Hail is one of the most damaging naturally occurring elements impacting your roofing system. One reason for this is due to the fact that hail damage is relatively hard to detect, especially by the untrained eye. Oftentimes, building owners assume that punctures are the only possible damages that result from hailstorms, but those are extreme cases.

When a building owner has a new roofing system installed, or a roof consultant specifies a new commercial roof for his or her client, both naturally have expectations regarding how that new roof will perform. This newly installed roofing membrane should be leak-free from day one, right? After all, the roofing system was installed by a professional roofing contractor and the manufacturer inspected and issued a warranty on the final product.

The reality is, that over the lifetime of a typical commercial or industrial roof, the roof will be in need of repair at some point in time. The watertightness of the roofing system will be breached, in which case a repair is essential. These breaches could be caused by a myriad of reasons, such as a worker dropping a heavy sharp object that results in a cut to the roofing membrane. Even a loose piece of metal siding tumbling across your roof in a windstorm could cause damage that would need repairing.

Over the life of an industrial or commercial building, it is typical that the building will be added onto or a section of the building will need to be re-roofed. Regardless of whether it’s just a building addition or a reroof project, the “tie-in” of the new roofing system to the existing roofing system is critical. “Tying-in” two roofing systems is a process that happens almost every day. However, it is frequently overlooked during the specification stage associated with choosing the new roofing system.

When it comes to the root cause of many roof system failures, improper design, using the wrong materials, and poor quality installation are common culprits. Yes - the elements can cause leaks and lead to breakdowns, but ask yourself this, are you using the right roofing system for your building to begin with? 

Much like a car, maintenance is required to ensure that your roofing system is performing the way it needs to be. More often than not however, roofs do not get the maintenance they need. An ‘out of sight, out of mind’ mentality is typically the cause of this lack of maintenance. What product can you leave outside and unattended for 20 - 30 years and have it perform as well as the day you got it? Unfortunately, the answer is none. So, in order to keep your roof performing the way it was intended to, here are a few tips.