Does your commercial building have a flat roof that is leaking, and you're not sure what to do about it? Know the following tips when it comes to repairing a flat roof.
Locate The Leak
One of the nice things about a flat roof is that it will be a bit easier to find the part of the roof that is leaking. The roofing material may have a ripple or be torn in places that are clearly damaged. If the leak isn't obvious, there may be signs of pooling water that you can identify. For example, there can be rings on the flat roof surface around the leak, since the water levels pooled before the water traveled beneath the surface of the roofing material.
If you can't find the exact place where the roof is leaking, try to find it from the inside of your building. Chances are that the water is getting through immediately above any place where water is leaking in.
Remove Rippled Material
Raised parts of the flat roofing material that create ripples are not good, because water can pool behind that material instead of traveling toward the gutters and downspouts. Thankfully, roofing material that has ripples can be repaired by cutting out the material. You'll have a flat section of the roof that can be fixed by placing a patch over the hole. It will do a much better job of allowing the water to flow off the surface.
Dry Out The Area
Make sure that the damaged part of your roof is dry before actually moving forward with patching the leak. You don't want moisture to be trapped underneath the patch that you are creating, since it could cause some additional damage. Try to perform the repair when the weather is supposed to be nice and there is no rain in the forecast, which will help the area dry out a bit.
Use Fiberglass Mesh To Create a Patch
Roofing cement is not enough to create a patch that goes over damaged flat roofing material. The key is to use fiberglass mesh to create a patch that gives it a lot more strength. It's very similar to creating a drywall patch since the fiberglass gives the roofing cement something to hold onto. Since you have a flat roof that can't be seen from the ground, the patch doesn't even need to look pretty. All you should be worried about is the repair method being effective.
For more information on commercial roofing repairs, contact a company near you.
Very few roofers would say their job is easy. In fact, many describe the work as downright tough! But that does not mean that roofers do not enjoy or value the work that they do. Many workers get satisfaction from working with their hands, and they really enjoy creating a roof from simple materials. They also like the logistical challenges, such as figuring out how to get shingles up on a tall roof, or how to most safely repair a damage gutter. If you'd like to learn more about roofing as a profession, then you've arrived at the right blog.