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Most of a useful mobile home roof inspection is done without getting on the roof, which is fortunate, because many of these roofs should not be walked.
Before you start
Do not walk the roof unless you know it will carry you. Manufactured home roofs are light, and an aged panel or a deflected area will not hold a person safely.
Use a ladder at the edge and binoculars, or have it inspected by someone equipped for it.
Inside, on a cold morning
This timing matters. Condensation announces itself on a cold morning and hides on a warm afternoon.
Walk every ceiling with a flashlight held at a shallow angle. Raking light shows staining and sagging that overhead light hides.
Look for staining that is diffuse across an area, which suggests condensation, or concentrated at a point, which suggests a leak.
Press any sagging or discolored ceiling panel. Softness means it has been wet.
Check around every ceiling penetration: vents, light fittings, the air conditioning register.
Check closets and cupboards against exterior walls, which are rarely looked at and often show wall water first.
Look at the top of exterior walls for staining, which points to the perimeter trim rather than the roof field.
From a ladder at the edge
Look along the seams for open, cracked or missing sealant.
Look along fastener lines for raised heads.
Check the perimeter trim for gaps, lifted sections or failed sealant.
Check every penetration: vents, air conditioning, swamp cooler, satellite mount, antenna.
On a coated roof, look for chalking, thinning, cracking and any area where the coating has lost adhesion, especially at seams.
On a metal roof, look for rust at cut edges, at seams and anywhere water sits.
Look for ponding, or for the staining that shows where water stands after rain.
From the ground
Walk the full perimeter.
Check for dents from hail and for lifted edges from wind.
Check that the roof line is straight. A dip indicates deflection, which means ponding and possibly a structural issue.
Check for overhanging branches and for debris accumulated on the roof.
What to record
Photograph every finding, dated, with a note of the weather.
Keep the record. It supports an insurance claim, and it establishes condition if you sell.
Cadence
Twice a year, before and after the hot season.
After any hail or high wind, checking the edges first.
On the first cold morning of the year, inside, for condensation.
When to call someone
Sagging ceilings, deflection in the roof line, water at the perimeter trim, ponding, or any coating that has lost adhesion over a significant area.
