Hail in Oakland County does not always leave a roof that looks destroyed. More often it leaves a house that looks dusty, a few dents in the gutter, and a homeowner who assumes that if the ceiling is dry, the storm missed them. Functional hail damage is frequently invisible from the ground. The mat inside an asphalt shingle can fracture while the tab still sits in place. Vinyl siding can crack on the windward wall while the street elevation looks untouched.
This article is a field guide to the signs we document after Michigan hail: dented gutters, bruised shingles, granule loss, cracked vinyl, and ruined screens. It also explains what hail size tends to do to which materials, and why a driveway inspection is not enough. If the roof is the question, start with Roof Repair. If the walls took the same stones, pair that with Siding Repair.
Dents on gutters are often the first visible sign
Soft aluminum gutters are a hail diary. The metal is thin. A stone that would only bruise a shingle will leave a round dimple on the gutter face or lip. After an Oakland County storm, we often walk the property from the ground and know we need a roof inspection before we set a ladder, because the west or south gutter run is already a washboard.
Look at:
- The outer face of every gutter run, not just the front of the house
- The lip, which should be a straight line under your fingers
- Downspouts, which oval or crease
- End caps, hangers, and elbows
- The hidden back of the trough against the fascia, with a flashlight
Round, smooth dents are classic hail. Sharp creases can mean mixed ice, debris, or a hit on a seam. Either way, matching marks on multiple elevations are stronger evidence than a single ding near the garage bumper.
Do not beat the dents out. You will oil-can the metal and confuse the insurance conversation. Photograph them. Granules in the same troughs are extra evidence that the roof and the gutter were in the same event.
Bruised shingles: the mark you cannot see from the street
A bruise is a fracture in the shingle mat. On the surface it may look like a dark spot, a slight depression, or a place where granules are missing in a coin-sized patch. The tab has not blown off. The house is not dripping. The shingle is still compromised. Water and freeze-thaw will work that fracture over the next Michigan winters.
Bruises show best when you are on the roof, looking across the slope in raking light, not straight down at noon. That is why drone video and street photos under-report hail. We mark test squares, count hits, and look at the pattern. Random mechanical damage from a ladder or a fallen branch does not look like a consistent field of bruises on the windward slopes.
Other roof signs:
- Exposed asphalt where granules have been pounded off
- Cracked or missing tabs on older, brittle shingles
- Fractured ridge caps, which sit more exposed
- Dents or holes in pipe boots, turtle vents, and ridge vents
- Creased or torn flashing at walls and chimneys
A few missing granules near an aging ridge are not automatically hail. A repeating bruise pattern on the same elevations as dented vents and gutters is.
Granule loss in gutters, on the driveway, and at downspouts
Asphalt shingles shed some grit over their life. A hailstorm dumps a lot of it at once. The morning after, look for:
- Piles of granules at downspout outlets
- A band of grit in the gutter trough
- Dark “shadows” of granules on the driveway or walk
- Grit on the deck, patio furniture, or car covers
Scoop a sample into a bag and photograph it before you rinse. Once it is in the storm sewer, you have lost an easy supporting exhibit. Granule loss alone does not prove a total roof. It does prove the roof took impact, and it tells us to get on the slopes.
Widespread granule loss also shortens the remaining life of the shingle. The granules are the UV shield. When they are gone in patches, the asphalt cooks faster in a Southeast Michigan summer.
Cracked vinyl siding and other wall damage
Vinyl is brittle when it is cold and still vulnerable when it is warm. Hail can:
- Puncture or star-crack panels
- Leave circular bruises that show in certain light
- Break the lock so a course is loose
- Shatter corner posts and trim
- Damage the finish on painted or darker colors more obviously
Walk every wall. Hail is directional. The elevation that faced the cell can be marked while the opposite wall looks factory-new. That mismatch is a feature of the storm, not a reason to ignore the damaged side.
Fiber cement and wood show different signatures: chips, dings, and cracked paint that become moisture paths. Aluminum soffit and fascia dent like gutters. Brick rarely “fails” from typical Michigan hail, but the mortar and any metal accessories still belong in the photo set.
If a panel is cracked, water can reach the wrap and the sheathing. That is no longer cosmetic. It is a repair-or-replace decision for that elevation, and it should be documented before the next wind-driven rain.
