With Spring, comes Spring cleaning, and the following is a simple checklist to follow to ensure that your commercial roof is clean, clear of debris and standing water, drains properly and will continue to maintain superior performance.
1. Clean Debris
Look for and remove leaves, limbs, unnecessary or non-functioning equipment and loose tools and hardware that may have been left behind by HVAC technicians and other contractors. Stepping on loose screws left behind could easily puncture the roof’s membrane surface.
If trees are nearby, trim them back away from the roof’s surface.
2. Clean Roof Drains
Clogged roof drains can cause standing water that will reduce the lifetime of your commercial roof. Just a small amount of pine needles or other tree debris can allow debris to penetrate and clog the drain pipes and cause standing water at the location of each clogged drain.
Clean out the screens and protective barriers around the drains to prevent debris from going inside.
3. Clean Gutters
Clear out debris inside your roof’s gutters and around each downspout.
4. Clean Scuppers
Some roofs have scuppers which are holes you can see from the outside of the building at the base of the roof’s parapet walls. Because scuppers are slightly below the roof’s surface, they can easily be clogged by dirt and cause standing water on the surface of your roof.
5. Wash Your Roof
Pressure wash your roof on low pressure with a soft-bristle brush to remove algae and moss from the surface of your roof.
If you have a white TPO, PVC or EPDM roof, be sure to clean the dark spots where debris and/or standing water may have collected causing the dark spots. Dark spots absorb more UV rays and over time those UV rays will begin to break down the integrity of the membrane.
6. Secure A Routine Maintenance Plan
Most commercial roofing companies offer maintenance programs that address most of the items above and ensure your building’s roof will maintain peak performance.
Preventative roof maintenance programs include not only debris removal and cleaning, but minor repairs are made to protect building owners from interior damages caused by water intrusion, help prevent costly repairs down the road and extend the life of the roof system.
The frequency is either quarterly, semi-annual or annual depending on the size of one’s business and if there are circumstances such as a lot of trees that have higher debris potential that require more frequent maintenance visits.
Author – Eric Murray, Account Manager
Eric Murray is an Account Manager who takes pride in developing relationships with commercial building owners and property managers to help ensure all roofing needs are meet with complete customer and tenant satisfaction. Eric concentrates on all commercial roofing services – repair, maintenance and reroofing – and works in conjunction with clients to provide them with the best possible package that’s in the best interest of them and their properties.
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