Hail Damage To Built Up Roofing

In this interview with denise johnson ryan chauncey executive director of operations at nelson forensics explains the difficulty of assessing hail damage on gravel ballasted built up roofs and why hail size isn t enough to evaluate damage.

Hail damage to built up roofing.

That storm dropped a record setting 4 83 inch diameter hailstone in bethune colorado. The most effective way to minimize hail damage is to choose durable hail resistant roofing materials. In 2019 the united states experienced 5 396 large hail storms as documented by the noaa severe weather database. In addition the authors firm has conducted a series of ice impact tests on various built up roofing samples to determine damage thresholds and have compared these results with field observations.

Greenfeld hail resistance of roofing products u s. Assessing hail damage on gravel ballasted built up roofs. The hail resistance of built up roofs has been known to be substantial especially when covered with loose and embedded gravel in an asphalt flood coat. Our engineers have been forensically evaluating roofing for over 60 years and our research testing studies and peer reviewed technical papers on roofing extend back to the 1960s.

However occasional disputes arise in the settlement of insurance claims over the size hail needed to cause damage to a built up roof and what those characteristics are. While tar and gravel roofing or built up roofing systems have many positive aspects if you live in an area or the roof is in a location where it will receive strong sun exposure hot tar roofs will likely damage the roof s membrane if it is left uncovered or unevenly covered by the gravel. Old hail damage to most roofing materials will typically have characteristics that are distinguishable from new hail damage. Haag s expert engineers will be there to establish cause and extent of failure or damage to industrial commercial or residential roofs.

Hail damage to built up roofing timothy marshall and scott morrison. Department of commerce national bureau of standards august 1969 page 6. One of these storm clusters was a beast of a hail storm in colorado. Roofing industry committee on weather issues hailstorm investigation oklahoma city oklahoma april 2004.

According to the national oceanic and atmospheric administration noaa there was a total of 4 611 hail storms in the united states during the year 2018 with 2019 ending on a higher number as of year end more than 5 396 hail events were recorded although most people think that property and roof damage only occur in rare instances with larger than average hailstones even the smallest. Hailstorms can cause catastrophic damage to roofs especially when they are made from materials that aren t designed to hold up to high impact debris. Top 3 hail resistant roofing options.