Hippo Roofing · Brevard County, Florida
Repair or Replace? How to Know When a Florida Roof Is Actually Done
A leak does not automatically mean you need a new roof. And a roof that looks fine from the driveway is not necessarily healthy. So we took the guesswork out of it.
“Is it time yet?”
It is one of the hardest questions to answer about your own roof.
We built the Hippo Repair-or-Replace Scale: eight factors, 100 possible points, and a score you can calculate yourself in about two minutes. We call the number your Roof Score.
No mystery. No “trust us, you need a roof.” You can see exactly how the number is reached.
Score your roof
0
Answer the eight questions
Your score updates as you answer.
Whatever your number comes out at, it is not a report card on how you have looked after your home. Florida weather is hard on roofs in a way most of the country never sees. Sun, salt air, wind and eleven months of growing season age a roof here faster than the same roof anywhere else. A high score usually means the roof has been doing its job for a long time.
This scale is designed for asphalt shingle roofs. Tile and metal roofs age differently and should be evaluated differently.
The 8 things we look at
1. Roof Age — 22 points
Age carries the most weight because roofing materials change even when the roof still looks good. Florida heat, UV exposure, wind and moisture gradually harden sealants, weaken materials and reduce a roof’s ability to perform the way it did when it was new.
Age also matters for another reason: insurance. Florida law places specific rules around roof age and policy renewal, which we explain below.
2. Curling Shingles — 19 points
Shingles are designed to lie flat and remain flexible. Years of Florida heat can change that. Once shingles begin curling across multiple areas of the roof, they generally cannot simply be made flat again.
At that point we also want to know what is happening underneath. A hot, poorly ventilated attic can accelerate shingle aging from below, which is why a baked-looking roof and an overheated attic so often show up together.
3. Exposed Fiberglass Mat — 19 points
This one is easy to miss. Under the protective granules of an asphalt shingle is fiberglass mat. When that mat becomes visible, the protective surface above it has been lost, and the original granules cannot be put back.
A localized area may still be repairable. Widespread exposed mat is a strong sign the roof covering is reaching the end of its useful life.
4. Granule Loss — 15 points
Granules are not decoration. They protect the asphalt underneath from UV exposure and weather. Some loose granules are normal, particularly after storms. Heavy or widespread loss is different. If your gutters repeatedly collect significant amounts of roofing granules, your shingles may be losing part of the protective layer they depend on.
5. Flashing & Penetrations — 8 points
Pipe boots. Vents. Skylights. Chimneys. Walls. These are common places for leaks, and that does not automatically make them replacement items. A failed pipe boot on an otherwise healthy roof belongs in the repair column. That distinction matters.
6. Animals & Entry Points — 8 points
In Brevard County this deserves its own category. Roof rats, squirrels and other animals can enter through surprisingly small openings around soffits, fascia and roof edges, and once inside they can damage insulation, wood and even electrical wiring.
The good news is that animal entry is usually a repair and prevention matter, not a reason to replace an otherwise healthy roof. Bats require special care, because Florida law restricts when active colonies can be excluded from a structure.
7. Gutters & Roof Edge — 6 points
A clogged gutter looks like maintenance. Left long enough, it can become a roofing matter. Water can overflow against fascia and roof edges, debris can hold moisture where the roof needs to dry, and deteriorated fascia can create an opportunity for animal entry. This is exactly the kind of small item worth finding early.
8. Algae & Growth — 3 points
Black streaking gets attention because homeowners can see it from the ground. But appearance and structural condition are not the same thing. Algae staining is often primarily cosmetic. Moss and plant growth deserve more attention, because they can retain moisture against roofing materials. That is why appearance carries the lowest weight on our scale.
Three things that sit above the score
Widespread curling and widespread exposed mat both point the same direction regardless of the total, because neither one can be reversed.
An active leak is worth acting on now whatever the number says. Water reaching decking and framing costs considerably more than the surface above it.
The reverse also holds. A low overall score with the points concentrated in flashing, animals or gutters is a repair conversation, not a replacement one.
What does your score mean?
| Score | Band | What it generally means |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 24 | HEALTHY | Relatively few signs that concern us. Maintain it, monitor it, and address small items early. |
| 25 to 49 | REPAIR | Something needs attention, and the roof may have plenty of useful life remaining. Repair what is failing rather than replacing what is still doing its job. |
| 50 to 74 | PLAN | Repairs may still make sense, and now is the time to understand your options and get numbers in writing. Better on your schedule than during an emergency. |
| 75 to 100 | REPLACE | Multiple indicators point the same direction. The roof has likely given much of the useful life it was built to provide. |
The Brevard County factor: animals
Roof rats and squirrels are not unusual here.
They can enter through very small openings around soffits and fascia, and can cause damage long before a homeowner knows they are there. One of the bigger concerns is electrical wiring. Rodents can chew wiring inside an attic, turning what looked like a small roof-edge opening into a potential fire hazard.
And sealing the hole is not necessarily step one. If an animal is still inside when its exit is closed, you have traded one situation for a worse one.
