Key Methods Of Good Flat Roof Repair

I know from experience that finding a leak in a flat roof can be somewhat difficult and expensive.  In our home it took three different roofers to identify the place in our flat roof that a leak was coming from.  The reason why identifying leaks in flat roofs is difficult is that very often the place where the leak shows in the ceiling below can be quite different from the point at which the leak is occurring in the flat roof itself.  

The best places to look for leaks on flat roofs are flashing or junctions or seals of any kind.  Now, flashings are used at the point at which the roof joins non-roofing material such as brickwork.  As an example above our kitchen extension we have a parapet wall that is at one edge of the roof and flashing goes from the roof to the parapet wall.  

As reported at flat roofing, a competent roofer should first examine such flashings to identify gaps through which water could maybe pass. Flashings are typically made of a metal material like lead.  

It is also usually challenging to test for leaks on a flat roof in the way you would on other types of roofs. It could take hours for water to trickle down to the ceiling below from the moment you poured it on a suspect area on the roof. What this amounts to is that pratically, its very hard to test and then track multiple suspect places.  This is covered in more detail at the epdm flat roof web page.

The key to effective flat roof repair is to recognize in advance the areas that are likely to be susceptible to leaks. The best test regrettably is to carry out the work to close suspect gaps and then wait to see if the leak persists. Hence flat roof repair is heavily dependent on the integrity and intelligence of the contractor you hire.