Gwinnett & DeKalb County
Storm Damage Restoration in Gwinnett County, GA
A storm claim is really two claims stacked on each other: something broke the building open, and then water came through the hole. They are handled differently, priced differently, and often paid differently — and knowing that before you call your insurer is worth real money.
The wind-versus-water split, and why it decides your claim
Insurers do not think about “storm damage” as one thing. They think about what caused the opening, because that determines which part of the policy pays.
Wind created the opening
- Shingles lifted, a tree limb through the roof, a window broken by debris
- Rain that then entered through that opening is usually treated as part of the same covered event
- This is the version most homeowners policies are built to handle
- The critical detail: the opening has to be storm-created, not pre-existing
Water arrived at ground level
- Surface runoff, a creek or storm drain overflowing, groundwater pushing up
- Usually excluded from the homeowners policy and needing separate flood cover
- Covered on our flood damage restoration page in detail
- A single storm can absolutely produce both, in the same house, on the same night
Why this matters at 6am rather than next week: the evidence for “the wind did this” is on the roof and in the debris, and it degrades fast. Photograph the opening, the debris and the water line before anything is tidied, tarped or thrown away. We are not your insurer and this is general information rather than policy advice — but that one habit is what most often separates a paid claim from a disputed one.
What actually happens after a storm, in order
Storm work runs in a specific sequence, and doing it out of order is how people end up paying twice.
- 1
Make it safe
Downed lines, unstable limbs, a sagging ceiling, compromised structure. Nothing else begins until this is settled, and some of it is a utility call rather than ours.
- 2
Close the envelope
Tarping and board-up, so the next band of rain does not enlarge the loss. This is emergency board-up and tarping, and it is temporary by design.
- 3
Document before you clear
Photographs of the opening, the debris, the water path and the affected rooms. Once the tarp is up, the evidence of how the water got in is underneath it.
- 4
Deal with the water
Extraction, then removal of unsalvageable material, then drying to standard with daily readings. This is the part that takes days.
- 5
Permanent repair
Roof, windows, siding, then interior reconstruction. Interior work waits until the structure is dry — closing a wet wall is how mold jobs are created.
Where storm water actually gets in
Rarely through the dramatic hole. Usually through somewhere unremarkable that a strong enough gust found.
Lifted or missing shingles
A section peels, the underlayment is exposed, and the next rain runs straight onto the decking. Often invisible from the ground.
Flashing and valleys
Where roof planes meet, and around chimneys and vents. Wind-driven rain gets under flashing that sheds ordinary rain perfectly well.
Ridge and soffit vents
Designed to let air move. In horizontal rain they let water in too, which is why attic insulation is often wet when the roof looks intact.
Windows and door thresholds
Failed seals and debris impacts. Water tracks down inside the wall cavity and shows up as a damp patch two feet below.
Fallen limbs
A limb does not need to come through the roof to cause a claim — it can lift a section, crack decking or tear a gutter away, all of which let water in later.
Gutters and downspouts
Overwhelmed or torn loose, so water sheets down the wall and into the foundation instead of away from it. Common here, and easy to miss.
What storms do in this part of Georgia
Intense, short, and local
Most of what we respond to is not a named system. It is an hour of very heavy rain and wind that overwhelms a roof and a storm drain at the same time, then moves on.
Mature trees over older neighbourhoods
The established parts of Lilburn, Tucker and Stone Mountain have large trees close to houses that were built before those trees reached full size. Limb damage is the routine storm claim here.
Clay makes the ground part worse
Red Georgia clay sheds water rather than absorbing it, so the same storm that damages a roof also puts runoff against the foundation and into crawlspaces.
The humidity stops it drying itself
In a drier climate a wet attic might recover on its own. Through a Gwinnett summer it will not — which is why structural drying is part of a storm job here rather than an optional extra.
The places people forget to check
After the visible mess is dealt with, these are where an unnoticed storm loss usually turns up weeks later.
The attic. Wet insulation holds water against the ceiling below and dries very slowly. A stain on a bedroom ceiling three weeks after a storm almost always started as attic insulation nobody looked at.
The crawlspace. Runoff that went around the house rather than through it still ends up under the floor, where it sits and feeds mold in the joists above.
Inside exterior walls. Water that entered high can travel a long way down a stud cavity before it appears. The damp patch is almost never directly below the entry point.
All three are found in one visit with a moisture meter and a thermal camera, and the inspection is free. It is a much cheaper way to find out than waiting for a ceiling to tell you.
Where we do this work
Nine cities across Gwinnett and DeKalb County — see the full coverage area.
Questions about storm damage
Should I get on the roof and look?
No. Storm-damaged roofs are unstable, wet, and often have hidden decking damage that holds weight right up until it does not. Photograph what you can see from the ground and from inside the attic, and leave the roof to someone with fall protection.
Who puts the tarp on — you or the roofer?
We do, usually the same day, because tarping is mitigation rather than repair and waiting for a roofing schedule during a storm week means another night of water coming in. The permanent roof work follows afterwards.
My roof looks fine but the ceiling is stained. What happened?
Most often wind-driven rain through a ridge vent, soffit or piece of flashing, soaking attic insulation that then held water against the ceiling. It is very common and almost never visible from the driveway.
The storm was a week ago and it seems dry now. Is it?
The surface usually is. Insulation, decking and the tops of interior walls often are not, and in this climate they will not dry unaided. A moisture survey settles it in one visit and costs nothing.
Do you do the roof repair as well?
We handle the water side — tarping, extraction, drying and the interior rebuild — and coordinate with the roofing or structural trade doing the permanent exterior repair, so the two are sequenced properly rather than clashing.
A contractor knocked on my door after the storm. Should I use them?
Be careful. Storm chasing is a real problem after big weather in this area. Before signing anything, check they have a local address you can visit, ask who is actually doing the work, and never hand over an insurance cheque to someone you met on your doorstep that morning.
Storm just been through?
Photograph first, then call. We will tell you whether it needs tarping tonight or an inspection tomorrow, and the inspection is free either way.