Roof Maintenance Checklist: Spring, Fall & After Every Storm

Quick answer: Inspect your roof twice a year - spring and fall - plus after any major weather event, which is the cadence the NRCIA recommends, increasing frequency once the roof passes ten years old. Nearly the entire checklist below can be run from the ground and the attic in 45-90 minutes with binoculars, a flashlight and a phone camera. Leave anything that requires standing on the slope to a pro.

A roof rarely fails suddenly. It fails in slow motion - a cracked pipe boot, a lifted shingle, a gutter that stopped draining two autumns ago - and the repair bill is set by how long nobody looked.

This is the looking. Two rounds a year, one after storms, and a short list of things to escalate.

How to run this checklist safely

Almost none of this requires you on the roof. That’s deliberate.

Roofing has the third-highest fatal injury rate of any U.S. civilian occupation - 48.7 deaths per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers in 2024 against an all-occupations rate of 3.3, per BLS Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries data - and roughly 84% of those deaths in 2023 were falls, slips and trips. Professional crews working under OSHA’s residential fall protection requirements, which trigger at six feet, still lose people. A homeowner in sneakers with no anchor point is not in a better position.

So run the checklist this way:

• Buy or borrow 8x or 10x binoculars - they replace most reasons to climb
• Use your phone camera at full zoom and photograph every slope
• Do the attic portion from inside, on the joists, with a flashlight
• If you use a ladder for gutters, extend it at least 3 feet above the landing point and set the base about one quarter of the working length out from the wall - OSHA’s ladder rules for the same task
• Never step from a ladder onto a roof surface as part of routine maintenance
• Do it with someone else home
• Escalate anything you cannot see clearly to a professional inspection

The full safety detail is in the roof safety checklist.

Spring round: what winter did

Run this in the first dry week after the last freeze. You are looking for damage that happened while nobody could see the roof.

From the ground, every slope

• Missing shingles or tabs
• Lifted, curled or cupped shingles
• Creased shingles - a sign of wind lift and reseal
• Bald patches where granules have washed off
• Cracked or displaced ridge cap
• Sagging or wavy roof lines (a structural concern - escalate)
• Rust or displacement at valley metal
• Cracked or hardened rubber pipe boots
• Flashing at chimney, walls and skylights sitting flat and sealed
• Vents, caps and boots undamaged and upright
• Any debris left sitting on the roof surface
• Moss or algae growth, and where it is worst
• Nail heads visible or backing out
• Fascia and soffit boards for rot, staining or holes

Drainage

• Gutters clear of the winter’s debris
• Gutters still attached - ice load pulls them away from the fascia
• Downspouts flowing freely (run a hose)
• Splash blocks and extensions directing water away from the foundation
• Granule sludge in the gutters - a small amount is normal, a heavy layer is not
• Water staining on siding beneath gutter joints

Attic

• Lights off - look for daylight through the sheathing
• Dark staining or streaking on the underside of the deck
• Rusted nail tips (a condensation signal)
• Damp, compressed or displaced insulation
• Mold or a musty smell
• Soffit vents unblocked by insulation
• Bathroom and kitchen fans venting outside, not into the attic

Record it

• Date and file every photo
• Note anything that changed since the last round
• Book a professional inspection if anything on the escalate list appeared

Fall round: get ready for weather

Run this before the first hard freeze or the wet season, whichever your climate hands you first. The fall round is more about prevention than diagnosis.

