GLOSSARY
Emergency Roofing Glossary
63 terms in plain English, from tarp and board-up to depreciation and supplements.
- 63 terms
A
- Actual Cash Value
- An insurance payout method that pays the value of damaged property after deducting depreciation for age and wear.
- Adjuster
- The person who inspects damage for an insurance company and writes an estimate of what the policy covers.
- Attic Ventilation
- Airflow through an attic, usually in at the soffit and out at the ridge, that removes heat and moisture from beneath the roof.
B
- Batten
- A strip of wood screwed through a tarp into the roof to hold it down against the wind.
- Board-Up
- Covering an opening in a roof or wall with sheathing to keep out weather and animals until a permanent repair can be made.
- Bruise (Hail)
- A round, soft impact spot on a shingle where granules were knocked off and the mat beneath may be cracked.
C
- Claim
- A request to an insurance company to pay for covered damage under a policy.
- Collar
- A rubber or metal ring that seals around a pipe where it passes through the roof. Also called a pipe boot.
- Counter-Flashing
- Flashing set into a wall or chimney that laps over base flashing to shed water over it.
- Cricket
- A small peaked structure behind a chimney that sends water around it instead of letting it pool.
D
- Decking
- The sheets or boards, often plywood or OSB, nailed to the rafters that roofing is fastened to. Also called sheathing.
- Deductible
- The amount a policyholder pays before insurance pays the rest of a covered loss.
- Depreciation
- The reduction in value of property because of age and wear, used in calculating some insurance payouts.
- Dormer
- A small structure that projects from a sloped roof, often with a window, creating extra joints that need flashing.
- Drip Edge
- Metal flashing along the roof edge that directs water into the gutter and off the fascia.
E
- Eave
- The lower edge of a roof that overhangs the wall.
- Emergency Repair
- Work done to stop water or secure a roof quickly, before a permanent repair can be made.
F
- Fascia
- The board that runs along the roof edge, to which gutters are usually attached.
- Flashing
- Thin metal or membrane that directs water away from joints such as chimneys, valleys, walls and vents.
G
- Granules
- Mineral particles on the surface of asphalt shingles that protect against sun. Loss of granules is a sign of wear or hail.
H
- Hail Size
- The diameter of a hailstone, often compared with a coin or a ball. Larger stones do more damage, but wind and roof age matter too.
- Hip
- The sloped ridge where two roof planes meet at an outside corner.
I
- Ice Dam
- A ridge of ice at the roof edge that blocks melting snow and can force water under shingles.
- Insulation Moisture
- Water held in insulation, which loses its performance and can hide the path of a leak.
L
- Lap
- The overlap between pieces of roofing or tarp that lets water shed from one onto the next.
M
- Mat (Shingle)
- The fiberglass base of an asphalt shingle that is coated with asphalt and granules.
- Membrane
- A flat roofing sheet, such as TPO, EPDM or modified bitumen, that forms the waterproof layer on a low-slope roof.
- Moisture Survey
- A scan of a roof, using thermal, capacitance or other tools, to map where moisture sits in the insulation and deck.
- Mold
- A fungus that grows on materials that stay damp, often hidden in attics and wall cavities after roof leaks.
O
- OSB
- Oriented strand board, a common sheathing material made of pressed wood strands.
P
- Parapet
- A low wall that extends above the roof edge on a flat roof.
- Ponding
- Water that stays on a flat roof for a long time after rain, often a sign of drainage or structural problems.
- Public Adjuster
- A professional who represents a policyholder, not the insurer, in a claim, usually for a fee.
R
- Rafter
- A sloped framing member that supports the roof deck.
- Rake
- The sloped edge of a roof along a gable end.
- Replacement Cost
- An insurance payout method that pays to replace damaged property with new, without deducting for depreciation, within policy limits.
- Ridge
- The horizontal line at the top of a roof where two slopes meet.
- Ridge Cap
- Shingles or metal that cover the ridge of a roof.
- Roof Cement
- A sticky asphalt-based sealant used for small repairs, which often fails if used as a long-term fix.
- Roof Pitch
- The steepness of a roof, usually expressed as inches of rise per twelve inches of run.
- Roof Replacement
- Removing the old roofing and installing a complete new roof system on the deck.
S
- Scupper
- An opening through a wall that lets water drain from a flat roof.
- Sheathing
- The structural boards or sheets over the rafters that roofing is attached to. Also called decking.
- Shoring
- Temporary supports that hold up a damaged structure while it is repaired.
- Skylight Curb
- The raised frame that a skylight sits on, flashed into the surrounding roof.
- Soffit
- The underside of the roof overhang, often vented to let air into the attic.
- Soft Metals
- Gutters, vents and flashing that dent easily and show hail size and direction after a storm.
- Starter Strip
- The first row of shingles along the eave, which seals the edge and helps hold the first course.
- Step Flashing
- Pieces of flashing layered with shingles along a wall to seal the joint between roof and wall.
- Storm Chaser
- A contractor who travels to areas hit by storms to find work quickly, sometimes without local roots or follow-up.
- Straight-Line Wind
- Strong wind that blows in one direction, without rotation, and can damage roofs as severely as a small tornado.
- Supplement
- A request to an insurer to add items to an original claim estimate based on newly found damage.
T
- Tarp
- A heavy waterproof cover installed over a damaged roof as a temporary protection.
- Tear-Off
- Removing existing roofing down to the deck before installing a new roof.
- Temporary Repair
- A short-term measure, such as a patch or tarp, that keeps a roof watertight until a permanent repair can be made.
- TPO
- Thermoplastic polyolefin, a white single-ply roofing membrane with heat-welded seams used on commercial roofs.
- Truss
- A prefabricated triangular framework of lumber that supports a roof.
U
- Underlayment
- A protective layer beneath roofing material that adds a second barrier against water.
V
- Valley
- The inside angle where two roof slopes meet, carrying a lot of water and prone to leaks and debris.
- Vent Boot
- A rubber or metal collar that seals around a vent pipe at the roof. Rubber ones often crack with age.
W
- Water Test
- A controlled test in which water is applied in stages to different roof areas to find where a leak enters.
- Wind Uplift
- Suction force that pulls on roofing as wind passes over it, strongest at edges, corners and ridges.
- Wind-Driven Rain
- Rain pushed sideways or upward by wind, which can enter at places that normally stay dry.
No terms match that search.
Storm hit your roof? Call before the next rain.
Tell us what happened and where you see water. We will explain the safest next step and how we can cover and repair the roof.