I've actually wondered about the green roof thing myself. Last summer, I was helping out on a job where we had to check a building with one of those rooftop gardens. Pretty cool setup—lots of plants, flowers, even some veggies growing up there. Anyway, the boss brought out his drone with thermal imaging, and we were kinda scratching our heads about how the plants would affect the readings.
From what I remember, the vegetation actually made things trickier. The plants seemed to keep the roof surface cooler naturally, which you'd think is great, right? But it also meant the thermal camera wasn't picking up temperature differences as clearly as usual. We couldn't really spot any obvious hot or cold zones at first glance. At one point, we thought there was a leak because of this weird cool patch, but turns out it was just a shady spot under some tall bushes. 😂
The boss ended up saying something like "plants are great insulation until they're not," which cracked us all up. But seriously, we had to rely more on visual inspections and moisture meters in certain spots to confirm if there were real issues or just natural variations from the vegetation. It definitely took more time and patience.
Makes me wonder if there's a specific trick or setting on thermal cameras to handle green roofs better...or maybe it's just a matter of experience and intuition? Curious if anyone else has run into this before or found a good workaround.
Interesting points about thermal imaging, but honestly, I've found visual inspections and moisture meters way more reliable for green roofs. Thermal cameras are great for traditional roofs, sure, but vegetation adds so many variables—shade, moisture retention, plant density—that it can really throw off your readings. Maybe there's some advanced setting I'm missing, but from my experience, nothing beats getting up close and personal with the plants and soil... even if it takes a bit longer.
Totally agree with you on the thermal imaging thing. Tried it once on a green roof and got some weird results—thought I had a leak, turned out it was just a shady patch with denser plants holding extra moisture. Felt kinda dumb climbing up there to double-check, but glad I did. Moisture meters have been my go-to ever since... slower, sure, but at least I know what I'm dealing with. Maybe thermal tech will catch up eventually, but for now, old-school seems safer.
- Totally get you on moisture meters—just started using one myself, way less guesswork.
- Had a similar scare with thermal imaging; thought my attic insulation was shot, turns out it was just uneven sunlight hitting the roof.
- Still glad I checked though, better safe than sorry...
- Maybe thermal tech is better for spotting big issues quickly, but for detailed stuff, old-school methods still feel more reliable.
Thermal imaging's handy for quick scans, but you're right—nothing beats getting up close and personal. I've caught plenty of subtle flashing issues or loose shingles that thermal tech would've missed. Old-school still has its place...
