters and downspout outlets for a gritty layer of granules. A little is normal on an aging roof, but a heavy pile after one storm suggests the surface is wearing out.
Foam roofs
Foam roofs are common in our area, and the coating on the surface is what protects the foam from sun and water. After a storm, look for:
- Water still standing on the roof long after the rain stopped
- Blisters, bubbles, or soft-looking spots
- Cracks or splits in the coating
- Worn, chalky, or peeling areas where the foam may be showing
Exposed foam breaks down in the sun, so do not put off a coating repair. A roofer who works with foam can tell you what it needs.
Flashing and roof penetrations
Flashing is the thin metal or sealed material where the roof meets something else. It is where many monsoon leaks start. Look at the areas around chimneys, skylights, vent pipes, cooling units, walls that rise above the roof, and the places where two roof slopes meet. Warning signs include:
- Metal that has lifted, bent, or rusted
- Gaps or cracked sealant along the edges
- Rust or water trails running down the wall below
If your home has parapet walls, look at the upper edge and the joint where the wall meets the roof. Water finds the smallest gap there.
Drains, scuppers, and gutters
Flat and low-slope roofs move water to drains and scuppers, the openings in the parapet that let water out. If they clog with leaves, dirt, or granules, water backs up and sits on the roof. Look at each opening from a safe spot and clear anything reachable from the ground. Make sure downspouts carry water well away from the house, not straight onto the slab. Extensions and splash blocks help. Grading that slopes toward the house should be fixed before the next storm.
Check the attic and ceilings
Some of the clearest clues are inside. After a storm, walk through the house and look at ceilings and the upper parts of walls for new stains, bubbling paint, or drips. Then open the attic hatch and shine a flashlight around from the opening. You are looking for:
- Dark or brown stains on the underside of the roof deck
- Damp or matted insulation
- Daylight coming through where it should not
- A musty smell
Stay at the hatch unless you know where it is safe to step, because you can put a foot through a ceiling. If a stain looks new, circle it with a pencil, write the date, and take a photo. Check it again after the next storm. A stain that grows means water is still getting in. If you also notice a musty smell or damp materials, a mold inspection can look at the moisture source and what it may have affected.
What to do with what you find
Take clear photos with the date, and keep them in one folder. For an active leak, call a roofer right away and ask about temporary protection. For anything you are unsure about, or if you are buying a home and want to know how the roof has held up, a home inspection in Tucson includes a careful look at the roof surface, flashing, drainage, and attic. We serve Tucson, Oro Valley, Marana, Sahuarita, Green Valley, and Vail.
A good habit is one lap around the house after every big storm. It takes ten minutes, and it beats finding out about a leak from a wet ceiling.