The key to longevity for roofing is addressing the environmental needs. Yet, most owners and managers do not bother to do so. As a result most buildings more than 5 years old are likely sun damaged. If you haven’t addressed a sun issue you probably should.
We all know that weather events can do some serious damage to roofing. Rain creates puddles, which seep into the roof and cause leaking and damage. Snow can bring weight loads the roof isn’t ready for, plus the follow-up of standing water. High winds can tear up roofing. So surely a nice day with pleasant sunlight won’t hurt your roof.
Like your skin, the skin on your commercial roof is sensitive to sun. Here in the western half of the United States, we get plenty of that throughout the year – in North Texas we experience almost 3,000 hours of sunlight per year, or roughly 44% of the year. That’s a lot of sun. Sunlight takes its toll in two distinctly different manners: infrared radiation, and UV radiation.
Infrared radiation is what you feel on those blistering days. You can go inside and get some a/c, but your roof can’t. This type of heat can cause cracks, bumps, and other damage. Sunlight can break down the chemicals used in some seam sealants, allowing for the seams to split open. Expansion and contraction from heat can twist, pull, and tear at fasteners, pulling the systems away at terminations and seams. With dark-colored roofing, the heat is absorbed and held in, meaning that even after the sun has gone down the heat may still be working away at the integrity of the roof.
AND, Ultraviolet radiation is the other part of sunlight is even worse for your roof. Even on cloudy days, UV rays make their way through – the EPA noted that even during the coolest, cloudiest months the UV index in our region is the highest in the United States. UVR will alter composition of your roof and degrade the chemicals that are commonly used in bitumen, single-ply-membrane, and pretty much any other roofing type.
The worst part of all this is, you won’t notice the problems until the sun goes away and the rain clouds move in. When it is sunny, you might notice that your climate control system needs to work harder to keep it cool. But when the rains come, the cracking, blistering, and split seams will allow water to work its way down, leading to leaks and potential interior damage. If you haven’t had rain in a while, this can catch you or your tenants by complete surprise.
Technology has been developed to deal with these roof stressors though. Cool Roof is one of the top suggestions for energy conservancy, but that’s not their only advantage. Yes, they do help to lower energy usage of buildings as they reflect the infrared radiation instead of absorbing it. This reflection also reduces the amount of heat the roof deals with – the EPA has noted differences of up to 50 degrees between a Cool Roof and a Rock or Capsheet roof in the middle of a sunny afternoon.
The other part of Cool Roof systems is a barrier between the UV rays and the materials that make up the system. This UV-reflective barrier protects the structure of the materials below, absorbing the punishment. It may need to be re-applied from time to time, but re-coating is much more cost- and time-efficient than replacing.
IntegriBuilt Commercial Roofing, we saw early on the effect of the sun on roofing throughout the Southwest, so we became early proponents of cool roofing.
If you would like to arrange an inspection call us here at IntegriBuilt Commercial Roofing and one of our professional roofing consultants will be available to answer your questions and if necessary because of damage, walk you through your options.
