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Roof Sample Report
1 July 2025
Mr. John Doe
Any INSURANCE COMPANY
2025 Any Road
Anywhere, USA
Subject: Claim Investigation – Roof Structure Damage
2025 Somewhere, USA
INSURED: Doe, Jack and Jane
CLAIM NO: 2025-2025
JKCE PROJECT NO. 2025
Dear Mr. Doe:
At your request I visited the above subject property earlier this week in order
to ascertain the extent and cause of the damage to the property. This report is
a summary of our investigation and conclusions regarding this issue. In order to
facilitate discussion I have enclosed several photographs; please refer to them
in conjunction with this report.
Background
The structure is a one story single family dwelling with an attached garage
located at 2025 Somewhere, USA– refer to photo 1. According to the insured, they
recently observed damage to the ceilings at the juncture to the interior walls
in several rooms.
Objective & Scope
It is the objective of our work to ascertain the extent and cause of the reputed
damage to the structure. The scope of work is limited to visual observation at
the site and manual probing of distressed areas.
Field Observations
The structure is reportedly seventeen years old and is conventionally framed
with wood stud walls and floors. The roof structure consists of a prefabricated
wood truss roof system with ½” oriented strand board (OSB) sheathing – refer to
photos 2 and 3.
Many of the interior partition walls of the addition exhibit signs of distress
at the juncture of the wall to the ceiling – refer to photos 4, 5 and 6. This is
typical throughout the house.
Discussion
As lumber dries in roof trusses shrinkage of the individual members occur. Since
the bottom chord of the truss is warmer and drier due to attic insulation, it
may shrink more than the top chord. This differential shrinkage between the
members causes the truss to bow upwards which causes cracks to develop at the
intersection of the ceiling and the partition walls if the drywall is attached
to the bottom chord too close to a wall. The cracking observed in this structure
is consistent with the shrinkage problem discussed. The cracks usually open up
in the winter and close in the summer, as temperature increase causes the wood
to expand rather than shrink. The problem does not present a structural concern,
rather only a cosmetic issue.
Conclusions
Based on our field visit we have developed the following conclusions regarding
this issue:
The cracking at the juncture of the partition walls to the ceiling is the result
of differential shrinkage of the truss and is not the result of wind or the
weight of ice and snow.
All dimensions stated in this report are approximate. Directions indicated in
this report are from the perspective of a person standing in front of the
structure looking toward the structure. This report has been prepared based on
information available at the time of the field visit. We reserve the right to
amend this report should additional information become available. Please contact
me if you have any questions or require further information at this time.
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Jansen | Kiener
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