The Short Answer
When you call about a roof leak, describe where the water shows up and what sits above it on the roof, when it appears (during rain, after, only with snow or thaw), the weather and wind direction at the time, how long and how much it drips, and any past repairs. Send wide and close photos of the stain, the attic underside if safe, and the roof from the ground.
Key Points
- Where the water shows is a clue, not an answer: say what is above it, such as a chimney, skylight, bathroom vent or valley.
- Timing tells the story: during heavy rain, only in wind from one direction, only on thaw days, and on sunny mornings point to different causes.
- Wind direction is where the wind comes from, and the National Weather Service keeps daily records you can look up after the fact.
- Photos from inside, the attic and the ground let a roofer triage before the visit.
- A dated log across several storms is the single best tool for an intermittent leak.
Your Description Is the First Half of the Diagnosis
A roofer looking at a dry roof on a sunny day is working from the scene of the crime after it has been cleaned up. Your notes from the day it leaked are the witness statement. They narrow down which side of the roof, which detail and which kind of weather is responsible.
They also prevent the most expensive mistake in leak repair: fixing the obvious suspect and missing the real one. The same ceiling stain can be fed from more than one place, and some leaks show up only in one kind of storm. A clear description helps the roofer plan a test that reproduces those conditions instead of guessing.
Describe the Location Like a Map, Not a Room
"The upstairs bedroom" is a start. "The north bedroom, about three feet in from the outside wall, right below where the chimney comes through" gives a roofer a place to stand. Think about what is directly above the stain and what is uphill from it, because water runs downhill on the deck before it drips.
- Which floor, which room, and which exterior wall it is closest to (north, south, street side, back yard).
- How far the stain is from that wall, roughly in feet.
- What is on the roof above or uphill: a chimney, skylight, plumbing vent, bath fan or dryer vent, satellite mount, a valley where two slopes meet, or a wall where a lower roof meets a second story.
- Whether it is at a light fixture, a smoke detector, along a ceiling seam, at the top of a wall, or around a window.
- Whether the water is on a ceiling or running down the inside of a wall, which points to a wall, window or siding detail as much as the roof.
Timing Separates One Cause From Another
When a leak appears is often more useful than where. Different failures have different signatures, and roofers learn to listen for them. Tell them as precisely as you can.
During any steady rain
Points toward an opening that water reaches in any weather: a cracked pipe boot, a missing shingle, a failed flashing or a valley that has worn through.
Only in heavy, wind-driven rain
Points toward a detail that is fine in calm rain but lets water in when wind pushes it sideways or uphill, such as a vent, a sidewall flashing or a low-slope section.
Leaks only in windOnly with snow on the roof, or on thaw days
Points toward ice dams forcing meltwater up under the shingles at the eaves, or meltwater finding a weak spot that rain never reaches.
About ice damsOn cold, dry mornings or sunny winter days
Often not a roof leak at all. Frost that builds on nail tips and the deck overnight melts when the sun warms the roof and drips like a leak. That is an attic moisture and ventilation problem.
Condensation or leak?With no weather at all
Check plumbing, a bathroom above, an air conditioning line or a water heater first. A roof can only leak when water is on it.
Record the Rain, the Wind and the Temperature
Note whether the rain was light, steady or heavy, how long it had been raining before the drip started, and whether it was windy. The most useful single detail for a wind-related leak is wind direction. The National Weather Service defines wind direction as the direction the wind is blowing from, so a west wind comes off Lake Michigan toward the house and pushes rain against the west-facing slopes and walls.
If you did not catch it at the time, you can look it up. The National Weather Service office in Grand Rapids publishes daily climate data for its reporting stations through its NOWData tool, including precipitation, snowfall and temperatures for past dates. Pair that with the date on your photos and you have a weather record for each leak.
- Rain: light, steady or downpour; how long before the leak appeared.
- Wind: calm, breezy or strong, and which way it came from.
- Temperature: above or below freezing, and whether it was thawing after a cold stretch.
- Snow or ice: how much was on the roof, and whether there were icicles or a ridge of ice at the eaves.
