As the cool fall weather starts to roll in, so does roofing maintenance season. Depending on your climate, winter can bring everything from freezing rain and snow to pounding hail and blizzards. Which means it’s time for facility managers and commercial building owners to look upward toward their buildings’ roofing to make sure they are prepared for the onset of winter.
Commercial roofing service provider Legacy Roofing Services recommends taking preemptive measures to ensure a trouble-free winter. Here are five simple tips to avert large problems from the company’s service director, Matt Malorni:
- Preventative maintenance is the most important thing you can do to have a healthy roof and a stable budget. Stopping problems before they start will go a long way toward avoiding costly repairs and replacements.
- Every fall and spring, do a walkover assessment to check the integrity of the structure and identify and damage before and after the harsh conditions of winter.
- Just because a roof is new does not mean it doesn’t need to be maintained. The best way to prolong the life of a roof is to put a preventative maintenance plan in place right away. Manufacturers may also give incentives for properly maintaining the roof, including extending the life of the warranty for up to 10 years.
- Two of the biggest mistakes a facility manager can make are neglect and trying to maintain a roof using general maintenance staff. Roofing specialists have been trained to spot intricate problems before they occur. Punctures or holes, for example, may be too small for a non-roofing professional to notice and will not get patched to prevent water from entering.
- Small problems can fast become big problems. A minor leak, left unaddressed, will not only worsen, but can also lead to rot and other structural damage that could ultimately require replacement. Catching these small issues right away helps avert bigger and costlier problems.
