Storm Season is upon us! As we roll into April with our first major wind and rain storm, we are thankful there was no serious damage or injuries in the Kalamazoo area. But, this event was likely the first of several, if not many for the 2025 season.

Thompson Home Improvement took many calls on Sunday just after the storm passed. Many people experienced roof damage from trees and debris, as well as missing shingles, ridge caps, and underlayment. One of the first questions a client usually asks us is if they should tarp over the damage or hire an emergency service to do that for them. The answer to this question often depends on the extent of the damage to your roof, as well as other variables. But, there are a few questions you can ask yourself before you make the call.

It’s important to evaluate your roof’s damage. If you don’t have the ability to physically check the damage up close to inspect it, don’t risk your home or your safety trying to do so. But, if you can manage pictures from the exterior and/or interior, the team at Thompson Home Improvement will provide you with a cell number to text so that we can help you visually evaluate how bad your roof damage is. Once you have determined how bad it is, the next thing to do is to evaluate the future forecast.

Looking at the forecast to determine if there is any rain expected in the near future is important, because if the damage is serious enough that it left even a little bit of your roof compromised, it could result in roof leaks, which means it’s crucial to cover this area or implement a temporary repair to protect your home from any incoming weather.

Next if you – or you and your contractor – were able to determine how severe the damage is, you will need to work out if the damage and repair are something worthy of running through your insurance. Often, smaller repairs are not worth running through your insurance. But, if you do intend to file a claim, it is important to make sure your adjuster has access to view the damage when they arrive.

Usually, it can take a week or more before an insurance agent will arrive to evaluate. Then, it could be a couple more weeks if not longer before your contractor can return to repair the roof. Even though insurance – if they’re involved – will cover the cost of tarping your roof in most cases, you don’t want to have to do it more than once if it’s avoidable.

Next, you’ll need to figure out how large of a tarp you need, unless you are hiring an emergency roofing service to do it for you. But, whether you are tarping the roof or a roofing service is doing it for you, the tarp will need to be large enough to span over the damage and over the ridge of the house so that when water hits, it will always run down the tarp and not under it. You can also loosen a row of shingles and install the leading edge of the tarp under the shingles and lap the shingles over the edge of the roof, to divert the water down over the tarp.

You want to avoid putting more holes in your roof than are necessary. If the tarp is only intended to be very temporary and allow access to an adjuster and/or contractor to evaluate the damage, and there wont be a long span of time between initial tarping and evaluation, you will want to leave the tarp fairly loose to allow access for evaluation.

There are also of course different types of tarps, we would always recommend a heavy-duty tarp, which are usually silver. They will hold up the best in the event that long-term use is required. For most roofs, however, we do encourage clients to call a professional. Having an accident or creating more damage to your roof is highly probable.

If the evaluation has already been managed and you just need to wait for insurance approval and contractor schedule availability, then you will want the tarp to be more secure. For large areas, securing a tarp can be done with two-by-four screws and sealant. You don’t want your tarp to billow, since if wind and air movement cause friction and movement the tarp will be more likely to tear before you can implement your roof repair or replacement.

Thompson Home Improvement does offer tarping services, but we do not have an emergency service. Same-day or night tarping in most cases is just not something we can accommodate. But, we will do our very best to help you manage and provide you with helpful information to make the best decision moving forward. We will often answer after hours and over weekends if there has been a serious weather event.