Emergency
Roof leaking right now?
Here is what to do in the first hour to limit the damage — then call us and we will get you sorted.
Not an after-hours emergency line — calls are answered during business hours.
The first hour
Most of the cost of a leak is not the roof — it is the ceiling, the insulation, and everything underneath. These six things limit the damage while you wait.
- 01
Contain the water
Put a bucket or bin under the drip and towels around it. If water is pooling in a ceiling and the drywall is bulging, put a container underneath and pierce the bulge with a screwdriver to let it drain. A controlled hole beats a collapsed ceiling.
- 02
Move what can be damaged
Electronics, furniture, rugs, and anything with sentimental value out of the area. Water spreads along the ceiling before it comes through, so give yourself more room than the drip suggests.
- 03
Kill the power to that area
If water is anywhere near a light fixture, an outlet, or the panel, switch off the circuit at the breaker. Do not touch a wet fixture with the power on.
- 04
Photograph everything
Before you clean up, take photos and a short video of the water, the damage, and anything ruined. Your insurer will want them, and so will we when we quote the repair.
- 05
Stay off the roof
A wet roof is a slide, and a roof that is already leaking may have a soft deck underneath. Looking from a window or from the ground is fine. Climbing up in the rain is how people end up in hospital.
- 06
Call us
Tell us what you are seeing, when it started, and whether it is still running. Call 778-900-3535 — active leaks are handled as quickly as our schedule allows.
What usually causes a sudden leak
Wind and storm damage
Shingles lifted or torn off, ridge caps gone, flashing peeled back. Common across the Fraser Valley and on exposed coastal properties after a winter storm.
Failed flashing
Chimneys, skylights, and wall junctions are where most sudden leaks start, especially when wind drives rain sideways into a detail that was already marginal.
Cracked vent boots
The rubber collars around plumbing stacks harden and split with age. A small crack drips straight into the attic and shows up on a ceiling metres away.
Backed-up valleys and gutters
Needles and debris dam a valley, water backs up under the shingle course, and it finds the deck. Very common on treed North Shore and Mission properties.
Ice damming
In the Interior and Okanagan, melt water refreezes at the cold eave, backs up under the shingles, and comes through inside. Usually a ventilation and insulation problem as much as a roofing one.
Snow load
Heavy wet snow sitting on a roof that is already tired, particularly on lower-pitch sections and in Chilliwack, Kamloops, and the Shuswap.
What happens when you call
- You tell us what you are seeing — where the water is, when it started, and whether it is still running.
- We work out whether it needs someone on site now or whether it can wait for a scheduled visit.
- We trace the leak back to where the water actually gets in, which is usually uphill of the stain inside.
- You get the repair scope and price in writing before work starts, the same as any other job.
- If the roof turns out to be failing across the board rather than in one spot, we will tell you that instead of selling you a patch.
More on how we approach leaks on the roof repair page.
Not an emergency, but due for a look?
The inspection and the written estimate are free, with no obligation.