Metal roof & leak repair
I'm Thomas Darby, a licensed PA home-improvement contractor in Lock Haven (HIC #PA2199962), and I do metal roof leak repair across Clinton County and the surrounding central-PA area. My work is scoped to repair rather than replacement: fasteners, ridge caps, vent boots, flashing, and panel laps, which is where metal roofs almost always leak. I also repair the stained ceiling underneath, so the roof and the interior damage are one job instead of two contractors.
A brown ring on a bedroom ceiling that got bigger after the last hard rain is how this kind of job usually reaches me. The roof itself is usually fine. What failed is smaller: a vent boot cracked by UV, sealant gone chalky at the ridge, or screws backing out a quarter inch until the rubber washer no longer seats. Metal roof leak repair in Clinton County is mostly a hunt for which of those it is.
I don't run a replacement crew. If the panels are sound, the honest answer is a repair, and repair is what I take. If I get up there and the roof is genuinely done, rusted through and loose across the field, I'll say so and you can go get replacement bids from somebody who does tear-offs.
The other half of this work is inside. Water that comes through a metal roof lands on insulation and drywall, and a sealed ridge does nothing for a ceiling that's already stained. On a Loganton job I resealed the ridge-cap joints, replaced a deteriorated vent-pipe boot, and swapped the suspect gasketed screws, then opened the ceiling cavity, replaced the affected insulation, and patched, primed, and repainted it. Roof and ceiling on one job, not two contractors.
What's included
- Metal roof leak diagnosis & controlled hose testing
- Ridge-cap reseal & joint repair
- Backed-out & failed gasketed screw replacement
- Vent-pipe boot replacement
- Chimney & wall flashing sealant repair
- Panel lap & seam resealing
- Storm & wind damage metal roof repairs
- Wet insulation removal & replacement
- Ceiling drywall patch, prime & paint
- ScopeRepair only, not full roof replacement
- Service areaLock Haven, Mill Hall, Avis, Loganton, Beech Creek, and Jersey Shore
- QuotesWritten number inside 48 hours; nothing down until you say go.
- LicensingPA HIC #PA2199962, licensed & insured
- Warranty1-year workmanship
How the job runs
- Send photos of the ceiling stain through the quote form and tell me where the water shows up and what the weather was doing when it did. Roof shots help if you can get them safely.
- I get on the roof and work the short list: fastener rows, ridge cap, vent boots, chimney and wall flashing, and the panel laps.
- If nothing's obvious, I run a controlled hose test with a spotter inside, wetting one zone at a time from the eave up until the ceiling tells us where it's coming in.
- Written quote within 48 hours covering both halves, the roof repair and the interior. Deposit only when you say go.
- Repair at the source: reseal the ridge-cap joints, replace suspect gasketed screws, swap the failed vent-pipe boot, touch up the sealant at the chimney flashing.
- Then the ceiling. Open the cavity, replace the affected insulation, treat the staining, patch, prime, and repaint. I walk you through what I found before I pack up.
Real jobs like this
Metal Roof Leak & Ceiling Repair
Tracked down and sealed a leak at a metal roof's ridge line, replaced a failed vent-pipe boot, and corrected suspect fasteners — then restored the water-stained ceiling below, from insulation through patch, prime, and paint.
Custom Truss Roof-Over & Metal Roof
A full gabled roof-over built on top of a mobile home's failing original roof. I framed custom trusses on site — oversized at the homeowner's request for extra pitch and strength — sheathed the new deck and wrapped it in Tri-Flex underlayment, then installed ribbed metal roofing over it for a durable, watertight roof that sheds snow.
Common questions
Where do metal roofs usually leak?
Almost never through the middle of a panel. It's the parts: gasketed screws whose rubber washers have hardened or backed out, sealant gone chalky at the ridge cap, a vent-pipe boot split by years of sun, flashing at a chimney, and the overlap where two panels meet. That's the short list I check first, in that order.
Will a repair actually hold, or am I just putting off a new roof?
Depends what failed. A split boot, a run of backed-out screws, or dried-out ridge sealant are components that wore out on a roof that's otherwise sound, and replacing them is a real fix. If the panels are rusted through or the structure under them is going, that's a bigger job. I've built a full gabled truss roof-over with ribbed metal over a failing roof in Loganton, so I can tell you honestly which one you're looking at.
How do you find a leak when the ceiling stain isn't under the hole?
Water travels. It can enter at the ridge and show up ten feet away where a rafter or a seam finally lets it drop. When the source isn't obvious from the roof, I run a controlled hose test, one zone at a time working up from the eave, with someone inside watching the ceiling and calling it out the moment water appears.
Can you fix the water-stained ceiling too, or do I need a second contractor?
I do both. Roof leak ceiling damage is where most homeowners get stuck, because the roofer stops at the roofline and the drywall guy won't go up on metal. On a Loganton repair I sealed the roof, then opened the ceiling cavity, replaced the affected insulation, treated the staining, and patched, primed, and repainted. Same job, same invoice.
My metal roof screws are backing out. Does that mean it's leaking?
Not always, but it's how a lot of leaks start. The screw holds a rubber washer against the panel; as the metal expands and contracts through Pennsylvania seasons, screws work loose and the washer stops sealing. Water gets in at the shank and runs down the underside where you'd never see it. Backed-out fasteners get replaced, not just retightened.
Do you travel out to Loganton and Beech Creek, or only Lock Haven?
Yes to both, along with Mill Hall, Avis, Jersey Shore, and the rest of Clinton County and a fair stretch of central PA past it. A good bit of my roof work has been in Loganton. Put the address on the quote request and you'll know whether the job is one I can take before I ever get on the roof.