A temporary cover over a storm-opened roof, held until the roofer can schedule the repair.
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When a limb or a storm opens the roof, a properly fastened tarp holds water out until a repair can be scheduled. Concrete Roofing answers phones 24/7 and connects Concrete callers with an independent local roofer. A visit happens when a roofer is free, and the line cannot promise an arrival time.
A tarp is not a repair. It is a bridge between the moment the roof opens and the day it can be properly fixed. In a valley with roughly 70 to 75 inches of precipitation a year, that bridge can matter a great deal, because an opening that lets in rain for a week soaks insulation, ruins ceilings and starts rot in the framing.
The usual reasons for tarping here are a fallen limb, a section of shingles stripped by wind, a puncture from debris, or an old roof that has failed in a downpour. The common thread is that the weather will not wait, and the full repair needs dry conditions or materials that are not on hand.
A tarp that is well done is a different thing from the blue sheet owners sometimes throw over a roof. A roofer fastens it to solid framing, runs it over the ridge so water cannot get under it, and avoids pinning it with nails through the shingles where they would make new holes. It is meant to last through weeks of rain and wind, not a night.
A well-fastened tarp can hold for weeks, but it is a temporary measure, and wind, sun and moving debris wear it. Repeated storms can loosen even a good one. Ask the roofer how long they expect it to hold, and have it checked after any strong wind.
Left long enough, a tarp can trap moisture against the roof and hide new damage. The plan should always include a date or a condition, such as a dry spell, for the lasting repair.
If the repair is delayed by supply or by weather, ask for the tarp to be checked and re-fastened at intervals.
It is not recommended. A wet or damaged roof is dangerous, and a poorly fastened tarp can blow off, tear more shingles and let in more water. If you cannot reach a roofer, make the inside safe, photograph the damage and keep calling. Do not climb up in the rain.
Falls from ladders and roofs are a main source of injury after storms. Weakened decking can look fine and fail underfoot, particularly where a limb has hit it. The risk is real even for a small area.
Policies differ, and the insurer decides. Many ask owners to prevent further damage and to keep receipts for reasonable temporary repairs, but this site cannot say what yours covers. Photograph the damage before the tarp goes on, and tell your insurer promptly.
Ask your agent about temporary repairs when you report the loss. The page on storm claim roof help lists what to keep. Never sign a document that transfers your claim to a contractor without reading it first.
The lasting repair follows: stripping the damaged section, replacing decking and covering, and restoring flashing. The roofer inspects the rest of the roof while up there. A written quote, separate from the tarp, sets out the repair and the schedule.
Ask the roofer what the repair depends on, such as dry weather, materials or an adjuster's visit. In a rural area, delivery of materials can take a day or two. The related pages on storm and wind damage repair and fallen tree roof damage cover the repairs themselves.
Keep a flashlight, buckets, plastic sheeting, towels and your phone charged. Know where your main electrical panel is, and have your insurer's number to hand. Photograph the damage when it is safe, and call. Phones are answered 24/7, though no arrival time can be promised.
The first minutes are about people and belongings, not the roof. Move furniture and electronics from under the damaged area, lay sheeting over what cannot move, and set buckets under drips. If the ceiling sags with water, keep everyone out of the room.
Then describe the situation clearly: where the house is, how large the opening seems, how much water is entering and what the weather is doing. A precise description helps the roofer decide what to bring and how to rank the call against others.
Stay off a roof that is wet, damaged or covered in debris, and keep out from under any ceiling that is sagging with water. Never touch a limb or a tarp near an overhead wire.
Phones are answered at any hour. Describe the opening, how much water is coming in and whether anything is near a wire. The roofer you reach decides what can be done and when, and no time is promised.
Move people and belongings away from wet ceilings. Catch the water, photograph the damage and keep out from under any bulge. Do not climb up.
Before covering, the roofer checks the framing and decking for strength and decides where the tarp can safely be fastened. A weak deck may need a board-up first.
The tarp is stretched over the damaged area and past the ridge, secured to solid wood with battens or strips and no more holes than needed in the shingles.
You should leave with a clear next step: when the permanent repair can happen, what it will involve and what to watch for in the meantime. Keep photos and any written note for your insurer.
The standard approach for storm holes and stripped shingles. Heavy-duty sheeting is fixed to the roof, with the ridge as the upper edge so rain cannot run under it. A well-installed tarp can hold for weeks, subject to wind and the weather.
Where the deck itself is gone, a roofer may screw plywood over the opening and then cover it. This gives the tarp something solid to rest on and keeps debris from sagging into the hole.
Not a roofer's job, but important: buckets, plastic sheeting and moved furniture inside the house limit damage while the outside waits. See roof leak repair for what to do inside.
No sourced price exists for tarping near Concrete, and it depends on how much roof is open and how hard the site is to reach. What shapes the quote:
| Job | Typical range | What it includes |
|---|---|---|
| Area to cover | Measured on site | A patch over a puncture is quicker than a tarp across half a slope |
| Roof pitch and height | Part of the quote | A steep roof or a two-storey wall slows the crew and calls for more safety gear |
| Board-up needed | Separate line | If the deck is broken, plywood goes on first |
| Time of day and weather | Part of the quote | Work in the dark or in driving rain is slower and riskier |
| Distance and access | Part of the quote | A long drive up the valley adds travel, and a soft or steep driveway adds set-up time |
The roofer gives the price before work starts and confirms the lasting repair separately.
Most emergency roof tarping calls are scheduled the same day when a technician is free, and you approve the price before any work starts.
Distance is the honest constraint. Concrete sits about 10 kilometers from Rockport and more than 25 from Marblemount, and the service area stretches to Conway on the delta. A roofer coming up Highway 20 spends real time on the road, and a storm that damages many roofs at once multiplies the wait. Say where you are and ask for a realistic window.
Winter can close part of the road. WSDOT usually closes the North Cascades section of Highway 20 between mid-November and mid-December for the season, with the usual west-side gate at Newhalem. That does not affect Concrete, but it explains why crews prefer to finish upper-valley work before then.
Many properties here have outbuildings. A shed or barn roof opened by wind needs a tarp as much as a house does. If you have a hay store or equipment underneath, say so, because it changes the priority.
Repairs after atmospheric-river wind, falling limbs and long soaking rain on upper Skagit valley roofs.
What to do when a tree or heavy limb lands on a roof, and how the damage is covered and repaired.
Tracing and repairing leaks that the late-October rains expose on upper Skagit valley roofs.
Not sure if you're covered? Check your ZIP code.
First make everyone safe and stay off the roof.
Roofers can sometimes do it, but it is slower and riskier, and a tarp fastened in wet conditions is harder to seal. The roofer decides whether it can be done safely and when.
Phones are answered 24/7, but a visit is scheduled when a roofer is free and depends on the storm and on distance. The line cannot promise a time. Be clear about how much water is coming in.
A properly installed tarp minimizes new holes, but any fastening leaves some marks. Compared with open exposure to rain, the trade is usually worth it. The roofer will repair the fastening points in the lasting repair.
Having heavy sheeting in the garage is sensible for interior protection, but putting it on a roof is a job for a roofer. A kit does not make the climb safe.
Call again and describe what happened. Wind can loosen a tarp, and the roofer will need to look at it. Photograph it from the ground.