Damaged window screens, AC fins, and soft metal
Screens are another early tell. Hail punches small holes or leaves a field of dimples in the mesh. People throw the screens away because they look cheap to replace. Photograph them first. They date the event.
Also check:
- Storm-door glass and full-view doors
- Skylight domes
- Air-conditioner condenser fins, which bend like a comb
- Mailboxes, outdoor lights, and aluminum fascia
- Vehicle hoods and roofs, which often match the house story
A car that was in the driveway during the storm is unofficial corroboration. You do not file the house claim on the auto estimate, but the same date and the same stone size help the narrative.
What hail size tends to cause what damage
Size is not the only variable. Wind speed, density of the stones, duration, and the age of the materials matter. Still, homeowners ask for a rule of thumb.
Pea size (about 1/4 inch). Often marks very soft metal and older, brittle vinyl. Newer architectural shingles may show little or nothing.
Dime to nickel (about 3/4 inch). Common threshold where gutters dent, screens punch, and shingles begin to bruise, especially older or already thin tabs.
Quarter and larger (1 inch and up). Frequently produces functional shingle damage, cracked vinyl, dented vents, and a claim conversation that is about replacement rather than a handful of repairs.
Golf ball and above. Widespread breakage. Ridge, valleys, skylights, and siding can all fail in one pass.
Michigan storms can mix sizes in one cell. A neighborhood can see nickel on one street and quarter on the next. Do not decide your house is fine because a friend three miles away had “only pea.” Inspect your elevations.
The National Weather Service and local storm reports help establish that hail occurred in Oakland County on a given date. They do not replace a roof walk. Radar is not a test square.
Why hail damage is invisible from the ground
Three reasons.
First, bruises are small and the color shift is subtle on weathered shingles. From the lawn you see texture, not fractures.
Second, the worst slope is often the back or the side the wind favored. The front elevation you admire from the mailbox may be the least hit.
Third, height and pitch hide the field. A two-story colonial in Troy or Farmington Hills puts the roof far enough away that even binoculars miss coin-sized hits. Vinyl cracks can sit behind landscaping or under a soffit shadow.
A proper inspection is feet on the roof, a ladder on the siding, and photos that will still make sense to an adjuster two weeks later. 800 New Look does that walk. We will tell you when the signs are hail, when they are age, and when they are both.
Macomb County storm, June 2022
The June 2022 Macomb County storm is the example we still use with homeowners. A late-afternoon cell crossed Sterling Heights and Clinton Township with hail mixed into straight-line wind. From the street, most houses looked dusty. On the roofs, architectural shingles showed coin-sized bruises on the windward slopes. Vinyl on west walls cracked in spider-web patterns. Gutters and AC fins took the same stones.
Homeowners who walked the property the next morning — gutters, screens, cars, granule piles — had a complete file when the adjuster arrived. Neighbors who waited until a bedroom stain showed up in July had a harder conversation: the roof damage was still there, but the supporting metal marks had oxidized and the siding cracks had already taken a few more rain events.
That seasonality is why a “we will look at it next spring” plan fails. A June bruise becomes a leak path through freeze-thaw by February. A cracked vinyl course takes wind-driven rain all summer. The cheapest inspection is the one you schedule the week of the storm, not the one you schedule after the interior stain appears.
If you live in Macomb County or Oakland County and the forecast mentioned hail, do a ground walk the next morning. Then call for a roof and siding inspection even if the house “looks fine.” Looking fine from the driveway is the normal presentation of a hailed suburban roof.
What to do when you find these signs
Photograph. Do not repair yet. Do not replace three shingles to tidy the ridge. Do not snap a new piece of vinyl over a cracked course before anyone sees the break. Open the claim if the damage is storm-related, and get a contractor on site who will inspect both the roof and the walls.
Roof Repair is the right conversation when the hits are localized and the system still has life. Siding Repair is the matching conversation for cracked or punctured elevations. Many Oakland County storms need both in the same file, because the stones did not choose one material.
800 New Look will not tell you every dark shingle spot is hail. We will show you the difference between a bruise, a scuff, and ordinary wear, and we will put it in photos an adjuster can use.
Get a free inspection
If you see dented gutters, grit in the downspouts, or cracked siding after a storm, do not wait for a drip. Schedule a free inspection with 800 New Look. We will check the roof and the walls, explain what the signs mean, and tell you whether you are looking at a repair, a replacement discussion, or a clean bill of health.
