Four checks to make during the visit
A roof repair only makes sense if the rest of the roof can carry it for several more years. Ask us these questions during the visit.
- Is what lies underneath sound? A rotten roof deck, or flat roof insulation soaked over a large area, cannot be fixed with a patch on the surface.
- Is the defect the only one? Damage in one spot can be repaired. The same damage, found all over the roof, tells of overall wear.
- What does the roof's history say? A leak after fifteen quiet years is an accident. Three leaks in two winters are a trend.
- Where is the covering in its life? According to manufacturers and the quality of the installation, the orders of magnitude are 15 to 30 years for asphalt shingles, 25 to 35 years for elastomeric membrane, 15 to 25 years for tar and gravel, 20 to 30 years for TPO and EPDM, and 40 years or more for metal. A poorly ventilated or poorly drained roof wears out faster.
What tips the balance
Toward repair. The roof has not reached half of its expected life. The cause can be named: a gust, a fallen branch, a badly installed flashing. Elsewhere, the covering is flexible and well bonded, on dry, firm wood.
Toward replacement. The covering has reached or passed its expected life. Shingles curl, crack or lose granules everywhere, or the membrane cracks and blisters in several places. Water gets in here one time, there the next. The roofer feels the deck flex underfoot or finds waterlogged insulation.
The worn roof that leaks in only one spot
The covering is tired without being finished, and the leak stays local. These points help decide:
- the number of years the roofer gives the rest of the surface
- where this repair falls, the first one or one more
- the condition of the wood around the leak, dry or not
- the warranty the contractor agrees to give on the patch
- how long you plan to keep the building
If the answers are reassuring, the roof is repaired for a while and replacement is planned within two or three years. This gives time to compare quotes and choose the season. Otherwise, each additional repair delays the replacement without avoiding it.
The permit depending on the choice, in Laval
The Ville de Laval's page on residential renovation says nothing about partial roof repairs. For a residence, its rule on the roof covering depends on the material. Replaced with the same material, it requires no permit. Replaced with a new material, it requires one. The City does not define what it means by « même matériau » (same material). If in doubt, ask the Service de l'urbanisme (the City's urban planning department) before signing.
The quote in two versions
Ask the contractor to price both the repair and the replacement in the same document, with the work, the warranty and the lifespan the contractor considers reasonable to expect for each. Insist on the photos the opinion is based on. Also have it written down what the contractor will do if rotten wood is found once the roof is open.
Frequently asked questions
Does a twenty-year-old roof that stays dry need to be redone?
Age alone does not say whether a twenty-year-old roof needs to be redone. An inspection by a roofer tells whether it has good years left or whether the job should be planned.
Is it possible to redo only one slope or one section?
Yes, when one part is clearly more worn than the rest. The junction requires care, and the two surfaces will not look the same. Check with the roofer how this affects the warranty.
How do you check the opinion of a roofer who wants to replace everything?
Ask for the roofer's photos and reasons. Then bring in one or two other contractors holding a licence from the Régie du bâtiment du Québec (RBQ, Quebec's building authority). Findings that agree, backed by evidence, make the opinion credible.
Official sources, consulted on October 8, 2026: