A premium roof needs very little, but the little it needs is seasonal. Toronto's year has four distinct roofing seasons, and about an hour of attention at each turn will add decades to slate, cedar, copper or tile. Nothing below requires you to go on the roof, and nothing should: binoculars from the garden and a look in the attic are enough.
Late winter to spring: March and April
The thaw is when the winter's damage shows itself.
- Walk the perimeter after the snow is gone. Look for slates, tiles or shakes on the ground, displaced ridge caps, and flashings that have lifted at chimneys and walls.
- Check upper-floor ceilings and the tops of exterior walls for staining. Ice-dam leaks often appear weeks after the ice has melted.
- Clear eavestroughs and downpipes of winter debris before April's heavy rains. Confirm downpipes discharge well away from the foundation.
- Look in the attic on a bright day for daylight where there should be none, damp insulation, or dark staining on the deck.
- Book your spring inspection. This is the visit that catches freeze-thaw damage before the summer storms find it.
Summer: June to August
Heat, UV and storms.
- After any storm with winds above 80 km/h or hail, repeat the perimeter walk and check the eavestroughs for granules, slate fragments or tile chips.
- On cedar, watch north-facing slopes for moss and algae. Growth holds moisture against the wood and should be cleaned, never pressure-washed.
- Check that attic ventilation is working: an attic far hotter than outside by mid-afternoon means intake or exhaust is blocked. See our ventilation guide.
- Trim branches back at least two metres from the roof. Overhanging limbs abrade slate and tile, drop debris into valleys and become the falling object in a winter claim.
- Summer is installation season. If a re-roof is planned for this year, materials should already be ordered.
Autumn: September to November
Preparation for winter. This is the most important season on the calendar.
- Clear eavestroughs after the leaves are down, usually early to mid-November, and again if a late drop follows. Clogged troughs are the first stage of an ice dam.
- Test heat cables and their controllers before the first frost.
- Confirm snow guards are secure above entrances, walkways and lower roofs.
- Check bathroom and kitchen fan ducts run to the outside and that their hoods close.
- Top up attic insulation and seal the hatch. Keeping the deck cold is the single best ice-dam prevention.
- Book your autumn inspection and, if you have a maintenance plan, confirm your storm-season priority is in place.
Winter: December to February
Watch and respond; do not intervene on the roof yourself.
- Watch the eaves after each snowfall. Icicles that grow beyond a few centimetres, or ice building in the troughs, mean heat is escaping and a dam is forming.
- Never chip ice off a roof or eavestrough, and never use salt or de-icer pucks. Both destroy slate, tile, copper and cedar. If a dam must be removed, low-pressure steam is the only safe method.
- On flat and low-slope roofs, watch for water pooling behind drains that have frozen, and for snow depth beyond 60 cm after a major storm, which may warrant load relief.
- If water appears inside, call for emergency response and photograph everything for insurance.
The two visits that matter. If you do nothing else, have the roof professionally inspected twice a year: once after the thaw and once before the snow. Our Care Plan clients receive both visits, eavestrough clearing, a drone-documented condition report and priority storm response. It is the least expensive insurance a premium roof can have.