Commercial Roof Leak Detection in Kenner, LA

A diagnostic to find where water enters a commercial roof membrane. On a low-slope commercial roof water enters at a breach in the membrane and then tracks laterally, so it appears inside the building a long way from where it got in. The instrumented methods find the breach directly, not by tracing the drip.

Because on a low-slope commercial roof the drip inside is rarely directly below the breach. Water enters at the breach, goes through the insulation or along the top of the deck, and appears wherever it finds an opening. Following the drip usually traces to the wrong place. Residential steep-slope roofs behave differently; the residential leak detection page is written around those.

A method that energises a roof membrane with a small voltage and locates the breach where current passes through it. ASTM D7877 is the standard guide covering both low- and high-voltage electronic methods; ASTM D8231 is the more specific standard practice for the low-voltage scanning form.

A method that dams a defined area of roof, floods it to a controlled depth, and watches the interior for water passing through the membrane. It is definitive on the area tested, and it is limited by the roof structure carrying the flood load and by tenant sensitivity to the interior water it may produce.

A survey question. ELD is faster on a large open low-slope roof with an electrically insulating membrane. Controlled flood is definitive on a smaller defined area or on membranes ELD cannot read. On a roof where the answer matters enough, both methods run together, ELD first to localise and flood second to confirm.

When the membrane is conductive across its whole surface (foil-faced systems), when there is no wet insulation or deck for the current to return through, or when the membrane manufacturer has a specific statement against the method on its product. In any of those the controlled flood is the alternative.

No. Leak detection finds where water enters the membrane. Moisture survey measures how much of the insulation below the membrane is now wet. They are two different questions with two different methods, and the moisture survey lives on the commercial roof inspections page. On a real leak call the two usually run together, because a wet insulation zone changes what the repair scope needs to be.

Breach location relative to a roof plan, photographs at close range and in context, method used and the ASTM standard it sits under, and a note on what the finding points the follow-up work at. Where the below-membrane insulation is worth surveying for wet condition, that follow-up is routed to the commercial inspections page; a repair scope is routed to the commercial repairs page.

No, an inspection or diagnostic is not permitted work. A resulting reroof is permitted under R.S. 37:3737(I)(1); a resulting repair is permitted per its own scope, and either is filed with Kenner. Kenner has one office at file: the Permitting Office at 1926 18th Street, phone (504) 468-4062 option 1, hours Monday to Friday 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM. Intake is by email to kennerpermits@kenner.la.us or drop-off at the 18th Street office. Kenner does not use MyGovernmentOnline; the MGO cities in this area are Metairie, Gretna, Harahan and Baton Rouge.

It documents the breach, the method used, the ASTM standard, the photographic evidence and a note on the follow-up route. Whether that evidence supports a claim on your specific policy is a question for your insurer or, on your side, a licensed public adjuster; a policyholder can also read the policy directly. A roofing contractor does not interpret cover on your behalf.