By APOC. 

Go into the warm months prepared with these easy tips for setting roof systems up for success this summer.  

In general, it is advised to conduct two inspections on a roof a year, one in the spring and one in the fall as the weather shifts again. As a rule of thumb, if your roof experiences a drastic shift in conditions, it’s a good idea to get up there and make sure everything is working properly. As the weather takes a turn towards hot, make sure to proactively inspect your roof and make sure the correct repairs and maintenance are done. 

Ensuring that this is taken care of before the warm months has multiple benefits. First, it makes sure the roof is strong going into a season where UV damage and other factors can exacerbate any existing issues. This helps extend the overall lifespan of the roof. Working on it early also keeps costs from rising too high as it minimizes the possibility of emergency repairs. 

The first step to this roofing spring cleaning is a preventative maintenance inspection. This is a visual overview and record of the state of the roof. Check out these 7 places that APOC identified to give special attention to during this process.  

1 - Roof membranes and flashings 

Ensure all flashing membranes are in good condition. Check for signs of stress, cracking, splitting, wrinkles, blisters, etc. Remove any foreign matter such as balls, shoes, tools, branches, oils, chemicals, liquid or other objects. Then, clean the roof membrane and closely inspect for signs of physical damage. 

2 - Gutters, drains and scuppers  

Because these are the main avenues that rainwater travels off the roof surface and is directed away from the building, it is crucial that these areas are inspected and maintained. Clean and remove any debris clogging or obstructing the flow of water. Look for any sights of cracking or splitting of the membrane around the drains and scupper. If anything is noted, they must be repaired immediately. 

3 - Penetrations 

Inspect penetrations for signs of wear. Ensure that the base of the penetration remains completely sealed and attached to the roof membrane.  

4 - Pitch pans 

Check all pitch pans for shrinkage. As sealants shrink over time, water may begin to sit on the top of the pitch pan causing rust, leaks and deterioration. 

5 - Metal flashings 

Inspect all metal flashings, counter flashings, copings, seams, joints, gravel stops, edge metal and other areas to ensure they are secure and free of rust or deterioration. Any unsatisfactory conditions should be repaired as soon as possible.  

6 - Rooftop equipment and accessories 

Inspect all rooftop equipment for deterioration and areas that are prone to water penetration. This includes HVAC equipment, duct work, curbs, skylights, etc.   

7 - Expansion joints 

Check all expansion joints for deterioration, wear and defects. Check the metal components to ensure they are fully secured and free of rust. Make sure the expansion joint is still flexible and resilient. Look for any signs of cracking or splitting while manually flexing the joint.  

Original article source: APOC

By HER Roofing. 

HER Roofing blended modern materials with historic sensitivity on a demanding cone roof project.

It was early November 2024 when HER Roofing signed the contract to roof the Settlemier House, in Woodburn, Oregon. Built in 1892, the historic house had wood shakes and needed to be converted to composition shingles. The installation had to wait until spring 2025 because a large shake tear-off on a historic home in the Pacific Northwest had weather challenges. 

Roofing the Settlemier house was not an easy task. The most noticeable feature of the house was the 50-foot-tall cone roof that needed plywood, and inside the cone roof lived a fairly large family of bats. The roof removal and sheathing took two days. Once the roof was removed, a section of wooden gutter below the cone was exposed and found to be damaged by rot. HER Roofing immediately looked for a source to furnish a new section of curved wooden gutter. In the meantime, plywood had to be scored to curve around the cone roof. Once the roof had plywood, HER Roofing installed Malarkey Arctic Seal down valleys and penetrations. Then, APOC Weather-Armor underlayment on the rest of the roof.  

The new section of curved gutter had to be templated twice by the manufacturer, and it took six weeks to make. But the new gutter was beautiful in raw form, and the installation appeared to have no seams. The property owner chose Malarkey Legacy in Black Oak for the roof. An 80-foot lift was rented to safely roof around the cone. Once the roof was installed, HER Roofing began restoration of the old wooden gutters; the gutters were stripped and patched before a new copper metal lining was installed. Once the lining was in place, Gaco S4200 Silicone was used to coat the inside of the gutter. Next, new metal downspouts were installed.  

