Reason to do it right

We responded to a roof leak in Vancouver today. We found an improperly applied torch-on membrane roof system that the installers had taken far too many short cuts on. To summarize my position on “short cuts” is that they always result in weaknesses and weaknesses, in turn, increase probability of leakage. The job of the roof is to ELIMINATE leakage so probability needs to be nil to accomplish that. In the case of this leak the primary short cut is that a flashing wasn’t used around the chimney. The second short cut is that the roof plies weren’t applied to an appropriate substrate. So the black “roofer’s goop”, also known as mastic, that was the only waterproofing barrier keeping a leak from happening ultimately failed. It was destined to happen. Insert a Blues Song or a Sad Love Song here.