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Hail and Your Commercial Roof

Among all the precipitation that your commercial building is exposed to, hail is the most damaging. And of all your building components, the roof is the most exposed and vulnerable. As it’s the most important part of your facility’s structure when it comes to weather protection, it’s important to make sure that it remains watertight after a hailstorm.

Property losses from hail damage amount to billions of dollars every year – much of it suffered by commercial buildings. Several factors can determine the amount of damage, including the size of the hail, wind speed, hail density and the duration of the hail event.

You can’t do much to affect any of those issues, but after the storm, it’s important to inspect your roof for indications that your roof has been compromised.

Some signs can be obvious – dents, for example. Circular indents on your membrane – especially if they are concentrated in a particular area of the roof – usually mean there’s been a significant hail event. The diameter of these dents can range from one to several inches; the larger the dent, the bigger the hail stone that caused it. Your inspection should also include other components and equipment. Metal dents, so take a look at HVAC units, rooftop flashings and vents, gutters and downspouts, and similar items.

Even if there are no visible dents, your roof surface may have been damaged. Hail can cause tiny cracks to emerge. Future severe weather can exploit those cracks and shorten the life of your roof or even lead to serious failure.

It’s possible that hail can damage underlying insulation, reducing its R-value. In addition, depressions in the insulation, caused by hail, can create an irregular surface area for the roof membrane installed above it, which can hasten future weathering problems.

Your own visual inspection is important, but it’s always a good idea to call a commercial roofing contractor who has the experience and tools to do a more thorough check and who can address problems.

Don’t let the effects of a hailstorm put your roof at risk when storms come through again or seasons change. At Tusing Builders and Roofing Services, we’re ready to help you with all your commercial roofing needs.

 

What’s the Best Commercial Roof System for Your Building?

Building owners and facility managers have many options when it comes to determining the right commercial roofing system for a project. You should be confident that your roofing investment is the best long-term decision for your facility, and to that end, here are some areas you should consider when it comes to selecting a new roofing system.

Commercial roofing systems can often appear to be pretty much the same. But there are important differences that can affect a roof’s performance and ability to deliver long-term watertight protection. Some products have been around for decades and have a proven history of long-term success; others have come on the market more recently and have less of a track record; some of these products continue to undergo chemical reformulations that can affect the compatibility of patches and additions in the future.

The roofing system should be selected and designed to meet the watertight needs of your specific facility. There clearly are differences between low-sloped and steep-sloped roofs; decks made of concrete, structural standing seam metal or another material; new construction or roof retrofits; roofs with wide expanses and roofs with lots of penetrations; and more. Trends in recent years include the addition of solar or vegetative systems, and the underlying roofing system must be able to accommodate the unique needs of these applications.

Aside from the design and construction of the building, there are factors with respect to the rooftop environment. If there are HVAC units on the roof, they will need periodic maintenance and your new roof must be able to handle technician traffic. Environmental considerations also include temperature extremes that cause roofing components to expand and contract. In these cases, the roofing system needs to be flexible and able to move as necessary without losing functionality. Reflectivity is also an environment-driven attribute. Even in northern climates, reflective roof systems have lowered energy costs significantly by keeping buildings cooler and reducing HVAC loads in the summertime.

The long-term success of any roofing system ultimately falls on the installing roofing contractor, who should be trained and authorized by the manufacturer to install the manufacturer’s products correctly and provide any needed support after the installation. At Tusing Builders & Roofing Services, we adhere to the highest standards of quality and integrity. Please contact us to learn about what we can do for you.