The final touch was the restored copper spire that sat atop the cone. The new roof took about one and a half weeks, and the new gutter took about two months (including manufacturing the new curved section). Overall, HER Roofing has a roof to be proud of with a happy customer.  

“HER Roofing did a fantastic job on what was a challenging roof. Their professionalism and attention to detail were appreciated. Jana and her crew are top-notch notch" says Daniel Dinges, Settlemier property owner.

By Emma Peterson. 

Learn how tax credits and incentives have made energy-efficient roofing more accessible than ever before. 

Roofing contractors have been at the forefront of using cool roofs and walls to reduce energy consumption and decrease the commonality of urban heat islands (UHI). 2022 saw one of the big shifts in this area, with the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act making sustainable and cool options more available to homeowners, building managers and contractors to make more efficient roofs. This bill, which is the biggest U.S. bill to address combatting climate change, makes cool roofs and walls more accessible through expanded tax incentives.  

In a report from the ICP Building Solutions Group, there is a summary of what this act has done. Overall, in the two years since the Inflation Reduction Act, we have seen over $300 billion invested in energy and climate reform. This money came in the form of “energy tax incentives, investment in the production of clean energy and tax credits aimed at reducing carbon emissions.” Check out the graph to see some of the incentives that were created:  

• Homes: This is a program directed to homeowners (including multi-family homes). It offers up to $8,000 based on the household’s income level and total energy reduction. 
• HEERA: With a focus on low-income households, this program incorporates general electric improvements and provides opportunities for spray foam and air sealing improvements. 
• 25C: This program increases the tax credit amount up to $1,200 for qualified energy efficiency improvement during the year (this includes things such as air sealing and better insulation).  
• 45L: This gives credits to new residential construction builders that adhere to ENERGY STAR or Zero Energy (DOE) requirements. 
• 179D: This is a tax deduction for architects, owners or tenants of commercial buildings that make energy efficiency improvements. This can be new buildings or renovations of existing buildings. 

Making these cool roof and wall options more accessible is a key part of making a more sustainable and healthier built environment. By reflecting solar energy on the roof or more efficiently emitting heat through the walls, prioritizing the installation of these products keeps buildings cooler and at a more consistent temperature. The Cool Roof Rating Council (CRRC), which has been a leader in this sector of the industry since 1998, reports that not only do cool roofs and walls create a healthier environment inside and around the building, but they also create a more energy-efficient system that saves building owners, homeowners and property managers money. 

Overall, these tax incentives have made it more accessible than ever to invest in energy-efficiency improvements and has made it a profitable space for contractors to focus on. To learn more, read the full report. 

By Emma Peterson. 

Learn how the right coating can save you energy and money on the roof and on the ground! 

In this episode of the AskARoofer Podcast, Megan Ellsworth and Lauren White sat down with Sara Jonas, the vice president of the ICP Building Solutions Group. Within ICP, there are many different coatings brands, including APOC, which was the focus of their conversation. Overall, coatings are rising in popularity due to a variety of benefits, including efficient maintenance and a longer lifespan for the roof. Sara explained, “Coatings extend the life of the roof and also protect the membranes that are underneath it. So doing coating maintenance gives you more longevity for the life of that roof preventing a full tear off and all those materials going in the landfill sooner than maybe they need to.” 

But the benefits to roof coatings are not limited to the exterior barrier of the home. A good coating also can make an entire house system more energy efficient. Sara explained, “There are obviously a lot of advantages to this. Just to your average monthly energy bill, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has a study that says the average savings is about 20% of your annual cooling costs in certain types of climates.”  

In addition to their roof coatings, APOC also carries a line of driveway seals. These coatings, the Black Jack® Drive-Maxx™ driveway sealers, help protect aging asphalt. Sara elaborated, “If they have an asphalt driveway oftentimes those will start to discolor, they'll start to crack, they'll start to kind of dry out. And to protect that asphalt and keep it from getting further damage and then really some of it is just curb appeal, one of these coatings can be applied. A lot of people really like a very sharp, crisp, black driveway, which a coating can achieve” Whether it’s making sure your roof lasts as long as possible, keeping your current bills down or making sure your house retains its value, ICP and APOC have a coating for the job! 

