Discovering roof leaks with thermal imaging

Thermal image of a roof with the most severe moisture content highlighted in red.

Understanding Roof Leaks

Roof leaks can result from various factors, including ageing, poor installation and adverse weather conditions. To compound this, the details often found on roofs, such as windows, roof lights, plant and connecting abutments, make locating the correct defect challenging. Traditional visual inspections alone can prove inadequate in identifying these hidden culprits, highlighting the need for more advanced techniques like thermal imaging.

How Thermal Imaging Works

At the core of thermal imaging lies sophisticated technology that detects infrared radiation emitted by objects. How we use it in roofing is quite simple—water trapped beneath the roof's surface will cool down more slowly than the building materials around it. This results in a real-time image of where water is sitting. This non-intrusive approach offers a swift and accurate means of identifying leaks - we are effectively looking through the membrane. 

Advantages of Thermal Imaging for Roof Inspections

Compared to traditional methods, thermal imaging offers several advantages. Its non-invasive nature ensures that roof integrity remains intact during inspections, while its ability to be carried by drone technology saves time, money and access problems. Moreover, thermal imaging can uncover issues that might otherwise go unnoticed, allowing for proactive maintenance and timely repairs.

Disadvantages of Thermal Imaging for Roof Inspections

There’s only one disadvantage to thermal imaging inspections: there needs to be an adequate amount of solar gain (sunshine) on the day of the survey. However, even an afternoon of sunshine is adequate, and we have even conducted thermal surveys on sunny winter afternoons.

Conducting a Thermal Roof Inspection

An accurate thermal imaging survey follows a day of solar gain (sunshine). The survey can commence once the sun has left the roof’s surface. A pre-planned drone flight captures all necessary angles and details with thermal and regular coloured imaging sensors. We analyse the data and report our findings with clear images and explanations. Our findings can be used to identify the defective detail or details for repair.

Conclusion

By harnessing infrared drone technology, you can identify and address leaks the first time, every time—meaning no more wasted time or money.

Do you value your time and money? Contact us today to learn more about our thermal imaging and how it can help you find your roof leak.