Leak Specialist vs. Roof Installer — Who Should Fix Your Leak?

Finding and fixing a roof leak can be tough. Your best bet to get it done quickly and effectively — and to save you time, money and frustration — is to use a leak specialist who has years of specialized training and experience. How much experience? The best leak specialist will have at least five years of daily practice (yes, daily) locating and repairing roof leaks.

Here’s how most roofing contractors handle leak repairs

• When you call about a leak, they send a roof installer who isn’t currently working on a roof installation. Roof installers may be good at installing roofs but chances are they’ve not had the specialized training they need in finding and fixing leaks, especially the tricky ones.

• The installer will repair what appears to be the problem. Hopefully this will solve your problem but in reality, leaks can be challenging to find and are not caused by the first thing that looks like it might be a problem. So you’ll need to call again when it leaks again. Hopefully you won’t have repainted the stained area yet, if there was one.

• If the second time you call it happens to be sunny out, the technician who made the initial repair will probably be busy installing a roof so a different technician will come to your property. And the process starts all over again. This may go on for many cycles. It’s not efficient for anyone.

Here’s how leak specialists like Sentry Roof handle leak repairs

• Every repair technician sent to locate and fix a leak is a leak specialist. They’ve had a lot of training and years of hands-on experience so they know what to look for. Most also have a sub-specialty in repairing a specific kind of roofing system, such as single-ply, metal, tile or shingle. While all of Sentry’s technicians are cross-trained for all commercial roofing systems, we’ll send a specialist that’s the best match for your particular roofing system if one is available. If one is not available, you can choose to wait until the next day, if you prefer.

• Leak specialists investigate the source of the leak by taking into consideration the physics of water dynamics combined with your unique roofing system and the construction of your building. Then they repair what appears to most likely be the problem using the materials compatible with the roof design and techniques that are based on industry standards and manufacturers guidelines. Usually this will solve your leak problem — but sometimes even an experienced leak specialist like the ones at Sentry can misidentify the source of a leak. If it leaks again, you call again.

• Regardless of the weather, if you call Sentry a second time, we will send the same technician to your property as the first time — or possibly a leak specialist with your roof’s sub-specialty if one wasn’t available the first time. We may even send a superintendent or our VP. We do more detective work and we fix the source of the problem. If we have to come a second time, our guys consider it a personal challenge!

A few leak tips to keep in mind

• Leaks don’t go away on their own.
• On most ceiling tile or drywall, leaks are grey when they’re new and brown when they’re old.
• Leaks can show up when there’s a shift in the usual wind direction — most Atlanta storms come in from the west, so if the wind and rain is coming from the east, you can suddenly have leak.
• You can have different leaks in heavy rain and in light rain.
• Leaks in roofs installed over a concrete slab have a different set of issues and definitely need to be assessed by a specialist.

Also, always keep in mind that finding and fixing a leak is a different skill set than installing a new roof. Roof leaks can be caused by many different things, some of them obscure. So choose someone with years of experience repairing (not installing) your particular type of roofing system to fix it. You want a technician who knows how to think like a drip! That’s why Sentry Roof Services has repair experts on hand and will send a trained, dedicated leak specialist if you’re having a problem.