Read the transcript or Listen to the entire episode for more about these coatings and how they are best applied. 

Editor's note: The following is the transcript of a live interview with Sara Jones from ICP Group. You can read the interview below or listen to the podcast.

Megan Ellsworth: Hello everyone, my name is Megan Ellsworth.

Lauren White: And I'm Lauren White.

Megan Ellsworth: This is the AskARoofer Podcast, we are back again. I'm really excited to be chatting with Sara Jonas today. Hi Sara.

Sara Jonas: Hey guys, how are you?

Megan Ellsworth: Doing good. We have lots of exciting things to chat with you about and let's just dive right in and have you introduce yourself.

Sara Jonas: Great. Well, like you said my name is Sara Jonas and I'm the vice president of marketing for ICP Group. Now ICP has all kinds of different brands, but I think today we're here to talk about the APOC brand which is where our roof coatings and roof maintenance products, among other things lie. All things roofing, well for the most part. Always some acceptance. Let's say roofing and water roofing, so that's the brand.

Megan Ellsworth: Awesome.

Sara Jonas: Yeah. Sorry, I got kind of mixed up. ICP has a lot to offer so I had to switch my mind frame to go okay, wait, we're talking about APOC right now. Okay.

Megan Ellsworth: Yes, we love that.

Sara Jonas: Yeah. Well I do too, it makes for interesting days for sure.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah, I bet.

Sara Jonas: One day we're talking driveway sealers and the next day we're talking panes and then we're over talking foam and insulation and today we get to talk roofing.

Lauren White: You guys have it all going on.

Sara Jonas: We really do, we do have a lot in the portfolio for sure.

Lauren White: That's awesome. Well, speaking of APOC we recently with the coffee shops launched CoatingsCoffeeShop in partnership with APOC. So can you tell us what it was like finally putting it out there into the world? It's live, so you can go check it out. So tell us more about that?

Sara Jonas: Yeah. We're very excited about CoatingsCoffeeShop, this came from an idea and a conversation maybe a little over a year ago. Where we were obviously participating in RoofersCoffeeShop and then we were seeing the success and the involvement particularly from the industry in MetalCoffeeShop and we were like, "Why don't we have a CoatingsCoffeeShop? We really should do this." So it actually came together very, very quickly. Super impressed with the team in building this because it went very fast, at least from where I'm sitting. So it came together, we recently launched it at FRSA and there's been a lot of really great feedback, a lot of excitement. We had an opportunity to talk about it at the recent RCMA meeting in Cleveland and again lots of excitement there, lots of opportunity. I think a lot of things going on in the coatings industry that we'll be able to hone in on and focus on on CoatingsCoffeeShop that you don't always get the granularity of those details when you talk just roofing in general because it's such a massive space.

So we're very excited about it, we've been sharing a lot with our stakeholders and look forward to see it grow so that it can be a real resource to contractors either involved in coatings today or looking to get involved in the future.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah, that's great. I'm really excited to talk about all the things that coatings can do for homeowners. So what can a home or building owner get out of CoatingsCoffeeShop? What can they find there?

Sara Jonas: Yeah. Well CoatingsCoffeeShop is really directed to the contractor, right? So it would be a good place to get in touch with a contractor.

Megan Ellsworth: Exactly.

Sara Jonas: But you can see some of the benefits of coatings, which I would say probably the biggest one for a homeowner and in this case we're talking primarily low slope roofing. So think of areas... Not that it's limited to this. But think of areas for a homeowner out in Arizona or maybe it's a multi-home family where you've got a low slope roof and you're looking for energy efficiency. So for us, like I said out in the Southwest that's where we reach more of the homeowners because you see more of that type of construction and it's really hot. So energy efficiency and just comfort of the home are kind of the biggest components. But there's also a spot for... Again, for the building owners it would be the same thing for the energy efficiency. But there's also a lot that can be done with roof coatings in terms of restoration. So when we look at the lifespan of a roof, you will absolutely be required to maintain your roof.