How Long, How Fast and How Often
Quantity tells the roofer how urgent this is and how long it has been going on. A few drops after a three-day soaker is a different call from a steady stream ten minutes into a storm. A stain that has grown slowly over two winters suggests water has been reaching the deck and insulation for a while, and the repair may include wood.
- Drip rate: a drop every few seconds, a steady drip, or a stream.
- How much you caught: a cup, half a bucket, more.
- How long it lasted after the rain stopped.
- Whether this is the first time, or it has happened before and in what conditions.
- Whether the stain has grown, changed color or started to sag.
The Photos a Roofer Actually Needs
Good photos let a roofer triage before the visit and sometimes spot the culprit from the ground. Take more than you think you need, with the date and time saved on the phone. Wide shots give context; close shots give detail.
- Step 1
Inside, Wide and Close
A wide photo of the room showing where the stain is relative to walls and windows, then close photos of the stain, the drip and any bubbling paint. A short video of the drip helps show the rate.
- Step 2
The Attic, if You Can Get in Safely
Stand only on joists or attic flooring. Photograph the underside of the deck above and uphill from the stain, any wet streaks on rafters, wet or matted insulation, and frost on nail tips in cold weather.
- Step 3
The Roof From the Ground
Walk around the house and zoom in on the slope above the leak: the chimney, vents, skylights, valleys and any missing or lifted shingles. Do not climb a ladder to get the shot.
- Step 4
Anything Unusual Outside
Overflowing gutters, ice at the eaves, a branch on the roof, or water staining on siding below a roof-to-wall joint.
Look Up the Storm Afterward: Michigan Rain, Hail and Wind Reports
If you were busy with buckets and missed the weather details, you can fill in your log afterward from free public records. The Grand Rapids airport data mentioned above is one source, but a single station can miss what happened over your house. Thunderstorms and lake-effect bands can drop very different amounts of rain or hail a few miles apart, so it helps to look closer to home.
Why bother? A leak that started the evening a nearby observer reported hail, or the day the wind gusted hard from the west, points a roofer toward storm damage on one side of the roof. A leak that appeared after a gentle, steady rain points toward a worn detail like a pipe boot or a flashing. If you think the damage came from a storm and you plan to involve your insurer, Michigan's Department of Insurance and Financial Services lists notifying your insurance company or agent as soon as possible as the first of a policyholder's responsibilities after a loss, and a dated log with the storm records attached is exactly the kind of information an adjuster asks for.
- CoCoRaHS Michigan: the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network is a volunteer network of backyard observers who report daily rain, hail and snow. It operates across Michigan, coordinated by the state climatologist at Michigan State University, and its county maps show daily precipitation totals from observers near you.
- NOAA Storm Prediction Center storm reports: the SPC posts each day's reports of hail, damaging wind and tornadoes with times and locations. The SPC labels all of these reports preliminary, but a hail or wind report near your town on the day the leak started is worth noting.
- National Weather Service Grand Rapids climate data: the daily records for your nearest station give the peak wind gust and its direction, which you can match to the side of the roof facing the wind.
Write the storm report or rain total into your log next to your own notes, with the date and the source, rather than replacing what you saw.
Tell Them What Has Already Been Done
Recent work on or through the roof is one of the first things to rule in or out. A new bath fan, a satellite dish, solar mounts, an HVAC flue or a skylight installed by another trade can all leave an opening. Past repairs matter too, especially if someone has already tried to seal the area, because a layer of caulk or roofing cement can hide the original failure.
- Roughly how old the roof is, and whether it has one layer or more if you know.
- Past leak repairs, who did them, and what they said they fixed.
- Any recent work by other trades on the roof, the attic or the exterior walls.
- Whether you have made an insurance claim for this leak or plan to.
A Simple Script for the Call
When you call, start with whether water is coming in right now. That one fact decides whether this is an emergency visit or a scheduled one. Then work through location, timing, weather and history, and offer to send the photos.
