Annual Inspections:

The National Roofing Contractors Association recommends that you have your roof professionally inspected twice a year.  Most business owners/property managers have the “out of sight out of mind” attitude towards their roof.  They completely ignore their roof until it begins leaking. Unfortunately, by this time it’s usually too late! The damage is usually too severe for inexpensive maintenance or a minor repair.  With bi-annual inspections you can identify potential problems and take care of them before they become a major problem, which will extend the life of your roof and save you some serious money!

Maintenance Service Agreement:

You would never dream of driving your car for its entire lifespan without changing the oil or getting a tune up. The same thing applies to your roof.  A Maintenance Service Agreement is like a tune up for your roof. When you routinely take care of minor roof problems you make sure to prevent the major ones that will drastically reduce the life span of your roof. A good maintenance service agreement should include the following:

• Cleaning debris out of roof drains
• Refilling pitch pans
• Re-caulking joints in copings and cap flashings
• Checking and repairing roof tie-ins and terminations
• Moisture proofing of masonry above membrane termination at parapets
• Checking HVAC units to make sure doors are secured
• Repair damage from man-made and natural causes
• Protective and reflective roof coatings
• Repair of membrane seams and flashings

Please don’t give in to the “out of sight out of mind mentality” most owners have when it comes to your roof system. It represents a major investment and should not be ignored. Please feel free to contact us if you would like more information on our Roof Asset Management Program.

Here in Kansas City we are in the final stages of getting our mobile command center finished. It is a full sized semi-trailer decked out with living room, kitchen, office, sleeping quarters, plus a washer and dryer. We are going to use it when we have large commercial roofing projects away from our home base.   I’m sure you have seen some of the vinyl wrapped vehicles or work vans… Well we wrapped an entire semi trailer! It has a huge picture of our fearless leader John “JR” Schuller as well as one of the biggest QR codes I have ever seen.

We tell everyone that we are not your average roofers and we do everything we can to separate ourselves from the competition. Most roofing contractors put their guys up in a cheap motel when they are working out of town. Soon we will be able to send them off in style and relaxation.   If you would like to check out the progress you can see pictures on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/JRandCoRoofingContractors.

By installing an energy efficient commercial roofing system, you can reduce your energy costs and make your building more comfortable. On a 92 degree day, older black or dark roofs absorb the sun’s rays which can raise the surface temperature to as high as 150 degrees! As you could imagine this has quite the impact on energy bills.

Inversely, an energy efficient roof system, which is made up of a white membrane actually reflects the sun’s rays away from the building. The roof temp will still climb a bit but nothing like the dark roof. On that same 92 degree day the roof temp will be anywhere from 70 – 100 degrees.

It’s tough to put a dollar amount on savings, due to the fact that there are so many different variables. The warmer your climate the higher the savings you can expect to see.  Realistically, you can expect to see anywhere from a 5 to 40% savings on your cooling costs.

Surprisingly, energy efficient commercial roof systems are comparable in price to colored roofs. They are also just as effective at serving their main purpose, which is to keep you and your property dry. When properly installed, maintained and inspected annually you can expect a life span of anywhere from 15 -20 years on your commercial flat roof,  all while helping lower your energy bills.

Read more here about key roof part to keep your eye on.