Over time roof maintenance is really, really important and a building owner or a homeowner should be inspecting or having a contractor inspect their roof at least quarterly. To go up there and just make sure that there are no spots where you could potentially have a leak or where you unfortunately already have a leak. Or areas where you have ponding water issues or just I guess improper drainage, all those types of issues and those can be repaired and the whole roof when it gets to a certain point can be restored. So it extends the life of the roof, coatings also protect the membranes that are underneath it. So again, it gives you more longevity for the life of that roof preventing a full tear off and all those materials going in the landfill sooner than maybe they need to. So a lot of different advantages in terms of coatings and restorations and that's one of the components or facets to CoatingsCoffeeShop because you can see all those different benefits and learn about it.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah.

Lauren White: Okay. So can we dive more into the energy efficiency, because that's such a big topic for home and building owners and just people in general anymore and APOC we were just talking about that. How APOC and coatings offer ways to cut down on energy costs through these reflective coatings that kind of help cool the house and improve the energy efficiency of the house. Can you dive into that a little bit more?

Sara Jonas: Yeah. I mean from a scientific standpoint I'm sure you could get a lot more detail but it's really pretty simple. If you go step on an asphalt road and it's this hot sunny day, it's going to be hot. Right? It's going to feel hot on your feet because that black surface is absorbing the heat from the sun. Right? If you coat that road with a white coating, it's actually going to reflect that. So the surface temperature is going to be much cooler than it would be if it were blacktop. Now, put that on a roof and that's literally what it means. Well there are obviously a lot of advantage just to your average monthly energy bill, there are a lot of studies out there. I think there's one that we've cited from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, that'll say kind of the average savings is about 20% of your annual cooling costs in those types of climates.

Lauren White: Oh, wow.

Sara Jonas: So now that's an average, but that's what they're touting so a lot of benefits there. When you get into the commercial space and you're a building owner, there are some tax advantages as well. So even the new Inflation Reduction Act, and I'm not an accountant here. But even in that new act, I believe it's 179D that you're going to want to look at for the details. But there are some increased benefits to the owners for all kinds of different energy efficient practices, but reflective roofing or cool roofing is one of those components. So there are a lot of advantages, all cost reduction related or some a little bit more sustainability wise when we talk about again extending the life of the roof so that you don't have to tear it off too soon. Right? But yeah, I mean the reflective pieces it's pretty simple to explain because it's something that we see every day if you live anywhere that gets sun.

Lauren White: It makes sense.

Megan Ellsworth: Which is a lot of places.

Sara Jonas: It's a lot of places. Yes, it's a lot of places.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah. You were mentioning Arizona and how you have a lot of people that use APOC coatings in the Southwest. No wonder because A, they get so much sun and so much heat. But a lot of those adobe-style houses have flat roofs where the coatings can really come in handy, especially when you're trying to restore and not just completely tear off and replace. So that's something that a homeowner and a building owner should really be looking at is trying to restore. How does APOC... You guys have a roof restoration system for people? What does that system look like?

Sara Jonas: Well, it really depends.

Megan Ellsworth: Okay.

Sara Jonas: So the system would be based on the state of the roof, right? So it's almost like a consultative or prescriptive program, but we have all kinds of... Yeah. So I mean, it just depends on what that roof needs and depending on the substrate that's currently sitting on that roof. Depending on the state of the roof, depending on are there a bunch of fasteners in this roof? Or how many penetrations do you have? What does it look like? What was done in the past that would all determine what's needed for the restoration and in this instance, for sure... Really for all of these instances. A homeowner and building owner needs to be working with a contractor who is... In our opinion, it should be a certified applicator. Somebody who's gone through the training program, somebody who really knows how to walk the roof and look for all those problem areas. But also who can say, "This roof is a good candidate for restoration." Or, "This roof is not a good candidate for restoration."

Because there are instances where it should not be restored or parts of it should not be restored, it needs to be replaced and a good contractor will be able to walk you through that. Training is a really, really important part of this industry, so if I'm a homeowner or a building owner that's a question that I'm going to be asking and then we of course have people on our team. Johnny Walker is a name that comes up very often, where Johnny is available to help those contractors in some sticky situations which happens more often than not. Where another expert opinion I guess might be needed or warranted and we can go up on the roof or send one of our technical sales team members up on a roof to figure out is this a good candidate or what would be required for the restoration? So to answer your original question, it completely varies on the roof. But we have all kinds of products available for those restorations and then we'll also walk away when it's not a good fit.

