Winters are notoriously rough on roofs of all types. But flat roofs, like those on industrial and commercial buildings, are particularly vulnerable to leaks and expensive water damage during sudden cold snaps. When it comes to keeping hefty repair bills at bay, solar attic fans can be your best bet for flat roofs.
Builders often pick flat roofs for large, non-residential buildings for their quick construction and low cost. But these advantages come with serious trade-offs. They can’t rely on sloped planes to direct most water and snow away. In the winter, this often means snow builds up in thick layers on flat roofs, while water pools during warmer periods of the day when there is snow melt.
To solve this, flat roofs rely on stronger roof membranes than typical sloped roofs to keep water out. These membranes are supposed to handle whatever winter throws at them.
But in reality, nearly half of all flat roofs experience issues with water leakage just one year after installation.
This is because cracks in the underlying membrane can go unnoticed. Due to the large size of commercial and industrial buildings, roof inspections can be intermittent and weather-dependent. During the day when sunlight warms the roof, snow melt can seep into these membrane cracks, where it then refreezes in the cooler evening hours. These freeze-thaw cycles eventually create holes that leak water into the building.
Modern building codes will often require an empty, ventilated space to sit beneath the flat roof for air circulation, much like an attic under a sloped roof. When water seeps into this space, the trapped moisture can lead to mold growth and structural rot.
It’s worth remembering that runoff tends to pool on flat roofs. This can make water damage much more catastrophic.
In one example involving a Florida courthouse, repairs ended up costing $24 million. This was double the cost of rebuilding the entire building. And costs kept climbing as more than a dozen employees filed workers’ compensation claims for water-damage–related illnesses. Over 200 employees had to move off site while mold remediation took place.
Ward Off Spikes In Flat Roof Repair Costs With A Solar Attic Fan
While solar attic fans can’t prevent flat roof membranes from cracking or leaking, they can help keep repair costs under control.
Solar attic fans, like those in iSolar Solutions’ lineup, do so by constantly pushing out moisture-laden air when the sun is out. This creates a much less hospitable environment for mold growth and rot once water does penetrate a flat roof membrane.
As with sloped roof buildings, solar attic fans do this by boosting a flat-roofed building’s natural airflow.
Most buildings already have static passive vents to ventilate air. However, these are little more than holes in the roof that rely on differences in indoor and outdoor air pressure to circulate air.
These are often enough to satisfy most building codes. However, their rate of airflow falls far short of the minimum standards needed to properly ventilate an interior roof space. Proper ventilation requires circulating all air inside the roof 6–10 times per hour. Passive, non-mechanized ventilation solutions simply can’t produce this level of airflow.
Powered solely by the sun, solar attic fans add no electrical costs because they don’t connect to the grid.
Additionally, custom ventilation solutions may be needed for flat roof buildings due to their size and complex designs. This is where the modular benefits of iSolar Solutions’ fans really shine. You can chain them in custom configurations to navigate tricky roof designs. You can also mount the solar panels far away from the fans if shade blocks sunlight.
How Can I Get These Installed?
Most general contractors and roofers are more than capable of handling the task of installation. But for an in-depth assessment of your flat roof building’s ventilation needs, you can count on iSolar Solutions’ network of trusted installers. These professionals thoroughly understand the principles of proper ventilation, and are deeply familiar with the capabilities of our products.
As a Canadian company, our products are built with harsh Canadian winters in mind. With corrosion-resistant frames, fully sealed electrical boxes and IP68 waterproof certified fan motors, you can count on our fans to keep your flat roof interior dry when sudden cold snaps hit.
For more information on how our solar attic fans can help your flat-roofed building keep expensive repairs at bay, contact one of our knowledgeable sales staff today.
