As a property owner, you need to both protect your investment and make sure that your tenants are satisfied. A well functioning roof helps with both of these goals. Damage to the roof can lead to leaks and extensive water damage. If a tenant reports the problem quickly you may be able to avoid the worse of the damage, but not all tenants are equally proactive. Further, roof leaks can be frustrating to the tenants and impact whether or not they renew their lease. The following tips can help you keep your property's roof in top shape.
1: Schedule Seasonal Cleaning
It can be easy to overlook how filthy the roof becomes, especially on multi-story buildings or those with a more complicated roof design. Fallen leaves, moss, bird droppings, and pollen all affect the integrity of your roof. Leaves and moss trap moisture against roofing materials, which can cause shingles to curl or leaks to form. Acidic bird droppings and other types of pollution can eat through shingles and roof membranes.
Plan to have the roof cleaned twice a year, once in spring and again in fall. Not only should the roof surface be cleared of debris, but any gutters on your roof will also need to be cleaned so that water and snowmelt can run from the roof freely. Your roofer can also asses for any improvements your roof needs depending on the amount of cleaning necessary, such as bird scare devices or zinc strips to prevent moss growth.
2: Schedule Regular Inspections
Generally, a roof should be professionally inspected either just prior to a cleaning or right after it, so you can contract with your roofer to handle both tasks in spring and fall. A roofer can catch both obvious damage, such as a missing shingle or damaged flashing, as well as harder to recognize damage, such as spongy spots on the roof or shingle degradation.
Monthly inspections are also a good idea, but you can do these yourself or train your maintenance crew to complete them. A monthly inspection looks for more obvious damage, such as cracked and loose shingles, tears in the roof membrane, and overflowing gutters.
3: Develop a Repair Plan
Your repair plan depends on the type of roof you have on your apartment building. For a membrane roof, the plan may include prompt patching of any damage and regular reapplications of sealants at the manufacturer-recommended interval.
Shingle roof repair plans revolve around knowing the expected lifespan of the roof so you can accurately budget for replacements, as well as having a plan in place on who you will call if shingle damage is found.
Contact a local contractor to discuss the needs of your apartment building roofing.
After struggling with the appearance and structural integrity of my home, I realized that I had to do something to make a difference. I realized that part of the issue had to be the roof, since the home had been in my family for years and nobody had ever addressed the roof before. I met with a roofing team to talk about the problem, and they were instrumental in helping me to get things sorted out. After a few renovations, things had really improved, and I felt like things were on the up and up. I wanted to start a blog that focused on finding roofing for your home, so check out this blog.