"Turns out, the drone completely missed a section of flashing that had peeled back near the chimney."
Yeah, drones are handy for initial checks, but nothing beats boots on the roof. I've seen drones miss subtle hail damage plenty of times...angles and lighting make all the difference. Better safe than sorry.
Haha, drones...I learned that lesson the hard way. When we bought our first house last year, I thought I'd be clever and save a few bucks by borrowing my buddy's drone to check the roof. Looked great from the footage—no obvious holes or anything. Fast forward two months, and I'm sitting in the living room during a rainstorm, feeling proud of my DIY inspection skills, when suddenly...drip, drip, drip. Right onto my head. Turns out there was a sneaky little gap near the vent pipe that the drone completely missed.
Ended up paying way more to fix water damage than I would've spent just hiring someone to climb up there in the first place. Lesson learned: drones are cool toys, but they won't replace a good old-fashioned ladder and eyeballs anytime soon.
"Turns out there was a sneaky little gap near the vent pipe that the drone completely missed."
Yeah, drones are handy for a quick overview, but did you check the flashing around the vent pipe? Those spots are notorious for leaks—sometimes even a tiny gap can cause big headaches later on.
Drones are cool and all, but honestly, nothing beats getting up there yourself (or having someone who knows roofs take a look). I had a similar issue—drone footage looked perfect, but when my roofer buddy climbed up, he found some sketchy caulking around the flashing. Sometimes tech just can't replace good old-fashioned eyeballs and hands-on checking. Plus, gives you a chance to spot potential areas for green roofing options...just sayin'.
Totally agree with you there. I had a similar experience recently—thought the drone inspection would be enough, but when my roofer actually got up there, he found cracked shingles hiding under some leaves. Glad we caught it early, or that could've gotten expensive fast. Still, drones do have their place for initial checks, especially if you're trying to save on costs. And green roofing options...now you’ve got me thinking about future possibilities!
