For every hour it spends up in the air, an F-16 fighter jet requires about 17 hours of maintenance. Maybe the F-16 could get by with a little less maintenance than that. As a company that specializes in farm roofing, grain elevator roofing, grain elevator insulation and industrial insulation, we aren’t really qualified to say. But we guess we could forgive the U.S. government for exercising too much caution when it comes to a $63 million aircraft.
3 Reasons Why Roof Maintenance Is Important
Your roof doesn’t require nearly as much maintenance as a fighter jet. But it does need some. Whether your property is residential, commercial, industrial, agricultural, municipal or ecclesiastical, its roof is under constant attack by the heat, the cold, the wind and the rain. Unless you maintain your property’s most important barrier against the elements, it won’t be long before the elements make their way inside your property.
1. Maintenance extends a roof’s lifespan.
An asphalt shingle roof’s average lifespan is 15 to 30 years. Why such a wide span? Because asphalt shingle manufacturers want their customers to have reasonable expectations. If one homeowner decides not to clear their gutters, remove overhanging branches and keep flashing watertight, they can expect 15 years of service out of their roof (maybe fewer). But the homeowner who takes an active role in preserving their roof? They’ve got the promise of three decades to look forward to. And while we offer asphalt shingles as an example, the same connection between maintenance and longevity holds true whether your roof is made of metal, slate, tile or TPO.
2. Roof maintenance keeps a property safe.
The integrity of a property’s walls, beams, rafters and foundation depend on several factors. Whether or not they remain dry is one of the biggest of those factors. Without regular maintenance, a roof is at heightened risk of allowing water to damage insulation and drywall, nourish mold and mildew, and even create fire and slipping hazards.
3. Roof maintenance saves money.
“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Benjamin Franklin’s immortal words apply to a roof whether it’s in the dampest part of Louisiana or the driest part of California. The sooner you replace a missing shingle, repair rusted flashing or replace deteriorated caulking, the lower your chance of having to address far more expensive home repairs down the road. Roof maintenance does cost money, but it’s nothing compared to the $3,000 to $10,000 it usually costs to reinsulate a 2,000 square foot house.
3 Reasons Why Roof Inspection Is Important
1. Roof inspection lets you file warranty claims.
If your roof is reasonably new, then it is probably still covered by a manufacturer warranty. Timely roof inspection can reveal the presence of an installation or material defect that you won’t have to pay to repair.
2. Roof inspection lets you avoid costly repairs.
Roof damage typically manifests itself as holes which permit water to infiltrate the property. If addressed quickly, these narrow apertures are generally easy to repair. If left to their own devices, they will become wider and more expensive to repair – and that’s saying nothing of the damage water infiltration gradually inflicts on the underlying property.
3. Roof inspection lets you avert massive property damage.
Sadly, roof collapses aren’t uncommon. A roof collapse can easily cause tens of thousands of dollars worth of property damage, as well as injure and kill the building’s occupants and workers. Fortunately, a roof collapse is completely preventable so long as a roof inspector notices telltale signs such as weather damage, sagging, bending supports, leaks, cracked exterior masonry and misaligned sprinkler heads.
If you own or manage a commercial, agricultural or industrial property in the continental United States, then your complete solution to roof maintenance and inspection is easy: simply contact NIJAC today. Our metal roof and concrete silo roof restoration services include methodical inspection of the entire property, and we’re able to perform preventative maintenance on roofs that aren’t yet in need of total replacement.