Storm damage roof replacement in Lakeland is the right job when the deck is soft, a tree went through the structure, or the damaged area is more than 25% of that roof section. A few lifted shingles on a sound deck can still be a repair. We measure before you approve either one.
True Roofers photographs the roof for your carrier. We do not file the claim, and we do not adjust it. License CCC1332725. Lakeland office: 2829 Badger Rd #19.
When a repair is enough
Shingles are the water layer. If wind took a handful and the underlayment is still intact, water may not be in the house yet. We look at the felt, the flashing, and the deck before anyone talks about a full tear-off.
A repair that holds looks like this on a Lakeland ranch. The ridge cap is gone on one run. The field shingles next to it are creased, not missing. The felt under that run is still nailed. The deck does not give when we step on it. We replace the cap and the creased courses, seal the nail line, and leave the rest of the roof.
Re-nailing shingles over a rotten deck does not fix the hole. If you can see daylight, the insulation is wet, or the plywood gives underfoot, that spot is not a patch.
Start here if water is already inside: roof leak repair. If the roof is open tonight, call (813) 800-1800 or the 24/7 line (863) 880-2041. A tarp is emergency roof repair until the permanent work is scheduled.
The night of the storm, then the daylight visit
Those are two different jobs. Tonight we stop the water. If the deck is open or a limb is sitting in the field, the cover goes on before anyone prices a tear-off. A tarp cooked by the next afternoon sun is still a temporary cover. It is not the repair.
The measurement happens when the roof is dry enough to walk. We mark the damaged area on that section, not on the whole house. A garage gable can trip the 25% rule while the main roof is fine. A hip roof is counted plane by plane. The full walkthrough is what is the 25% roofing rule in Florida.
Example from the code side, not a quote: a limb takes about 80 square feet off a south plane. If that plane is about 300 square feet, 80 is already over 25%. The building department can require the rest of that section to current code. A patch the county will not pass is money spent twice. That is when storm damage roof replacement is the honest scope, for the section, not because a bigger job pays better.
Roofs built or last replaced under the 2007 Florida Building Code or later can sometimes repair only the damaged portion. The 2007 code did not take effect until March 1, 2009. A 2008 permit is not automatically on that code. We check the date before we tell you the exception applies.
When storm damage roof replacement is the job
Three cases in Lakeland push a section, or the whole roof, to replacement.
- The deck is soft or broken. New shingles will not hold it.
- A tree or limb punched through the structure, not just the shingles. The hole is bigger than the broken surface you can see from the yard. Rafters, ceiling joists, and wet insulation sit under a hole that looks small from the street.
- The repair would cross 25% of that section inside 12 months. Patches from the last storm count toward that quarter. We ask what was already repaired this year before we add another one.
Age matters on the same visit. A roof past 15 years can still be a repair if the deck and flashing are sound. It can also be finished. The inspection tells you which. The insurance age rule is a different page: the 15 year roof rule. One is the building department. One is the policy. They land in the same week after a hurricane and people budget for the wrong one.
Shingle, tile, and metal do not fail the same way
Asphalt shows the damage. You can see the missing course from the yard. Tile often does not. A concrete tile can sit back in place while the underlayment under it is torn. We lift where the stain points, or where the wind hit, and say whether the deck is still a repair.
Metal panels lift at the eaves and at poorly fastened ridges. A few loose screws are a repair. A panel folded over a soft purlin is not. We do not screw a panel back down over a deck we have not seen.
Flat spots on additions and lanai roofs pond after the storm even when the main shingle field looks fine. Standing water the next day is a separate leak from the missing ridge cap on the house.
What we do on the roof
We walk Lakeland first, then Plant City and Winter Haven. Dixieland low-pitch roofs hold water in the valleys. South Lakeland ranches lose ridge cap on the west slope. Cleveland Heights oaks drop limbs on the edge and take the gutter with the shingles. A tree hit is a different repair than a missing ridge cap. We write what we found, with photos, before you approve a patch or a roof replacement.
The file has the date, photos of the field and the flashings, photos of any ceiling stain, and the section measurement. You can hand that to your carrier. Your carrier decides coverage. We do not promise a payout. We do not file the claim. The photo page is insurance claims.
If the fascia behind the gutter is soft, a new shingle edge will not stay dry. We say that before you buy gutters on the same visit. Roofline gutters are part of this crew. Screen-enclosure gutters are a different True company.
What to leave alone until we get there
Stay off a wet roof. A two-story eave after a hurricane is how people get hurt, and a foot through a soft deck makes the repair bigger.
Do not nail a loose shingle back “for now” over a crease you have not lifted. You can hide a torn felt and trap the water.
Do not sign a full replacement because someone said the insurance will pay for it. We have no way to promise that, and we will not say it. Photograph from the ground, keep the ceiling photos, and call.
What to do this week
- If water is in the house, call (813) 800-1800 or (863) 880-2041.
- Stay off the roof. Photograph the yard, the slopes you can see, and the ceiling.
- Book the free inspection once the cover is on or the roof is dry. You get a written price before work starts.
Lakeland office: (863) 624-6590, 2829 Badger Rd #19. Plant City HQ: (813) 743-4487, 4000 N Frontage Rd. City page: roofing in Lakeland.
License CCC1332725. 4.9 stars on Google, 240+ reviews. 12+ years on these roofs.
