Post-Storm Exterior Inspection Checklist

The damage a storm leaves is usually quieter than the storm itself. Dramatic wreckage is rare; far more common is a gutter run tugged loose, a couple of shingles lifted, or water pushed somewhere it shouldn't sit. Left alone, those small things become leaks and rot. A deliberate walk-around soon after the weather clears is about the cheapest protection a homeowner has.

Two words shape this entire checklist: from the ground. Nearly everything worth finding after a storm can be seen from the ground, often more clearly through binoculars than it would be up close. A wet, freshly battered roof is one of the most dangerous surfaces you can stand on, so this guide keeps you off it and hands roof access to the people equipped for it.

First, is it even safe to be out there?

Before you inspect anything, confirm the situation has genuinely settled. Wait out any lingering lightning and high wind, and give surfaces time to stop dripping so stains read clearly rather than blurring together. Then walk the perimeter with binoculars and a phone camera, photographing anything that looks wrong before you touch it. Keep both feet on the ground the entire time — the moment a finding seems to require a ladder or roof access, it becomes a note for a professional rather than a task for you.

Hazards come before inspection

Some findings aren't inspection items at all; they're reasons to stop and call for help.

• Check for downed or sagging power lines anywhere near the house, the trees, or the gutters. If you find one, keep everyone well clear and call the utility.
• Stay away from any tree or large limb resting on the roof, gutters, or lines — that is emergency territory, not a repair.
• Watch your footing: standing water can hide holes and debris, and saturated ground shifts under a ladder.
• Only clear small, reachable debris by hand. Nothing that needs a ladder, and nothing tangled with a line.

The gutters usually tell the story first

Storms overload gutters with water and yank on the runs with wind, so this is where damage tends to surface earliest.

• Look for runs that have pulled away, tilted, or sagged under the load.
• Check for leaves, twigs, and branches packed into the troughs and jammed at the outlets.
• Scan for separated seams, dented sections, or hangers that have plainly let go.
• Once the debris has settled, watch the next rain: overflow or water streaming from a seam signals a fresh clog.
• Confirm downspouts and extensions are still connected and carrying water away from the foundation.

If a run loosened or new overflow appeared, hold what you see against the signs your gutters need repair and the reasons water runs behind gutters to decide how urgent it is.

Reading the roof edge without climbing it

This section is entirely a looking exercise. Bring the binoculars and keep your feet planted.

• Scan for missing, lifted, cracked, or curled shingles, concentrating on edges and ridges where wind gets under them.
• Watch for shingle granules washed into the gutters or heaped at the base of the downspout — a hint of impact or accelerated wear.
• Note any debris impact marks, displaced flashing, or a dip in the roofline that wasn't there before.

If anything looks off, that is your cue to call a roofing professional, not to fetch a ladder. Ground observation is meant to tell you whether a closer look is warranted, and it usually does.

Fascia, soffits, and the walls below

• Inspect the fascia — the board the gutter mounts to — for cracks, dents, or sections knocked loose by wind or flying debris.
• Look up at the soffits, the underside of the overhang, for punctures, staining, or panels blown out of place.
• Walk each wall and check the siding for cracked, loose, dented, or missing pieces.
• Note any fresh water stains below the roof edge, which point to overflow or intrusion during the storm.

Storm overflow often announces itself as staining right at the roof edge. To gauge how serious it is, see water stains below the roof edge and signs soffits have moisture damage.

The chimney and other roof penetrations

Anything that pokes through the roof is a spot where wind can pry and water can enter, and all of it is checkable from below.

• Confirm the chimney cap is still seated and hasn't shifted, bent, or blown off.
• Look for displaced flashing or damaged boots around vents and other penetrations.
• Note debris lodged against the chimney or resting on the roof near a penetration.

Leave any reseating or close inspection to a professional — this is roof-access work by definition. A cap that has moved lets rain and debris straight into the flue, which is why signs a chimney cap needs replacement and how chimney caps protect against rain and debris are worth a read if yours looks wrong.

Where the water ended up

• Look for pooling against the foundation, in window wells, and over yard drains.
• Confirm downspouts still discharge several feet from the house and weren't knocked loose in the wind.
• Clear small, reachable branches and debris from walkways and around downspout outlets.
• Photograph larger fallen limbs — especially any on the roof, gutters, or lines — and leave their removal to a professional.

Document first, then triage

Before you fix or move anything, photograph it. Clear, dated ground-level photos taken before temporary repairs, plus a short note on what happened and when, are what make an insurance claim go smoothly later. Undated or missing photos make the same claim harder than it needs to be.

Then sort your findings by risk. Anything involving a power line or a tree on the house is an emergency: call the utility or professionals and stay clear. Next comes water intrusion and loosened gutters, which do fresh damage every time it rains — those get fixed promptly. Cosmetic dings in the siding can wait. For clogs and overflow, start with how often gutters should be cleaned; for staining or softness at the roof edge, what causes fascia rot explains what you're up against. And heading into the colder months, the fall gutter and downspout checklist is the right follow-up so any storm-loosened run is caught before winter.

Whenever a finding calls for roof access, a tall ladder, or repair to a loosened component, that is the line. Documenting the problem from the ground and making the call is not the timid choice — it is the correct one, and almost always the cheaper one too.