Huntsville Storm Season Roof Checklist
North Alabama's main severe weather season runs through spring, with a secondary peak in late autumn. The highest-value pre-season checks are pipe boots, perimeter drip edge and starter course, chimney flashing, attic ventilation, gutter drainage and overhanging limbs.
Replace cracked pipe boots
Pipe boots are the rubber or neoprene collars sealing plumbing vents where they pass through the roof. In Alabama's UV exposure they typically last eight to twelve years, which is well short of the shingles around them.
A split boot is the single most common leak source we find in Madison County. It is also among the cheapest things to fix before a storm rather than after one.
Check the perimeter, not the middle
Wind uplift starts at the edges of a roof. Look along the rake edges and the eaves for lifted shingles, loose drip edge, and any place where you can see the underside of a shingle tab.
If the starter course is missing, reversed or set back from the edge, the perimeter has no sealed bond and a forty mile an hour gust can get underneath it. This is a common production-roofing shortcut across newer Huntsville and Madison subdivisions.
Inspect flashing at every penetration
Chimneys, skylights, dormers, wall junctions and roof-mounted equipment are where most roofs actually leak. Look for black roofing cement, which is a marker that someone patched instead of repairing.
On a chimney wider than about thirty inches across the slope, check whether a cricket was built behind it. If there is no cricket, debris and water pile against the upslope face and eventually get in.
Verify attic ventilation is balanced
Go into the attic on a hot afternoon. If it is dramatically hotter than outside and feels humid, the ventilation is not working, and heat is the primary thing shortening your shingles' life in this climate.
The usual problem in Huntsville's older housing is plenty of exhaust and almost no intake, because soffit vents have been painted over or buried under blown insulation. Exhaust without intake does very little.
Clear the drainage path
Clean gutters, clear valleys, and check that downspouts actually discharge away from the foundation. Water backing up at the eave saturates fascia and wicks into the roof deck edge.
In neighborhoods with mature canopy such as Five Points, Blossomwood and Monte Sano, this needs doing at least twice a year, and the autumn clearing after leaf drop is the important one.
Trim back overhanging limbs
Limbs that touch or hang over the roof abrade shingles in wind and become projectiles in a storm. Aim for several feet of clearance from the roof surface.
This is the highest-consequence item on the list for homes under Huntsville's older tree canopy, and it is the one most often skipped because it needs an arborist rather than a roofer.
Questions
When is storm season in north Alabama?
The primary severe weather season runs through spring, roughly March into May, with a secondary peak in the late autumn. Damaging thunderstorm wind can occur in any month.
How far ahead of storm season should I do this?
Late winter is ideal, so that anything you find can be repaired before the first serious cell arrives rather than during it.
Do I need a professional inspection or can I check myself?
Most of this list is visible from the ground with binoculars or from inside the attic. Flashing condition and shingle fastening realistically need someone on the roof.
If you need this handled
We dispatch across Huntsville, Madison and Madison County 24 hours a day from 7738 Madison Blvd #119, Huntsville, AL 35806. Call +1 864-936-4159.
Related reading: What to do when your roof leaks in a storm.
See our Huntsville emergency roof repair homepage for a full overview of services.