At Stellar, you can call or text (616) 840-1927, and you can send photos and get one of our inspectors on the line before anyone comes out. We still can't give you a firm price until someone has seen the roof, but good photos and notes make the first visit far more productive. Standard repairs are scheduled every week for the following week; active leaks are treated as emergencies.
Leak Log: Print This and Fill In a Row Each Time
| Date and time | Weather and wind | Where it showed | How much | Photos taken |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Example: Oct 3, 7:40 pm | Heavy rain 2 hrs, strong west wind, 48 F | Front bedroom ceiling, 3 ft from west wall | Steady drip, half a bucket | Ceiling, attic deck, roof from street |
Wind direction is where the wind comes from. Past daily weather for Grand Rapids area stations is available from the National Weather Service Grand Rapids NOWData tool.
Ready to Describe Your Leak?
Book a free inspection and bring your notes. If water is coming in right now, call or text (616) 840-1927 instead of filling out a form.
Related Guides
Roof Leaking Right Now? The First Hour
Electrical safety, buckets, the ceiling bubble and when to call.
Learn MoreHow Roofers Find Leaks
Visual tracing, attic checks, water testing and what each misses.
Learn MoreRoof Leak Repair
How we trace the source, and the second source, and prove it is dry.
Learn MoreLeaks Only in Heavy Rain or Wind
Why some leaks appear only in certain storms.
Learn MoreQuestions We Hear
Do I need to know where the leak is coming from before I call a roofer?
No. Finding the entry point is the roofer's job, and it is often far from the stain. What helps is describing where the water shows up, what is on the roof above and uphill from it, and the weather when it happened. Leave the guessing out and give the facts; a confident wrong guess can send the conversation in the wrong direction.
How do I find out which way the wind was blowing during a storm?
Check the National Weather Service. The Grand Rapids office's climate data tools show daily weather for past dates at local reporting stations, which is usually enough to confirm a windy, rainy day. Remember that wind direction is reported as the direction the wind comes from, so a southwest wind pushes rain onto the southwest-facing sides of the house.
Should I send photos before the roofer comes out?
Yes, if the company accepts them. Photos of the ceiling, the attic underside and the roof from the ground let a roofer judge urgency, think about likely causes and bring the right materials. They will not replace an on-site inspection or produce a firm price, but they usually make the first visit shorter and more useful.
My stain is old and I don't know when it started. What do I say?
Say exactly that, then start a log now. Note whether the stain is dry, damp or growing, mark its edge lightly with a pencil, and check it after each rain and each thaw. Within a few storms you will know whether it is active and in what weather. An old dry stain may be a past leak that was already repaired.
Is a leak that only shows on sunny winter days really a roof leak?
Often it is not. On cold nights, warm moist air from the house can freeze on nail tips and the underside of the deck, then melt and drip when the sun warms the roof. That looks like a leak but comes from inside. Mention the pattern when you call, because the fix is usually attic air sealing and ventilation rather than roofing.
What This Page Cites
- Glossary: Wind Direction, National Weather Service (https://forecast.weather.gov/glossary.php?word=wind+direction), accessed October 2026
- Climate (NOWData and Daily Climate Reports), National Weather Service Grand Rapids (https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=grr), accessed October 2026
- 1991 to 2020 Grand Rapids Climate Normals, National Weather Service Grand Rapids (https://www.weather.gov/media/grr/climate/normals/GrandRapidsNormals1991to2020.pdf), accessed October 2026
- Michigan CoCoRaHS (Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network), Colorado Climate Center and Michigan State Climatologist (https://www.cocorahs.org/state.aspx?state=mi), accessed October 2026
- Storm Reports (daily hail, wind and tornado reports, preliminary), NOAA Storm Prediction Center (https://www.spc.noaa.gov/climo/reports/), accessed October 2026
- Homeowners Insurance Policies: How to Claim What is Yours (FIS-PUB 0216, 04/20), Michigan Department of Insurance and Financial Services (https://www.michigan.gov/difs/-/media/Project/Websites/difs/Publication/Home/FIS-PUB_0216.pdf), accessed October 2026