My Roof Is Leaking. What Should I Do Right Now?

First, Protect the Inside

• Move what you can. Furniture, electronics, and anything on the floor beneath the drip.
• Put down a container and a towel. A bucket alone splashes; a towel in the bottom stops that.
• If the ceiling is bulging, drain it deliberately. A sagging ceiling is holding a pocket of water and it will come down at once. Put a bucket under the low point and pierce it with a screwdriver so it drains in a controlled way. This feels wrong and it is the right call, because a collapsing ceiling ruins the whole room.
• Kill the power to that area if water is anywhere near a light fixture, a ceiling fan, or an outlet.

Second, Document It

Do this while it is happening, because it becomes very hard to prove afterwards.

• Photograph and video the active leak, the ceiling, and any damaged belongings.
• Note the date, the time, and the weather. Whether it was wind driven rain, hail, or steady rain matters to a claim.
• Keep receipts for anything you buy to control the damage, and for a hotel if the room is unusable. Many policies cover reasonable mitigation costs.

Your policy also obliges you to take reasonable steps to prevent further damage. Photographs of you doing exactly that protect you later.

Third, Find Out Where It Is Getting In

Go into the attic with a flashlight if it is safe to do so. Water rarely enters directly above the stain. It lands on the deck, runs along a rafter, and drips somewhere else entirely, sometimes several feet away. Look for the wet trail and follow it uphill to the highest wet point. That is closer to the entry.

Mark the spot from inside, with tape or a nail pushed through, so a roofer can find it from the top. That single step saves real time and money on the repair.

What Not to Do

• Do not go on the roof. A wet roof is genuinely dangerous, and in winter it is worse. Nothing you can do up there is worth the fall.
• Do not tear out wet drywall yet if you are filing a claim. Photograph first.
• Do not let anyone tarp your roof in exchange for signing something. Emergency tarping is a normal service; signing over your claim rights while water is running down your wall is not.
• Do not accept a permanent repair in the rain. Sealant applied to a wet surface does not bond. Anyone promising a lasting fix mid storm is selling you a second repair.

Fourth, Call Someone Who Will Actually Come

An emergency response should be a temporary dry in: tarping or a temporary patch to stop water entering, followed by a proper repair once the roof is dry and safe. Ask directly whether the visit is a temporary measure or a permanent fix, because they are priced differently and only one of them is possible in bad weather.

If the leak followed a storm, get the roof inspected properly once it is safe, because the leak you found may be one of several points of damage. Our guide to what a roof inspection should include covers what that report needs to contain, and our roof repair page explains how we trace a leak to its source rather than chasing the stain.

Then Decide About Insurance

Not every leak is a claim. A leak from a failed pipe boot on an otherwise sound roof is usually a cheap repair, and filing for it may cost you more in the long run than paying it. A leak caused by a storm that damaged a whole slope is a different matter. Get the written inspection first, then decide with a real number in front of you. Our walkthrough on how to file a roof insurance claim covers the sequence if you do go ahead.

After the Water Stops

Dry the space out properly with fans and a dehumidifier, and keep at it longer than feels necessary. Wet insulation loses most of its value and generally needs replacing rather than drying. Watch the area for a few weeks for staining that returns or spreads, which means the repair did not find the real entry point.