Clear it out

• Gutters fully cleaned, including the corners and the far end
• Downspouts flushed and confirmed flowing
• Gutter guards checked and cleared if fitted
• Valleys clear of leaves and pine needles
• Debris removed from behind chimneys and around skylights
• Roof-mounted equipment (satellite dish, solar, swamp cooler) checked for secure mounting

Trim and prevent

• Branches trimmed back so nothing overhangs or touches the roof
• Dead limbs above the roof removed
• Vines cut back from the fascia and gutter line
• Moss treated or professionally removed - never with a pressure washer

Check the envelope

• Flashing and counter-flashing intact at every penetration
• Chimney crown and cap in one piece
• Pipe boots not cracked or pulling away
• Skylight seals and frames sound
• Shingles at the eaves sitting flat and adhered
• Drip edge present and undamaged
• Attic ventilation intake and exhaust both unobstructed

Cold climates

• Attic air leaks sealed at can lights, chases and hatches
• Insulation at rated depth and not blocking soffit vents
• Roof rake on hand if you get heavy snow
• Ice-dam history noted at specific eaves - see ice dam prevention

After every storm: the 20-minute round

Do this within a day or two of severe wind, hail or heavy rain. Documentation is time-sensitive if a claim follows.

• Walk the full perimeter before touching anything
• Photograph the whole house from four corners with timestamps
• Photograph any debris on the ground and where it came from
• Look for shingles in the yard or neighbor’s yard
• Check for creased or lifted shingles along the windward slope
• Check gutters and downspout outlets for a fresh surge of granules
• Check soft metals - vents, gutters, downspouts, AC fins - for hail dents
• Check the attic for new daylight or fresh moisture
• Check ceilings and upper-floor walls for new staining
• Note the date and time of the storm
• Do not let an uninvited door-knocker onto your roof
• Call your own inspector or insurer first

Everything about what to do next - including the sequencing with your insurer - is in storm damage: what to do.

The two-minute monthly check

Between the big rounds, there’s a version of this that costs you almost nothing and catches the fast-moving problems.

• Look up at the roof from the street once a month - you’ll notice a missing shingle from the sidewalk before you notice it anywhere else
• Glance at the ceilings on the top floor when you change a lightbulb
• Check the downspout outlets after any real rain
• Look at the gutter line for sag or separation
• Note anything on the roof that wasn’t there last month
• Listen - dripping in a wall cavity, or a rattle from a loose vent cap in wind

The point is habit rather than thoroughness. A homeowner who glances at their roof monthly finds problems in weeks; one who never looks finds them when the ceiling stains.

Maintenance that changes by material

The general checklist applies everywhere, but each roofing material has its own weak point, and knowing yours tells you where to look first.

Asphalt shingle. Watch granule loss and the seal strips. Check gutters for granule sludge each round, and look for lifted tabs along windward edges where the seal has released. Never pressure wash. Our asphalt shingle guide covers what normal aging looks like.

• Granule accumulation checked at every downspout
• Windward slope checked for lifted or creased tabs
• Moss and algae addressed before they spread

Metal. Watch fasteners and sealant, not the panels. Exposed-fastener systems have rubber-gasketed screws that age out on a shorter clock than the metal; standing seam hides its fasteners but still relies on sealant at penetrations and terminations.

• Exposed fasteners checked for backing out or crushed washers
• Sealant at flashing, terminations and penetrations inspected
• Debris cleared from behind chimneys and valleys where it traps moisture
• Panels checked for oil-canning or movement after temperature extremes

Tile and slate. These fail one unit at a time, and the real clock is usually running on the underlayment beneath rather than the tile itself. Never walk them - units break underfoot and the fall risk is severe.

• Individual cracked, slipped or missing units noted from the ground
• Ridge and hip mortar or closure checked
• Valley metal checked for corrosion and debris
• Underlayment age noted - it usually determines the real remaining life

Flat and low-slope. Ponding water is the headline issue, along with seams and terminations.

• Standing water noted 48 hours after rain - it should be gone
• Seams and laps inspected where visible
• Drains and scuppers cleared
• Membrane checked for punctures, blisters and shrinkage at edges

Climate add-ons for your region

Snow and ice country. Add attic air-sealing to the fall round, keep a roof rake, and treat ice dams as an insulation and ventilation problem rather than a roof-surface one. Chipping ice damages shingles and puts you in the worst possible position on the worst possible surface.

Hail belt. Add the post-storm round as a standing habit, photograph soft metals (vents, gutters, AC fins) as your damage indicator, and keep a dated photo archive - insurers ask when the damage occurred, and a photo set answers it.

Hurricane and high wind. Inspect ridge caps, drip edge and the windward eaves specifically. Wind gets under edges first, and a lifted starter course is invisible until it isn’t.

Wildfire zone. Keep the roof and gutters free of needles and leaves year-round, not twice a year. Ember ignition starts in accumulated debris, and gutters full of pine needles are the classic ignition point.

Hot and sunny. UV is the aging driver. Check for brittleness, watch ventilation closely because attic temperature accelerates shingle aging, and never walk a roof in peak heat - you’ll scuff granules off with every step.

Humid and coastal. Algae streaking and salt corrosion are the additions. Copper or zinc strips near the ridge slow algae regrowth; fasteners and flashing metals corrode faster near salt air and deserve a closer look each round.

The escalate list: stop and call a pro

Some findings are not maintenance items. If you tick any of these, book a professional inspection rather than watching it.

• Any visible sag or dip in the roof plane
• Daylight through the attic sheathing
• Active dripping or a growing ceiling stain
• Soft or spongy decking felt from inside the attic
• Mold across a broad area of sheathing
• Widespread granule loss showing the asphalt mat
• Multiple separate leak locations
• Flashing that has separated from a wall or chimney
• Shingles that crack when they flex rather than bending
• Anything you cannot see well enough to judge

Repairs caught in the first three items on that list are usually in the low hundreds. Left alone, they are the reason our roof repair cost guide has a $7,000 top end for sagging and structural work. Most repairs land between $400 and $2,500 - the checklist exists to keep you at the bottom of that band.

What maintenance can and can’t buy you

Maintenance keeps a sound roof performing to its rated life. It does not extend a roof past its material’s limits, and it will not rescue one that is already failing across whole slopes.

Here’s the honest framing: the routine above mostly protects you from the second-order damage. A cracked $30 pipe boot doesn’t destroy a roof - but ignored for two winters it soaks the decking around it, rots a sheet of plywood, wets the insulation below, and turns into a four-figure repair on a roof that was otherwise fine. Nearly every expensive roofing story starts as a cheap one that nobody looked at.

Where maintenance genuinely extends life:

• Drainage. Water that leaves quickly does no damage. Water that sits, backs up, or freezes at the eave does all of it.
• Ventilation. An overheated attic ages asphalt shingles from underneath. Balanced intake and exhaust is a lifespan input, not a comfort feature.
• Vegetation. Moss lifts shingle edges and holds moisture; branches abrade granules every time it’s windy.
• Penetrations. Boots, flashing and skylight seals fail long before shingles do, and they are cheap while they’re small.

Where it doesn’t: age. This Old House puts labor at roughly 60% of a shingle roof’s installed cost, which is another way of saying the material was never the expensive part - and no amount of cleaning resets the clock on a 24-year-old asphalt roof.

Build the habit: a simple annual rhythm

• First dry week of spring: full spring round, photos filed
• Before the first freeze or wet season: full fall round, gutters cleared
• Within 48 hours of severe weather: storm round, photos timestamped
• Every 3-5 years, or after any escalate item: professional inspection
• Every year past year 15: re-check remaining life with the roof age calculator

Keep everything in one folder - photos, inspection reports, receipts, warranty documents. When you sell the house, or file a claim, or argue a warranty point, that folder is the difference between a position and an opinion.

More on the seasonal specifics in our maintenance hub and the roof maintenance checklist guide.

Your next step

Run the round that matches the season you’re in right now. It takes under an hour and you’ll finish with a dated photo set you didn’t have this morning.

• Today: binocular scan of all four slopes, photos filed
• This weekend: attic check with the lights off, and clear the gutters
• If anything hit the escalate list: get a free estimate and have a local pro look at it properly before it grows.