Roofing in Little Saigon, Westminster

One slow drip landing in a pail can generally hold for a few days until the roof is fixed properly. Drips by a light, drywall bellying down, or a stain that spreads every storm should be dealt with the same day. On a low roof, a leak you cannot see may already be soaking the eave, so a stain that has stopped growing is still worth tracing before the next rainy season.

That turns on the water. Rain inside right now, near wiring, or spreading further each storm makes it a today job. A fascia board hanging loose or an eave that has started to droop should be dealt with before the next storm. Peeling paint on firm wood, or one cracked shingle with a dry ceiling, can go on the calendar. Each visit closes with that sorting written down for you.

Keep people away from anything hanging loose and from wet ceilings by lights, set a pail under any drip, and take pictures indoors and, from the yard, of the roof. Then look along the eaves for lifted shingles, loose edge metal or a fascia board pulled away, and call: water coming in is cover today, a dry ceiling is a repair to book for the next dry day.

Usually not, if it is found early. A Westminster directory prices a small leak repair at about $350 to $800. It gets expensive when the water has had months to work: soft decking, rotten rafter tails at the eave, a stained ceiling. Those push a leak into the wider California band of $350 to $1,800, and past it where structure is involved.