Roof Repair in Coquitlam: Burke Mountain Rain, Maillardville Moss and New Roofs That Leak Early

What the rain does, by neighbourhood

Maillardville and Austin Heights have older houses under mature trees, where moss grows on the north slopes, needles fill the gutters and cedar shakes on the remaining older roofs rot where debris sits. Westwood Plateau’s 1990s houses have large, complex roofs with long valleys and many skylights, and those are where the leaks start as the original flashing and sealants age. Burke Mountain’s new houses have the steepest lots and the heaviest rain, and their problems are installation problems: flashing at wall junctions, plumbing boots and skylight curbs done fast in a building boom.

Everywhere, gutters full of needles overflow behind the fascia and rot it, which shows up as a leak at the eaves. Clearing gutters every fall is the cheapest roof maintenance in Coquitlam.

New roofs and the Home Warranty

A house built by a licensed builder in BC comes with mandatory home warranty insurance: two years on labour and materials, five on the building envelope including the roof, and ten on structure. A leak in a Burke Mountain house in its first winters is a warranty claim first. Report it in writing to the builder and the warranty provider within the timelines, photograph the water and the damage, and do not let a roofer alter the roof before the warranty provider has seen it, because that can void the claim.

If the warranty period has passed, or the house was owner-built, it is a normal repair, and a roofer who knows the subdivision has probably fixed the same flashing detail on the street already.

• Photos of the leak inside and the roof from the ground
• Roof age, material and builder, if known
• Home warranty documents and dates, for a newer house
• Whether the home is a strata unit
• WorkSafeBC clearance and liability certificate from the roofer

Stratas, permits and who may do the work

Many Coquitlam townhouse complexes are stratas, where the roof is common property under the Strata Property Act and the strata council arranges the repair; report the leak in writing to the property manager rather than hiring your own roofer. For a detached house, roofing is unlicensed in BC, so ask for a WorkSafeBC clearance letter and a certificate of liability insurance and verify both. Whether a re-roof needs a City of Coquitlam building permit depends on the scope; ask the roofer and confirm with the City for deck replacement, structural work or skylights.

Consumer Protection BC publishes guidance on contractor contracts and deposits; keep deposits small and tie payments to milestones.

Replacing for the hillside

For a replacement on the plateau or the mountain, ask about algae-resistant shingles, open metal valleys, ice-and-water membrane at eaves and valleys, and new rather than reused flashing at every skylight and wall. Metal roofing sheds rain and moss well and is common on Burke Mountain. Ventilation matters: a warm, poorly vented attic under a wet roof grows condensation, and a roofer should check soffit and ridge venting and that bathroom fans vent outside.

Get the workmanship warranty and the material warranty in writing, and hold back the final payment until the site is clean and you have the documents.