Bats require more care still. Bats are protected in Florida under Florida Administrative Code rules 68A-4.001 and 68A-9.010, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission states it is illegal to evict or exclude them during maternity season, April 16 through August 14. So for four months of the year, closing an active bat entry point is not something anyone is permitted to do, however much you want it closed.
That is why we want to identify what created an opening, and what is using it, before we close it.
Geckos and anoles are different. They generally do not create roofing openings themselves. If they are getting into a soffit, look for the opening rather than the lizard.
More on animals in a Florida roof, including how openings should be closed →
How a clogged gutter damages a roof
Florida does not have the ice-dam trouble you hear about up north. Our version happens more slowly.
A gutter packed with leaves, pine needles and roofing granules stops moving water properly. During one of our heavy downpours, water can overflow against fascia and the roof edge, and moist debris can sit against materials that should be drying between storms.
Over time fascia can soften, roof-edge materials can deteriorate, and animals can take advantage of the weakened area. Meanwhile the rest of the roof may still be perfectly healthy.
That is why roof-edge damage is one of the easiest things to mistake for “you need a new roof.” Sometimes you do not.
More on what a clogged gutter actually does to a roof edge →
Two Florida rules worth knowing
The 25 percent rule
Florida law says that if an existing roofing system or roof section was built, repaired or replaced to the 2007 Florida Building Code or any later edition, and 25 percent or more of it is being repaired, replaced or recovered, then only the repaired portion has to meet the code in effect today.
Read it the other way and you find what matters. If the roof pre-dates that 2007 code, crossing the 25 percent line can pull the whole roofing system up to current code. On plenty of older Brevard homes that turns a large repair into a considerably larger project.
So on an older roof, the size of a repair is not only a cost question. Before authorizing a large repair, it is worth knowing roughly when the roof was installed and whether the proposed scope creates additional code requirements.
Fla. Stat. 553.844(5). Read from the Florida Senate’s published statute text.
Roof age and insurance
Florida law limits an insurer’s ability to refuse coverage or renewal solely because of roof age in certain circumstances. An insurer may not refuse to issue or renew a homeowner’s policy on a home with a roof less than 15 years old solely because of the age of the roof.
For a roof 15 years or older, an inspection by an authorized inspector showing 5 years or more of useful life remaining can become important.
This is an insurance underwriting matter, not a roofing contractor adjusting an insurance claim. Questions about your individual policy or coverage should be addressed with your insurer or a properly licensed insurance professional.
Fla. Stat. 627.7011. Read from the Florida Senate’s published statute text.
Three questions most homeowners cannot answer
You may know the age of your roof. But do you know:
Is anyone measuring your attic ventilation?
Not just checking whether vents exist. Actually measuring attic temperature against outdoor temperature under comparable conditions. A ventilation system can exist and still not be performing the way it should, and excessive attic heat can accelerate the aging of the roofing materials above it.
Is anyone watching for animal entry?
A small opening at a soffit or fascia line can exist for months before anyone notices. Routine inspection gives you a chance to find it before the first clue is scratching at night, or damaged wiring.
Is anyone monitoring attic moisture?
A small roof leak may never reach your ceiling. A disconnected bathroom exhaust duct can dump moisture straight into the attic. A dryer or exhaust vent fault can create an entirely different safety concern.
Meanwhile, elevated moisture can quietly affect the roof decking underneath your shingles. And that decking matters. Shingles are the visible surface. The wood underneath is part of the structure supporting your roofing system. Finding compromised decking during a planned inspection is one thing. Finding it after the old roof has already been removed is another.
The best thing to find on a roof is the thing you find before it becomes expensive.
So when someone is next on your roof, ask them. Are you measuring my attic against the outdoor temperature. Are you checking my soffit line for openings. Are you tracking the moisture up there. We will run all of it on the visit and share the numbers with you, whatever you decide to do afterward.
Why would a roofing company publish a scale that might say not to buy a roof?
Because we would rather earn the next roof than sell you one too early.
If your roof needs a pipe boot, we should share that with you. If it needs an animal entry point repaired, we should share that. If it needs maintenance, we should share that. And when the evidence says the roof really has reached the end of its useful life, you should be able to see why.
The scale makes that conversation measurable. You may score your roof at 78. Your Hippo Roofing Consultant may score it at 81. Instead of asking you to take our word for it, we can show you the photographs and walk through the points together.
What happens during your Hippo roof visit?
Start by scoring your roof yourself. Then bring us your number.
Your Roofing Consultant will evaluate the same factors on the actual roof, document what we find, and score it using the same system. If our number is different from yours, we will show you why.
If the answer is repair, we will share the repair options with you. If the answer is replacement, we will show you your roofing system options and put the choices in writing. Then you decide what makes sense for your home.
or schedule a free roof visit →
The Hippo Repair-or-Replace Scale is our own rating method, offered as a guide for homeowners. It is not an inspection, not an engineering assessment, and not a substitute for one. Scores reflect general condition patterns, and any individual roof can differ.
