Question 1

How much does a commercial roof replacement cost in Covington?

Accepted Answer

We do not publish a square foot range for commercial replacement, because the area, the assembly and the condition of the insulation move the figure too far for a range to be useful. What we will do is survey the roof, take core cuts where the build up is unclear, and price the membrane, the insulation, the drainage and the flashings as separate lines so the quote can be compared with anyone else.

Question 2

How is the permit cost worked out on a commercial job?

Accepted Answer

The City of Covington charges $75 per inspection and confirms the permit fee itself at file, processed through its commercial route. The parish route is priced from its general commercial schedule rather than a roofing line. Both are permit side costs, not the cost of the roof.

Question 3

Should I tear off or recover?

Accepted Answer

It depends on three things, and none of them can be judged from the ground: whether the insulation is dry, how many coverings the building already carries, and what the deck is doing at the perimeter. A recover is quicker and cheaper and it cannot remove water, so where the insulation is saturated it locks the problem in under a new membrane. Core cuts settle it.

Question 4

Which membrane should I choose?

Accepted Answer

TPO and PVC suit large open roofs where a reflective surface is wanted, PVC specifically where grease or chemical exposure is present, EPDM where simplicity and a long track record matter, and modified bitumen on smaller or heavily detailed roofs with foot traffic. Detailing and drainage decide how long any of them last far more than the choice between them does.

Question 5

Does a commercial roof replacement need a permit here?

Accepted Answer

Yes. La. R.S. 37:3737(I), introduced by Act 239 of 2025 and renumbered by Act 881 of 2026, requires parishes and municipalities that issue construction permits to permit and inspect roof construction and reroofing. Both the City of Covington and St. Tammany Parish issue construction permits, so both permit commercial reroofs within their jurisdictions.

Question 6

My building has a Covington address, so which office issues the permit?

Accepted Answer

It depends on whether the building sits inside the Covington city limits. The Covington postal area extends well beyond the city boundary, and the unincorporated part is permitted by St. Tammany Parish, whose office is in Mandeville. The address decides the route, so it is the first thing we check.

Question 7

Which code is a commercial roof inspected against?

Accepted Answer

International Building Code Chapter 15, the roof assemblies and rooftop structures chapter. The law splits it explicitly: subsection (I)(1) sends buildings other than one and two family dwellings to the IBC, and only (I)(2) sends houses to the residential code. Louisiana is on the 2021 editions with state amendments.

Question 8

What is the difference between your warranty and the manufacturer warranty?

Accepted Answer

Ours covers our workmanship on the installation. The manufacturer warranty covers the system and is issued by the membrane manufacturer on its own terms, usually after its own inspection and only where the installer holds its approval. They are two separate documents and neither stands in for the other, which is worth knowing before a quote is compared on warranty length alone.

Question 9

Can other trades work on the new roof afterwards?

Accepted Answer

They can, and it is a common way a commercial roof gets damaged after it is finished. A mechanical or telecoms contractor cutting in a new penetration without the roofer involved creates a detail nobody has flashed and nobody has recorded. Agree a route for rooftop work at handover and keep it in the building file.

Question 10

How long will the building be disrupted?

Accepted Answer

The programme is set by how much roof can be opened and made watertight in a day, because on an occupied building nothing is left open overnight. That is what makes an occupied replacement longer than the same area on an empty one, and it is why we set the day areas and the weather contingency before agreeing a start date rather than after.