On Christmas Eve, a falling tree branch tore into a Los Altos home’s 20-plus-year-old asphalt shingle roof. We were on the roof the same morning to tarp the opening, then rebuilt the damaged section down to new decking and finished it in Owens Corning Title 24 Cool Roof shingles color-matched to the existing roof — a complete repair at $11,800.
How Fast Can You Repair a Storm-Damaged Shingle Roof in Los Altos?
A storm-damaged shingle roof can be made watertight the same day, with the permanent repair following once the full extent of the damage is known. On this Los Altos project we arrived the morning of the Christmas Eve call and tarped the opening immediately to stop water getting into the house. The permanent rebuild came after a full assessment — new decking and battens, synthetic underlayment, new metal valley and drip edge, and Owens Corning Title 24 Cool Roof shingles color-matched to the existing field.
A Christmas Eve Branch Through a 20-Year-Old Shingle Roof
This Los Altos home sits under mature redwoods, and the roof showed it. The asphalt shingles were past twenty years old, the field was flecked with moss, and the gutters were packed solid with redwood needles. Then, on Christmas Eve, a branch came down and opened up the roof — and the homeowner needed someone out fast, on a holiday, before water got into the house.
What the branch did on the surface turned out to be only part of it. Once we opened the area up, we found broken wood battens and damaged decking underneath the shingles that had to come out and be replaced. A surface patch would have covered the hole and left the real problem in place.
Owens Corning Title 24 Cool Roof Shingles, Color-Matched to the Existing Roof
Because the surrounding field still had serviceable life left, the honest call here was a rebuilt section rather than a full tear-off — so we specified a shingle system that would disappear into the existing roof rather than patch over it. We finished in Owens Corning Title 24 Cool Roof shingles, color-matched to the original field. Lifetime Roofing is an Owens Corning Platinum Preferred Contractor, a designation held by a small share of roofers nationally, which is how we can install and warranty the system to Owens Corning’s own standard.
The Title 24 part matters in California specifically. A cool roof shingle reflects more solar energy than a standard shingle, which is what the state’s Title 24 energy code is after — it keeps attic temperatures down and helps a re-roofed or repaired area meet the code’s reflectivity requirements instead of quietly falling short of them.
Same-Day Tarp, Then a Proper Rebuild
The call came in on Christmas Eve and we scheduled it for the same morning. First job on arrival was emergency tarping over the damaged area to stop further water intrusion — that buys the time to assess properly instead of rushing a permanent repair in the dark. With the roof stabilized, we ran a full inspection and found the broken battens and damaged decking beneath the shingles, and cleaned out the debris-packed gutters while we were up there.
Then a second branch came down mid-project. Rather than carry on to the original scope and hope it was fine, we stopped and reassessed the whole area so nothing was missed. The finished rebuild replaced the damaged decking and battens, added synthetic underlayment with peel-and-stick membrane in the vulnerable areas, and brought in a new metal valley, new drip edge and new ridge caps before the color-matched Owens Corning shingles went on.
Before vs. After
| Feature | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Roof condition | Branch damage, roof opened to the weather | Rebuilt section, fully watertight |
| Decking & battens | Broken battens, damaged decking under the shingles | Replaced with new decking and battens |
| Underlayment | Original, well past its service life | Synthetic, with peel-and-stick in vulnerable areas |
| Valley & edge metal | Aging and debris-packed | New metal valley, drip edge and ridge caps |
| Shingles | 20-plus years old, mossy, losing granules | Owens Corning Title 24 Cool Roof, color-matched |
| Gutters | Packed solid with redwood needles | Cleared and flowing |
What This Means for Los Altos Homeowners
Los Altos is full of mature redwoods and oaks growing right over the rooflines, and that cuts two ways. Day to day it means a constant needle load that packs gutters and holds moisture against the shingles. In a winter storm it means falling limbs — and a limb strike on a roof that is already twenty years old tends to find the weak spot. If you have big trees over your house, the roof under them is aging faster than the same roof would in an open lot.
The other lesson from this project is that a limb strike is rarely just the hole you can see. The decking and battens underneath took damage that wasn’t visible from the surface, and finding it required opening the area up. That’s why the honest first step is an inspection rather than a quote over the phone — sometimes a section repair is genuinely the right answer, as it was here, and sometimes the roof is telling you it’s done. We serve Los Altos and the surrounding Peninsula and South Bay.
Storm & Tree Damage — FAQs
Does homeowners insurance cover a tree branch falling on my roof?
Most homeowners policies treat sudden tree-impact damage as a covered loss, but your specific coverage, deductible and payout are decided by your policy and your adjuster — not by us. What we do is document the damage thoroughly with photographs and give you the room to work through the claim at your own pace, rather than pushing you to sign before your adjuster has responded.
Can a damaged section be repaired, or does the whole roof need replacing?
It depends on how much life the surrounding roof still has. On this Los Altos project the untouched field was still serviceable, so rebuilding the damaged section was the honest call — and color-matching the new shingles kept it from looking like a patch. When the rest of the roof is at the end of its life too, a section repair only buys a short window, and we will say so.
What is a Title 24 cool roof shingle, and do I need one in California?
A cool roof shingle is made to reflect more solar energy than a standard shingle, which lowers attic heat and helps meet California’s Title 24 energy code. Whether it is required on your project depends on the scope of work and how much of the roof is involved, so it is worth confirming before the material is ordered rather than after.
Storm or Tree Damage on Your Roof?
We tarp fast, assess properly, and support you through the insurance claim. See more of our work in the project gallery, or book a free inspection today.
Gina K. writes about Bay Area roofing for Lifetime Roofing & Renovation, drawing on the team's 16+ years of experience and 1,000+ completed roofs across Silicon Valley.
