How to Extend the Life of Your Flat Roof
How long should I expect my flat roof to last? Should it last as long as the warranty, should I expect it to last longer, or will it leak before the warranty is up?
These are some of the most common asked questions by business owners and property managers.
In this blog, these questions are answered by a professional and knowledge roofer in the Lower Mainland.
The Life Cycle of Your Roof
The life cycle of your roof depends on two things. The first is: was the roof properly installed in the first place. The second is how well has the flat roof been maintained.
For this blog we will assume the roof installation was done correctly. As a building owner or property manager, your goal is to Read Full Article »
Roof Repairs vs Reroofing for Vancouver Homeowners and Property Managers
So, there’s a problem with your roof. Maybe a leak, or loose shingles, or shingles that are curling, or maybe something else. How do Vancouver homeowners know what can be repaired or if they need a complete roof replacement?
Putting these problems off isn’t always an option. Ignoring small roof problems can lead to tons of expensive new ones and sometimes a crisis.
Many homeowners face this question every day and must ask themselves, should I repair my roof now and put off the expensive reroof or should I bite the bullet now and reroof? Here are some of the pros and cons of each to help you make this decision.
Roof Repair Benefits
- The cost is significantly lower for a roof repair if you don’t have all the money to cover a full reroof now
- If it’s a commercial building, a repair avoids the non tax deductible capital expense of a new roof where repairs and maintenance are 100% tax deductible.
- Some types of roofs can be repaired and maintained almost indefinitely if put on a proper maintenance schedule. This can put off the large capital expense of a new roof.
Emergency Roof Repair in Vancouver and Preventative Roof Maintenance
The Vancouver area has a multitude of different roof styles in practically every neighbourhood. Each one has their own design idiosyncrasies and specific materials required to keep it “healthy.” But one thing they all have in common is the need for good ongoing preventative roof maintenance to help keep concerns in check and avoid that dreaded, unexpected dripping sound, especially in the middle of the night.
In a city with an often torrential amount of rain spread out over a goodly part of the year, it can’t be stressed enough how important regular roof inspections become in keeping a roof problem-free. That’s why savvy owners know that maintaining the state of any structure means taking preventative roof maintenance steps before major issues arise.
However, we all know that the best laid plans don’t always pan out and therefore inspections don’t always get done. Meanwhile out of sight out of mind problems are developing undetected, and finally manifest as an issue requiringRead Full Article »
When Green Isn’t Good: Roofing and Repair Services for Moss Damage
There are plenty of weather conditions and other events that can wreak havoc with any homeowner’s roof. Rain, snow, ice, wind and falling tree limbs… lots of potential roofing issues can arise as a result, either suddenly or gradually.
But do you ever consider the effects of moss, that seemingly innocuous, ever-present west coast plant, on your roof? Probably not, but take heed: those flowerless little green demons are busily releasing spores and reproducing as we speak.
What Causes Moss Accumulation and Why is it a Problem?
Moss is actually a mass of tiny plants called bryophytes that love damp habitats. You can tell at a glance when moss has been proliferating on your shake or Read Full Article »
Find and Fix Roof Leaks NOW with Special Detection Tech
To fix roof leaks, obviously you have to find them first, and sometimes that can be more than half the battle. To complicate things even more, sometimes the actual source of the leak can be some distance from where you are seeing evidence of unwanted moisture. Modern techniques now can supplement the tried and true in roof leak detection.
To Fix Roof Leaks, Accurate Location is Key
Certainly, the traditional methods of using the naked eye for inspection and “thinking like a drop of water” in terms of conditions that will create capillary action, for example, are extremely useful and still stand as valid detection tools. But you may not always be free to do a water test, or it may have proven inconclusive. And the sage but simple observational techniques can always be augmented by useful tools.
- Moisture Meters. Leaks may not always be readily apparent. Electronic moisture meters were developed to detect the presence of moisture whether observable by eye or not.
A variety of such meters of varying sophistication and Read Full Article »
Snow and Ice Damage: Roof Repair and Prevention
Winter’s on the way and even though Vancouver has a temperate coastal climate, we still get our share of ice and even snow. Roof repair might seem a natural consequence of snow and ice buildup, but it doesn’t have to be. Heed these basics for a long-lasting and trouble-free roof.
Basic Causes of Snow and Ice Damage Leading to Roof Repair
Heat from the house rises into the attic and heats the roof from underneath. Where and how this occurs:
- Snow covering the roof melts.
- Melted snow runs down the roof and re-freezes on the non-heated overhanging portion of the roof.
- An ice dam forms that will catch and hold water where it can run underneath roofing and past flashing to cause water damage.
- The water around roofing tiles or shakes and flashing freezes and may cause buckling or breakage in flashing, gutters, downspouts and other features of the roof system.
- Ice dams can weigh a substantial amount and Read Full Article »
Roof Repairs in Vancouver
Cedar roof repairs, Asphalt roof repairs, Flat roof repairs
Well here we are again in Vancouver’s rainy season. Funny how it always feels like summer will last forever isn’t it? The weeks of hot dry weather can make it feel like you will never need to worry about heating, insulating or keeping the water out of your home. In fact, you worry more about how to keep cool!
But every year it comes sloshing back in, the sullen grey reminder that, beautiful as it is, we live in a Canadian rainforest. And with that comes the pressing need to keep our home dry.
Cracks and Roof Weak Points
When the rains come back after a long hot summer they often find new cracks and weak points in the roof and sneak their way into your Read Full Article »
It’s Raining in Vancouver – Emergency Roof Repairs
Whenever it rains in Vancouver we get lots of calls for Emergency Roof Repairs.
Sometimes people don’t know their roof is leaking until enough rain falls to bring it through to inside of the house or garage. Then it becomes an emergency roof repair and that’s never a good thing.
This is why inspection and maintenance is important. An experienced roofer can often see that a problem is brewing if he can do an inspection of the roof. Obviously this is a better solution than waiting for internal water damage to happen.
Emergency Roof Repairs
However, there are times when the leak does not come from an obvious place. Where the water damage, or drip, or water stain finally comes out, may have no relation to Read Full Article »