Summer is the best season for roof coating restorations, but autumn, with its shorter, cooler days, is just around the corner. Changing seasons and weather conditions can disrupt your coating processes. In order to stay productive, it is important to understand how to choose products appropriate for the season in which the work is completed. For example, Everest Systems has uniquely designed products for use in all seasons, including the Silkoxy and Everseal sealants. Silkoxy, a silicone coating, and Everseal, a urethane hybrid, do not have any water in their formulations and both are moisture-cured. They can be applied later in the day or when temperatures are below freezing. Check out these three tips to make your coating season longer and more productive.
- Pay attention to the overnight temperatures
- If you are using water-based materials for roof restoration, it is important to note not only what the temperatures are during the day, but also overnight. Fall weather means lower temperatures and dew points which can affect acrylic roof coatings. A few possible solutions include:
- Use a darker coating that will set up faster during the warmer part of the day
- Stop production earlier to give the roof coating more time to cure before the temperatures drop
- Move away from water-based acrylic materials for jobs later in the year. A silicone roof coatings like Everest Systems Silkoxy Silicone is a good alternative to water-based acrylic roof coating as the temperatures drop. Silkoxy is not limited by temperature because it does not have any water in the formulation. Silkoxy’s moisture-cured technology keeps it from being affected by the overnight dew of the fall.
- Do not start jobs that cannot be completed
- Fall leads to winter. Every year contractors get caught with jobs that cannot be completed because of the weather. Not only are the days shorter in the fall, but the fall season can be short as well.
- Focus on the jobs that can be completed. Jobs that are smaller in size and scope need to be prioritized over larger, more technical jobs.
- Communicate clearly with the customer on jobs being sold later in the season to account for weather changes. Have a contingency plan in place to temporarily waterproof the roof over the winter.
- Implement and/or focus on the Service and Repair business
- Perform fall roof inspections to catch issues early
- In fall and winter, we may see large temperature changes every day. Roofing materials expand and contract at different rates as they heat up and cool down. The thermal shock to the roofing materials may cause weak areas of the roof assembly to fail.
- Market inspection and repair services
- Fall is a great time to have a marketing campaign focusing on the immediate needs of the customer. Buildings may experience leaks in the fall that they previously did not have, but a full roof restoration may not be possible in the late fall or winter. Having a team of Service and Repair professionals ready to stop the leaks and gain new customers is an opportunity that every roofing contractor should take advantage of. Everest Systems’ Everseal sealant is the perfect tool for Service and Repair crews to stop leaks and gain customers.