Metal roofs made from aluminum, steel or copper may be dented or poked by almost any size of hailstone, depending on the speed of travel (hail can reach speeds of over 80mph or 130kmh depending on wind speed and hailstone size).

Dents cause water to pool on a metal roof, which then leads to longer-term problems with rust. The deterioration of the affected panels can cause exposed screw holes to appear and can subsequently lead to serious water leaks.

This will shorten the life of your roof as a leaking roof may need to be replaced.

As well as the main sections of roofing, check the roof vents, flashing and metal valleys for dents. The ridge cap of the roof will take the full force of a hail storm so this may be damaged too.

The coating of the metal may also show signs of damage (scouring and scratch marks), which could reduce the longevity of your roof if it’s not repaired.

Asphalt shingle roofs are popular choices but may suffer from circular, tear-drop shaped, or pitted spots or cracks from hail impact if the hail is large enough.

Continuous direct hits from smaller hailstones could also result in a type of “bruising’ effect. If your roof is left like this, it will start to absorb water and eventually start channelling water to underlayment and decking areas beneath the main roofing material.

You may only be able to spot damage by running your hand over the surface of the shingles to feel for dents and dimples, which means getting onto the roof and getting up close and personal with your roof (only attempt this if you know what you’re doing!)

Do any areas of the shingles have exposed, black substrate? Around the downspouts and the gutters, you may be able to spot detached mineral granules. Your roof may even have lost its sheen because of mineral loss due to hail damage.

The metal flashing bordering the roof may also display dents after a hailstorm and, again, check the roof vents.

Dents cause water to pool on a metal roof, which then leads to longer-term problems with rust. The deterioration of the affected panels can cause exposed screw holes to appear and can subsequently lead to serious water leaks.

This will shorten the life of your roof as a leaking roof may need to be replaced.

As well as the main sections of roofing, check the roof vents, flashing and metal valleys for dents. The ridge cap of the roof will take the full force of a hail storm so this may be damaged too.

The coating of the metal may also show signs of damage (scouring and scratch marks), which could reduce the longevity of your roof if it’s not repaired.

Everyone thinks of concrete as practically indestructible but if your home has a concrete tile roof, a severe hailstorm can cause havoc.

Large hailstones like we saw in the recent Calgary hailstorm can chip, fracture or even shatter the concrete tiles, especially around weaker points like the edges of individual tiles.

Often, there are crescent-shaped fractures at the edges or star-shaped fractures at the point of impact. This is usually quite easy to spot. There may also be multiple impact (spatter) marks near the damaged area.

Damage to a concrete roof is more likely if it has unrepaired problems from a previous hailstorm or from foot traffic.

Most importantly, this may lead to more serious problems like exposure to water damage. Concrete is quite a porous material so this can exacerbate problems.

So, if your concrete tiles break, they will need replacement. This can be an expensive fix to a problem that might have been avoided with a hail-proof, rubber roof (read on for more information about this).

Dents cause water to pool on a metal roof, which then leads to longer-term problems with rust. The deterioration of the affected panels can cause exposed screw holes to appear and can subsequently lead to serious water leaks.

This will shorten the life of your roof as a leaking roof may need to be replaced.

As well as the main sections of roofing, check the roof vents, flashing and metal valleys for dents. The ridge cap of the roof will take the full force of a hail storm so this may be damaged too.

The coating of the metal may also show signs of damage (scouring and scratch marks), which could reduce the longevity of your roof if it’s not repaired.

Cedar shakes are another popular choice of roofing material: again, great for aesthetics but they may not stand up to a severe hailstorm.

Random-looking damage with no discernible pattern may appear after a hailstorm. Brown or orange-coloured splits can appear in the shingles. There may also be scrapes or slight indents on cedar shakes.

The splits that appear can splinter and have sharp edges and there may also be impact marks or dents along with the splits.

These splits will require rapid repair or problems with leaking will likely occur.

Dents cause water to pool on a metal roof, which then leads to longer-term problems with rust. The deterioration of the affected panels can cause exposed screw holes to appear and can subsequently lead to serious water leaks.

This will shorten the life of your roof as a leaking roof may need to be replaced.

As well as the main sections of roofing, check the roof vents, flashing and metal valleys for dents. The ridge cap of the roof will take the full force of a hail storm so this may be damaged too.

The coating of the metal may also show signs of damage (scouring and scratch marks), which could reduce the longevity of your roof if it’s not repaired.

As you’ve seen in the rundown of different roofing materials above, hail can cause major damage to a roof, leading to a repair bill that runs into thousands of dollars.

Hailstones can be pea-size or as large as a softball and often have sharp edges that can devastate roofing materials.

A recent hailstorm in northeast Calgary made international news and caused an estimated $1 billion in damage around the city.

Tens of thousands of homes and cars were hit hard by the huge hail and rainstorm.

Residential properties came off particularly bad with homeowners urging the provincial government to declare a national disaster in order to access extra relief assistance.

One of the major problems is that, after deductibles, insurance companies may only cover a small proportion of the hail damage. That’s if you have insurance coverage in the first place – many people in the case of the recent Calgary storm didn’t.

Dents cause water to pool on a metal roof, which then leads to longer-term problems with rust. The deterioration of the affected panels can cause exposed screw holes to appear and can subsequently lead to serious water leaks.

This will shorten the life of your roof as a leaking roof may need to be replaced.

As well as the main sections of roofing, check the roof vents, flashing and metal valleys for dents. The ridge cap of the roof will take the full force of a hail storm so this may be damaged too.

The coating of the metal may also show signs of damage (scouring and scratch marks), which could reduce the longevity of your roof if it’s not repaired.