By Brian Johns, Vice President/Regional Director S., Jenkins Restorations
Oh no, not another leak. I guess the time has come to experience
the exciting process of replacing our roof. Property managers are
often charged with becoming overnight experts on many topics,
including roofing. It’s crucial for new and veteran managers to
familiarize themselves with the roof assembly. The health of your
roof impacts the interior of your building and the property within,
so it deserves our attention. So now let’s move on through some
of the basics of roofing and conclude with how to choose the right
roofing contractor.
Know the difference between a re-cover and a replacement. A
re-cover involves installing a new layer on top of your existing
roof with the same roofing material type. A roof replacement, on
the other hand, is an entirely new roofing system. It can be an expensive proposition, but it is also a chance to
correct any mistakes that were made when the original roof was specified, especially if the previous material
that was chosen isn’t the best option for your area. Depending on where you are in the country, you want to
make sure that the new roof you are planning is climate appropriate. Here in the S. we use a lot of white and
highly reflective roofs, either membranes or metal, because the biggest energy cost is trying to air condition the
building. In other parts of the country property managers don’t have as much of an air conditioning load and are
primarily concerned with heating the building.
It is important and highly recommended for a property manager to either walk or hire a professional to walk an
existing roof twice a year. Many roofing contractors, such as my own company Jenkins, have inspection programs
available for communities. The first inspection should create a baseline of the roof’s condition against which you
will compare all future inspections. A qualified company will take pictures and build an inspection file for you.
During the second inspection if something looks out of the ordinary compared to the first inspection you will
know that something needs to be addressed.
The two types of roofs are steep slope and low slope. Steep sloped roofs are steeper than 3:12 and are designed
to shed water to gutters and other drainage conveyances. While much more popular for residential applications,
you can find them on some commercial and commercial residential buildings. Typical steep slope roofing material
types include asphalt shingle, concrete or clay tile, slate, wood shakes and metal panels. Low slope roofs are
most common on commercial buildings, particularly for their cost effectiveness for large buildings. Low slope
roofs also lend themselves to supporting rooftop equipment such as solar
panels and HVAC equipment, which conserves space within the building.
Low slope roofs are commonly referred to as flat roofs, though they can’t
be flat because some slope is required for drainage.
There is a mix of different roofing material types. A managed community
may have several different types in their community. So, it is important to
know the different types of materials used. Single ply membranes, Modified
Bitumen, Built up roofing, Metal panel systems and Asphalt shingles are
some of the materials used.
Here are some resources to the roofing industry that can be helpful to a
manager or a community. The NRCA is the National Roofing Contractors
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