Megan Ellsworth: That's awesome. That's what I love to see in a really great company is... That's how you can tell they're a great company is if they say, "Hey. This is actually maybe not a great fit for what you need and I'm going to refer you to someone that can do a better job." Or whatever, and for all you home and building owners out there listening. You can find all the products that Sara is talking about for restoration on CoatingsCoffeeShop and then you can also find a contractor that is certified and has great reviews on AskARoofer. So there you go.

Sara Jonas: Yeah, [inaudible].

Lauren White: So some of the other offerings that you provide is driveway seals under your Black Jack® brand name. Can you tell us more about what that is and how they work for commercial parking lots and driveways?

Sara Jonas: Yeah, sure. Yeah. Our Black Jack®, Drive-Maxx™ driveway sealers are available kind of all over the place, so I don't want to list out anybody in particular. But really you can find them all over the country and they are products that a homeowner can use to install or apply on their driveway. If they have an asphalt driveway oftentimes those will start to discolor, they'll start to crack, they'll start to kind of dry out and to protect that asphalt and keep it from getting further damage and then really some of it is just curb appeal. Just a lot of people really like a very sharp, crisp, black driveway. Then you can get these products and you coat your driveway with them and it's really pretty easy to apply with a squeegee. We have a variety of different grades with some different performance criteria or characteristics rather, and they can be used in commercial too like you said. But yeah, I mentioned we have quite a breadth of products and these are some of the products that we have out there available as well.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah, that's really cool. I did not even know that, that was a thing until we were writing the questions. Yeah.

Sara Jonas: Yeah, isn't that funny? So it's really funny, where I'm at I'm in Northeast Ohio and in my neighborhood I don't have any asphalt driveways. So when ICP first acquired Gardner-Gibson® which is where that brand came over from, we were doing some research and I'm like, "There are no asphalt driveways around here." And then I started actually paying attention. They're literally all over where I'm at, it's just not at my particular house. But I will say we ended up applying some at our office not too far from here in the driveway and just kind of playing around with the product and they're just super easy to apply, and for people who do have asphalt driveways this is a really common application. This is something that people do a lot sometimes annually, you don't have to do it annually. But I think like I said there's a curb appeal piece to it too where people just really like that just coated driveway look. So yeah, it's a thing.

Megan Ellsworth: I love that.

Sara Jonas: Yes, this is what I'm told.

Megan Ellsworth: That's funny because I feel like when I started working in the roofing industry, all of a sudden I started noticing roofs and now I'm going to start noticing asphalt driveways.

Sara Jonas: Right? Oh, yeah. I remember I would be on a flight and you're coming into whatever city and all you're doing is looking at the rooftops going, "Okay, that's that. That's that." It's so funny, yeah.

Lauren White: Who has solar, yeah.

Sara Jonas: That's right, yeah. You're going to notice the asphalt driveways now and you will absolutely be able to tell the difference between those that were maintained. Where the cracks are filled and they were coated recently and the ones that are not and there are big chunks of the driveway missing and it's completely discolored. It's starting to look more like a rock driveway than an asphalt driveway. So-

Lauren White: Yeah, and one of those is my driveway.

Sara Jonas: There you go. But yeah, that's another area of our business. It's pretty cool.

Megan Ellsworth: That's pretty cool.

Lauren White: It is very cool.

Megan Ellsworth: Yeah, wow.

Sara Jonas: Yeah.

Megan Ellsworth: It's also interesting to note that when you become a homeowner, or even if you're just renting or if you own a building. It's just another layer of things that you're signing up for, so it's nice to know that APOC has your back and has a product for that.

Sara Jonas: Absolutely, yes.

Megan Ellsworth: So besides CoatingsCoffeeShop and AskARoofer where should home and building owners go now that they're interested in coatings or asphalt driveway sealers?

Sara Jonas: Well, I mean apoc.com.

Megan Ellsworth: Perfect.

