Terms You Should Know: wind uplift: The upward-acting pressure on a roof’s components resulting from wind traveling across the roof. windward: The side of the building that’s facing the wind.…
Terms You Should Know: post-tensioning: a pre-stressing technique where steel strands are tensioned after the concrete is cast pre-stressed: concrete that undergoes internal stresses from reinforcing steel strands to offset…
By Paul Roebuck, CMI® As home inspectors, we are often asked if we can perform inspections on commercial properties. While this can open a new avenue of revenue opportunities, some…
The RTU is the most widely used commercial heating and the cooling unit found in the U.S. The rooftop unit is sometimes called a package unit, as all its components…
Central plant systems typically consist of components to provide chilled water for cooling, and use a boiler for heating water. Boilers typically operate at 17º F to 200º F, although…
Conventional Roof System In a conventional roof system, the insulation is installed under the roof membrane. This is the most common low-slope roof application. The location of the insulation in…
Terms You Should Know Thermal conductivity Thermal conductivity is the K-value. It is the measure of a material’s ability to conduct heat. A low K-value indicates that the material does…
The insulation used in low-slope roof assemblies typically falls into one of the four categories: rigid board insulation; dual-purpose structural deck and insulating planks; lightweight insulating concrete (LWIC); or sprayed…
Additional Commercial Inspector Resources: Low-Slope Roof Components Low-Slope Roof Construction and Failure Assignment of Responsibilities Commercial Property Inspection Technical Course (Live)
All buildings are capable of having an unlimited physical service life, but not an unlimited economic life. No other building system surpasses roofs as a source of litigation. Roofs may…
The complexities involved in adequately designing a roof for optimal long-term performance are reflected by the number of factors that a designer must consider, including: original construction and life-cycle (long-term)…
The following information is a general overview of basic and accessory low-slope roof components, their major design factors, functions, and common failures. The three main components of a low-slope roof…