- Freeze-thaw is brutal, but honestly, heavy rain’s the bigger headache in my book. Water finds the tiniest gap and just camps out there.
- I see a lot of “perfect” membranes too, but like you said, skylights and vent stacks are always the first to go. Flashing pulls away just a hair, and boom—drip city.
- Re-sealing every couple years is smart. I usually tell folks: if you can’t remember the last time you checked your seams, it’s probably time.
- One thing I notice: folks forget about debris. Leaves, sticks... even a plastic bag can clog a drain and suddenly your roof’s a kiddie pool.
- Not sure there’ll ever be a “set it and forget it” fix for flat roofs, at least not in places with wild weather swings. Slope helps, but then it’s not really a flat roof anymore, right?
- Quick tip: after big storms or thaws, walk the roof if you can. I’ve caught issues early just poking around up there—even found a squirrel nest once (don’t recommend that surprise).
- End of the day, yeah, flat roofs need more attention. But if you stay on top of the little stuff, you can dodge most disasters.
- Heavy rain’s my main headache too. I’ve seen perfectly fine roofs turn into indoor waterfalls just because a drain was blocked by last fall’s leaves... or a tennis ball (not kidding, found one last spring).
- Regular walkarounds are underrated. You don’t need to be an expert—just look for standing water, loose flashing, or anything weird.
- I tell tenants: if you hear a drip, don’t wait. By the time you see a stain, it’s already been leaking for a while.
- Not convinced there’s any magic product that’ll let you ignore flat roofs for years, especially up north where weather is all over the place.
- Even with the best membrane and perfect pitch, you still need eyes on it after bad weather. Flat roofs just love drama.
Even with the best membrane and perfect pitch, you still need eyes on it after bad weather. Flat roofs just love drama.
That’s been my experience too. Had a client with a brand-new TPO roof, everything done by the book, but after a spring storm, a single clogged scupper caused water to back up under the flashing. The damage inside was way worse than anyone expected. It’s wild how fast things can go wrong—sometimes it’s not about the roof itself but just a random bit of debris or a missed detail. Regular checks really are the only thing that’s saved me headaches.
- Saw something similar on a job last winter—brand new EPDM, drains were spotless after install, but a windstorm blew in a bunch of leaves.
- Owner didn’t check for a week, ended up with water pooling and a stained ceiling.
- You can do everything right, but if the drains get blocked, it’s game over fast.
- Flat roofs aren’t always a disaster, but you can’t just ignore them after a storm... even if they look fine from ground level.
That’s the thing—flat roofs can be totally fine if you keep an eye on them, but it’s so easy to forget after a storm. I’ve had mine for years and only ever had issues when I got lazy about checking the drains. Has anyone tried those leaf guards or strainers? Wondering if they actually help or just get clogged up anyway...