Sara Jonas: Yeah. We have all kinds of information for contractors, for owners on our website. We absolutely want them to come check us out. We also post a lot of content and some case studies on social media, so APOC Roofing and Waterproofing. Obviously CoatingsCoffeeShop, but there's also the RCMA where you can go to get some basic information about roof coatings and if you're really, really into it they do have a training program more geared toward contractors. But I would say the very first module of this online course is very general coatings information, so if you were so inclined you could take that course as well.

Megan Ellsworth: Whoa, crazy.

Sara Jonas: Yeah. But I mean some people are really... They might not be the one installing it. But they want to know the right questions to ask and that would be a good way to get familiar enough to where you're asking the right questions.

Lauren White: Definitely.

Megan Ellsworth: That is such a good point.

Lauren White: Yeah. So is there anything else? I mean we've touched on a few things. But is there anything else that home and building owners should know about coatings or asphalt driveway sealers?

Sara Jonas: Yeah. Well more on the coating side I would just go back to the idea that coatings are a great solution for extending the life of the roof, for protecting the membrane below the coating, for energy efficiency. But those roofs need to be maintained, they need to be inspected. So partnering with a quality contractor who can either offer you a maintenance program or who can come out after you've checked out your roof and have spotted some things that are of concern. Those are really, really important components. I also think making sure that you've got certified applicators is really, really important. Training is very important because again, you want to make sure that the contractor knows when the project is a great candidate for a restoration or a coating and when it's not because coatings are not miracle products. They don't do everything, no product out there is a miracle product. So really understanding the limitations of the different products that you install no matter what, whether it's coating or a full membrane or insulation or paint or whatever it is.

That's really, really important because that's how you can be assured that you're going to have a quality outcome. So that's something that's really important to us. I have heard it said so many times again by Johnny Walker that you've got to know when it's a great candidate for a restoration and this is aside from just coating, a full restoration and when it's not. So again, for an owner partnering with a quality contractor is really important.

Megan Ellsworth: Well said. Well Sara, this has been so fun. Thank you so much for chatting with us, I've learned so much about driveway sealers, coatings, all the things. I hope everyone out there listening has also learned and continues to learn by going to coatingscoffeeshop.com and askaroofer.com. So thank you so much.

Sara Jonas: Thank you guys, it's been fun.

Megan Ellsworth: Yes. It's been a blast and this has been the AskARoofer Podcast. Thank you everyone for listening and we'll catch you next time.

By APOC. 

Be protected this Fourth of July by utilizing these fire-safety tips from APOC.  

Fourth of July is a great time to be patriotic with friends and family, and of course, with the celebration comes fireworks. Fireworks can be dangerous, so it’s always smart to take precautions with them and take the steps necessary to prevent your roof from catching fire. These tips from APOC will be helpful for you when you are taking precautionary measures to do so.  

According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), fireworks injure thousands and cause thousands of fires. An estimated 19,500 fires started by fireworks were reported to local fire departments in the U.S. during 2018 and caused $105 million in direct property damage. 
 
Most cities and towns follow specific codes and guidelines when setting off fireworks, but there’s always a chance for a fire to take place. The following tips can help you prepare and protect your roof from harm: 

1. Clean gutters and clear roof of any debris. Both make great fuel for a fire. 
2. Wet your roof. Consider spraying down your roof with a hose to prevent stray firework embers from starting a fire. 
3. Trim tree limbs and overhanging branches. We say this a lot, but it’s super important in protecting your roof. 
4. Repair any damage beforehand. Consider getting a roof inspection to identify any problem areas that need to be addressed. 

For commercial buildings, using “Class A” fire rated acrylic and silicone roof coatings can be crucial for fire prevention. APOC® 252 Acrylic is a high-performance UL “Class A” fire-rated system that offers excellent resistance to fire and flame spread. 

The Fourth of July should be a fun holiday — one that comes without worry. To make it an enjoyable day, we can’t stress enough the importance of roof safety. Taking the proper precautions will ensure a fire is preventable, whether you’re a building owner, homeowner, or both. 
 
Please always remember to observe laws and regulations of your community regarding fireworks. Fireworks are dangerous and should always be left to professionals. 

Have a question? AskARoofer.  

Find your local roofing contractor in the RoofersCoffeeShop® Contractor Directory. 

Original article source: APOC