AAR Expert Brittany Wimbish says sustainability is about not wasting what you have, while also being realistic about its condition.

When we talk about sustainability in roofing, it doesn’t always mean starting over with a brand-new roof. Sometimes it means getting more life out of the roof you already have. That’s where coatings can be a really good option.

If a commercial roof is still in good, serviceable condition, a coating system can extend the life of that roof without tearing everything off and sending it to the landfill. There’s less waste, fewer new materials needed and typically less disruption for the building owner and tenants.

But coatings have their place. You can’t take a roof that is already failing, coat over it and expect the problems to go away.

We need to know what we’re working with first. Is the insulation dry? Are there active leaks? How much deterioration is there? What do the seams, penetrations and perimeter details look like? Those are the things that help determine whether a roof is actually a good candidate for a coating.

If we’re covering wet insulation or a roof system that has reached the end of its useful life, we haven’t accomplished much. We’ve delayed the replacement and potentially made the problem more expensive down the road.

And sometimes replacement is simply the right call. A full replacement allows us to remove wet or damaged materials, inspect and repair the roof deck where needed, address insulation and start over with a roofing system that makes sense for that building.

To me, sustainability is really about not wasting what you have, while also being realistic about its condition. If we can responsibly get more years out of an existing roof, we should look at that option. If the roof is done, it’s done. Putting more material over a failing system just to avoid a tear-off isn’t necessarily sustainable either. It starts with a good roof inspection and an honest conversation about what makes sense long-term. Sometimes that’s a coating. Sometimes that’s a replacement.

The goal should be to make the right decision for the building and get as much useful life out of the roofing system as we reasonably can.