A common roofing problem is missing shingles. Shingles can get blown or scraped off your roof, and it's more likely to happen when your roof gets older. However, you should always be watchful for missing shingles and call a roofing contractor to replace them, even if you only see one area where a shingle is missing. Here's why it's important to replace missing shingles.

Shingles Keep Rain Away From the Plywood Deck

Shingles are the first line of defense against rain. When all the shingles are in place, rain rolls over the top of them and falls off your roof. If a shingle, or part of a shingle, is missing, rain might gather in the slight depression and leak down to the deck.

When your shingles are first put on, roofing contractors put them on top of underlayment that protects your roof from rain. If the underlayment is still fairly new, rain might not get to the deck. However, underlayment wears out over the years, especially if it's exposed to the sun due to a missing shingle. If the underlayment has deteriorated and a shingle is missing, rain will fall on the deck and cause water damage to your roof.

Shingles Cover Seams in the Roof

If you've ever noticed how shingles are applied, you'll see the roofing contractor staggers them so the row on top covers the seams of the row underneath. These seams form when two shingles join together, and the seams are a potential risk for a roof leak. As long as the shingles on the top row are in good shape, rain rolls off as it should. If a shingle is missing, rain may roll into a seam instead and lead to deterioration of the underlayment, deck, or shingles.

Missing Shingles Might Intrigue Animal Pests

If raccoons or rats crawl over the top of your roof, they might take notice of an area where shingles are missing. They might be interested in the underlayment or if the underlayment is missing, they might take interest in the bare plywood deck that could be weak from water damage.

This could encourage the animals to gnaw through the deck, rip up nearby shingles, shred the underlayment, and escalate the damage until your roof starts leaking. Once there is an entry hole in your roof, all manner of animal, insect, and bird pests can get inside your attic. That's why it's always a good idea to call a roofing contractor to replace missing shingles as soon as you can.

For more information, contact roofing contractors in your area.