Your roof system protects your home and loved ones from the elements. No matter how minor, any damage to your roof will leave your home exposed to leaks, sagging drywall, slip hazards, fire hazards, and more risks. Although many property owners assume that extreme heat, improper installation, extreme weather, and aging shingles are likely to cause roof damage, hail damage and roof blistering can also lower the efficiency and longevity of your roof.
Unfortunately, the typical person might have difficulty distinguishing between hail damage and roof blistering. Today we will discuss the difference between blistering and hail damage.
How to Distinguish Hail Damage from Roof Blistering
If you are like many people, you only think about your roof system when worried about damage. As a result, you might struggle to tell the difference between hail damage and roof blistering. Here are tips on how to identify hail damage and roof blistering.
How to Identify Hail Damage to Your Roof

Hail Damage on your roof might be easy or difficult to identify depending on the extent of the damage. Large hail is likely to love behind big dents on your roof system. Follow these steps to spot hail damage:
Inspect your roof for dents or marks
Check for granules on the gutters, flashing, and vents
Look for hail hits ( they are usually black)
Search for cracks on your shingles
There are different types of damage that are similar to hail damage. For instance, fair wear and tear can force your shingles to crack. The only sure way to find out if you are dealing with hail damage is to call for a professional roof inspection.
What Does Blistering on Your Roof Look Like?
Usually, blisters occur due to substandard manufacturing, fair wear and tear, or poor installation. It might also happen due to excessive heat as a result of poor ventilation. When it happens, you will notice raised dimples that resemble pockmarks. These dimples are characterized by the loss of granules on your asphalt shingles. Although you can quickly identify blistering before suffering severe weather damage, it is almost impossible to identify after suffering hail damage.
So, What is the Difference Between Roof Blistering and Roof Damage?
Now that you know how to identify roof blistering and hail damage, let’s discuss how you can distinguish between the two. To begin with, it’s vital to understand that hail damage is a single event while roof blistering occurs over a long time. As a result, hail damage is likely to damage your vents, gutters, and flashing. On the other hand, roof blisters are likely to explode one at a time. Therefore, they are unlikely to damage your vents, gutters, and flashing.
Additionally, hail damage might leave behind swollen blisters on the shingles as it’s impossible to flash out all the blisters on your shingles.
Roof Blistering VS Hail Damage: Why it Matters
Learning how to distinguish roof blistering from hail damage is the difference between paying for repairs out of pocket or parting with a small deductible. This is because blistering is not usually covered by insurance as it’s considered normal wear and tear. However, you might be covered if you are still under warranty.
The best way to prove your case is by calling for a professional roof inspection. At Lone Star Roofing, we are eager to help you make the best decision with a free roof inspection. Contact us today to request the best in roof restorations.
