Assessment Findings
Every roof tells a story
Real conditions documented during GuardRoof commercial roof assessments.
Severe ponding and the bathtub effect
Where water cannot leave the roof, the roof becomes the reservoir. These conditions were photographed during and shortly after rainfall.
Widespread Ponding During Rainfall
Water standing across an entire roof field, with penetrations and equipment curbs sitting in it.
Ponding Around Rooftop Equipment
Water deep enough to submerge equipment bases and penetrations, held on a roof area its drainage cannot clear.
Ponding Retained Behind a Parapet
Water held inside a parapet with no emergency overflow drain present. When secondary drainage is absent, ponding becomes structural load.
Vegetation and debris clogging drain strainers
Drainage capacity is only as good as the drain that is open. Debris concentrates exactly where flow is needed most.
Restricted Drain Strainer
Debris packed into a drain strainer. Blockage at the strainer turns routine rainfall into standing water.
Vegetation Restricting Drain Flow
Tree debris gathered at and inside a primary drain, quietly reducing the capacity the roof depends on.
Vegetation Established in Silt at a Drain
Grass rooted in silt at a drain. Growth this mature means water has been standing here for a long time.
Membrane wear under prolonged moisture
Water that lingers leaves a record on the membrane. These surfaces show what repeated standing water does over time.
Membrane Staining From Repeated Ponding
Dark staining maps where water stands after every rainfall, long before any leak appears inside.
Surface Erosion and Granule Loss
Granule loss and early cracking where water moves and collects, leaving the roof less reserve for the next storm.
Membrane Staining From Prolonged Ponding
Dark staining and surface wear across the membrane field, where water has stood repeatedly after rainfall.
Solitary drain and no emergency overflow
Many older roof areas depend on a single primary drain, with no second path for water to leave the building.
Solitary Drain Behind a High Parapet
One drain serves this entire roof area, with no emergency overflow drain. A single restriction is enough to flood all of it.
Standing Water Around a Solitary Drain
Ponding still present long after the rain stopped. This roof is not draining slowly, it is not draining.
Localized Ponding at a Restricted Primary Drain
A restricted primary drain leaves no reliable path for water to leave the roof.
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