If you agree your Tampa-area business needs an annual roof maintenance plan, you are already ahead of many other industrial and business property managers. Put yourself on top by knowing what four attributes set an ordinary roof maintenance agreement apart from great roof maintenance plans.
Details, Details
The best roof maintenance agreements are detail-oriented. It is not enough to know your commercial roofer will react to a roofing situation covered by the plan; will that same roofer perform a close-up inspection to catch incipient damage and stop it? Consider these details:
- Emerging fasteners in metal decking that push up against single-ply membrane (“tenting”) lead to rips
- Corrosion between fair and unfair metals in contact around mechanical fasteners and flashing
- Failing seams — These may simply lie in place; you do not realize the overlapping seam has opened up unless your commercial roofer gets up close and checks the seam integrity
- Internal drain failure — Unless your roofer gets down and checks beneath the strainer, you may not know the area around the drain has deteriorated from standing water
The best roof maintenance plans include close inspection by trained professionals who do not overlook the small details.
Inside Out
The best commercial roofers include an inspection from inside the building, to catch signs of a water leak, glimpses of the roof deck itself (by looking above drop ceilings, for example), and locations where roof piercings come through into the building. If roof inspectors look up and see light around a plumbing stack or HVAC pipe, they know water will enter where light does.
Hurricane Heads-Up
In the Tampa area, the best roof maintenance plans include hurricane awareness and high wind mitigation steps. The plan will call for inspectors to check areas prone to wind damage:
- Water barriers
- Deck sheathing
- Roof-to-wall connections
- Parapets
- Edge securement
Qualified roofing inspectors will be familiar with the Florida Building Code’s Chapter 15 requirements for commercial roofs.
Written Evidence
A great roofing maintenance plan begins and ends with paperwork. Your inspection team will:
- Photograph and document all roof areas
- Map out or sketch the roof for clarity in specifying needed repair work
- Be familiar with any warranties in force
- Write a complete, detailed report on roof condition, problem areas and proposed solutions
For peace of mind and a great commercial roofing maintenance plan, contact us at Aderhold Roofing, providing quality service to Florida facilities managers and business owners since 2011.