What a free inspection looks like on Kiawah Island roofs.
A free inspection on Kiawah is most useful for an owner who is not on the island. We register for the gate, walk the roof of a Vanderhorst or Turtle Point home, photograph every slope, check the shake or shingle for moss lift and split, check the valleys under the canopy for rot and the flashing at dormers and deck penetrations for salt, and send a written grade within 24 hours to wherever you are.
If you are buying on Kiawah, a 1980s or 1990s canopy home may still carry its original wood shake, and an oceanfront house is likely on a salt-shortened shingle or a first-generation standing seam. The report tells you whether the roof belongs in the price you offer and what the Architectural Review Board package will need when it is replaced.
On shake and on older standing seam, walking the roof damages it, so the Kiawah inspection uses a drone for the field and a ladder only where the roof can bear weight. The photo set records every slope, valley and transition at a resolution the Architectural Review Board can use later, and the report separates what is failing from what is simply weathered, which on a thirty-year shake roof under canopy is a real distinction.
Under the canopy the report also covers moss and algae. Shade over a Turtle Point or Egret and Pintail roof grows both on shingle and shake, and the plain answer is that zinc strips at the ridge help a little on a shingle roof, help less under heavy oak shade, and do nothing for a shake roof already holding moisture. We photograph the growth, say whether a cleaning is worth doing, and say when it is a sign the roof is done.
1980s and 1990s stained-wood and cedar-sided homes with steep gables and dormers under live oak and pine canopy in Turtle Point, Osprey Point, Egret and Pintail and the older Vanderhorst streets, many built with wood shake that this market has been replacing with standing seam or architectural shingle; 1990s and 2000s larger Vanderhorst and Kiawah Island Club homes with complex hips and multiple roof planes; 2000s to 2020s oceanfront and marsh-front elevated houses in Ocean Park, Cassique and The Settlement with standing seam and shingle siding; villa and cottage regimes near the resort and the Freshfields Village side. Mostly second homes and rentals.
Fifty-five minutes from Mount Pleasant down Highway 17, Main Road and Bohicket Road to the Kiawah gate, with Seabrook Island and Johns Island on the same dispatch run.
(843) 284-6333
Jeff Ramsden, founder. 5+ years as a VP at Reimagine Roofing, 1,000+ roofs overseen.
Call (843) 284-6333We walk the roof, photograph every slope, re-seal exposed fasteners, and hand you a written report. It is free.
What is included in every Kiawah Island job.
Asked in Kiawah Island.
How much does a roof inspection cost on Kiawah Island?
Kiawah inspections cost nothing. We register for the gate, then walk or fly the roof, photograph every slope and penetration, re-seal exposed fasteners, clear valleys, and send a written condition report within 24 hours to wherever you are, with a repair or replace recommendation. The findings that decide a Kiawah owner's next cost are moss lift and splitting on 1980s and 1990s wood shake under the canopy, and the report separates what is failing from what is only weathered.
What does the Kiawah Island Architectural Review Board need before my roof is replaced?
Any exterior work on a Kiawah home needs ARB approval and an ARB permit before it starts, and a Kiawah Island building permit must be issued before any material delivery or construction. Repairs that match existing conditions are typically approved, and maintenance reviews are typically done within one to two weeks. Once reviewed, an ARB permit also needs a KICA encroachment permit and a construction deposit agreement. We prepare the ARB application, then file the Town permit, so the crew and deliveries are cleared before day one.
How long does it take?
About 45 minutes on site. The report arrives within 24 hours.
Do I need to be home?
No, as long as we have permission to access the property. We walk the results with you by phone or in person.
Can I use the report for insurance?
Yes. The report is yours, with dated photos of every slope, to share with your insurer, your agent or a buyer.
How often should a roof be inspected?
Once a year in the Lowcountry, and after any named storm.