How do you replace damaged shingles after a storm?
Short answer. Photograph the damage before anything is touched, get any opening covered before the next rain, then replace each damaged shingle by unsealing and unnailing it along with the course above, sliding in a new one, nailing it in the nailing zone and resealing. If the damage is spread across several slopes or the shingles crack when lifted, a repair may not hold and an inspection for a claim makes more sense.
Step 1: document
Take wide photos of each slope and close-ups of every damaged shingle, and note the storm date. If you might file a claim, the insurer will want to see the damage, and a quick repair can erase the evidence. Keep any pieces that blew off until an adjuster has seen them.
Step 2: protect
Missing shingles leave the underlayment exposed, and underlayment is not a roof. If rain is coming, get the opening covered. Policies generally expect reasonable steps to prevent further damage; see emergency tarp and mitigation duty.
Step 3: repair
- Break the seal on the damaged shingle and the course above with a flat bar.
- Remove the nails in the damaged shingle and the nails from the course above that pass through it.
- Patch any torn underlayment beneath before new shingles go on.
- Slide in a matching replacement, nail it in the nailing zone, re-nail the shingle above in fresh spots, and hand-seal.
When a repair is the wrong answer
- Damage on several slopes, or hail bruises scattered across the roof.
- Shingles that crack or crumble as you lift them.
- No matching shingle available for a visible slope.
Those cases call for a full inspection and possibly a claim. Read wind damage to roofs in Georgia and Georgia hail season for what storms actually do to shingles.