Aerial Infrared Thermal Imaging
The exact point of water intrusion on a flat roof can be elusive. Aerial thermal imaging removes the guesswork and is more accurate than hand-held imagery.
Cost Savings
We saved a client $80,000.00 by avoiding a complete tear-off of the existing roof assembly.
How it Works
During the day, the sun’s radiative warming heats the roof’s composition. By sunset, the roof transmits its heat back into the atmosphere, called radiative cooling. Any wet area retains this heat longer than dry areas because of the increased damp mass. Our Infrared camera detects this heat differentiation to uncover the location of the warmer, wet areas.
The “roof-walk” method for infrared moisture detection is not the best procedure for accuracy reasons alone. The technology is the same in that the infrared camera detects trapped moisture that is cooling at a lower rate than the roof’s surface area. Still, the average time it takes to survey the complete area of the roof is much higher, leaving a more significant margin for error.
From an elevated position, we can capture an entire building in ten seconds…the “roof-walk” method would take 4-6 hours. Consequently, with the extended time it takes to survey one section of the roof, the other areas are cooling; therefore, questioning the accuracy of the method, not the infrared technology.