Emergency Roof Tarping for Active Leaks
When a storm has opened the roof and water is getting into the house, we cover the damaged area with a secured tarp so the inside stops getting wetter while the permanent repair is scoped and scheduled. State Restoration Services is a family-owned roofing contractor in Lincolnshire, working across the north and northwest Chicago suburbs.
Our office is open Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Calls about active leaks go to the front of the schedule. We are not an overnight service, so this page also covers what to do if water comes in after hours.
Call (866) 992-2982Do you need a tarp today, or an inspection this week?
The test is simple: is water getting inside, or about to? If yes, it is a tarp call. If the house is dry, the right next step is a roof inspection, not an emergency visit.
Call now for a tarp
- Water dripping or running through a ceiling, wall or light fixture
- Shingles and bare decking exposed after wind, with more rain forecast
- A tree limb has gone through the roof
- Daylight visible from the attic
Book an inspection instead
- An old ceiling stain that is dry and not growing
- A few shingles in the yard but nothing wet inside
- Dented gutters, vents or downspouts after hail
- Granules collecting at the bottom of the downspouts
Water coming in after hours: what to do until we get there
None of this needs a ladder. Do what you can safely reach from inside, then call when the office opens and say water is coming in.
- Stay off the roof. A wet, storm-damaged roof in the dark is how homeowners get hurt, and it does not stop the leak.
- Make the electrics safe. If water is near a light fixture or outlet, switch that circuit off at the breaker.
- Catch and move. Buckets under the drip, belongings and rugs out of the way, plastic over furniture you cannot move.
- Photograph everything wet with the date on it: the ceiling, the floor, the attic if you can see in from the hatch.
- Keep every receipt for buckets, plastic, fans and anything else you buy to limit the damage.
- Call (866) 992-2982 when the office opens and tell us water is getting in, so the visit is prioritised.
What a proper tarp visit includes
A tarp does one job: keep water out until the real repair. It does that job only if it is installed so wind cannot get under it and rain cannot run behind it.
Photographs before anything is covered
Once the tarp is down, the damage underneath cannot be seen. The broken shingles, the hole and the exposed deck are photographed first, because that is the evidence an insurer will ask about later.
Cover past the damage and over the ridge
The tarp runs well beyond the damaged area and up over the ridge, so water running down the slope cannot get under its top edge. The edges are held with wood strips fastened to the roof, the same method the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers uses in its Operation Blue Roof program after disasters.
Water stopped, not just covered
A tarp that leaks at one corner keeps soaking the insulation. The point of the visit is a dry ceiling, not a blue roof.
The permanent repair gets scoped
The tarp buys time for the real work: an inspection of the whole roof, a written estimate, and a storm damage repair or an ordinary roof repair, depending on what caused the opening.
Does insurance pay for an emergency roof tarp?
Often, when the opening was caused by a covered event such as wind or a falling tree. Many Illinois homeowner policies include a Reasonable Repairs provision that pays the reasonable cost of measures taken solely to protect covered property from further damage. A tarp after a storm generally fits that; a tarp over a roof that simply wore out generally does not, as our guide on whether homeowners insurance covers a roof leak explains.
Protecting the house from further damage is also one of your own duties under most policies, so waiting for an adjuster before stopping the water works against you.
If you sign anything with a contractor before the claim is decided, read our guide on assignment of benefits in Illinois: emergency work you agreed in writing was needed, such as a tarp, is the one thing a contractor may still charge for. The carrier decides what it pays, not us.
Keep these for the claim file
- Dated photos of the damage before the tarp went on
- Photos of every wet ceiling, wall and floor
- The invoice for the tarp visit
- Receipts for buckets, plastic, fans and clean-up
- The written agreement for the emergency work
When a tarp is the wrong answer
The leak is small and reachable
A lifted shingle or a failed pipe boot can often be fixed in the same visit, and a repair costs less than covering a slope and coming back.
The tarp has been up since spring
A tarp degrades in sun and wind. Left for months, it reads as deferred maintenance to an insurer's inspector and to a home appraiser.
The roof is simply worn out
A tarp still stops the water, but the cost is yours and the real conversation is roof replacement on its own merits.
Questions about emergency tarping
How fast can you get out to tarp my roof?
Calls about water coming into the house go to the front of the schedule during office hours, Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM. Call (866) 992-2982 and say water is getting in, so the visit is prioritised over routine inspections.
Should I put a tarp on the roof myself?
We would rather you did not. A storm-damaged roof is slippery and may have soft decking, and a tarp that is not run over the ridge and fastened down usually lets water in at the top edge or blows off in the next wind. Work from inside instead.
How long can a tarp stay on the roof?
Only until the permanent repair, measured in weeks rather than seasons. Sun and wind break tarps down, and a long-standing tarp tells an insurer or appraiser the roof has been neglected, which can work against a claim and a sale.
Will my insurance company pay for the tarp?
Many Illinois policies pay the reasonable cost of protecting the house from further damage after a covered loss such as wind, so a storm tarp is often reimbursed. The carrier makes that decision, which is why the photos, invoice and receipts matter.
Want this looked at?
We inspect for free, document what we find and prepare a code-compliant estimate you can hand to your insurer. Our partner, a licensed public adjuster, State Adjusting Services, can represent you on the claim.
Call (866) 992-2982 — Free Inspection