A commercial building I recently inspected had a flat roof that was noticeably deteriorating (alligatoring, a few soft spots, etc.), but with no evidence of leakage at the time of the inspection (no bubbles when soft spots in puddles were stepped on, no water stains or visible leaks below).
An area near one of the corners had been recently patched, which to me indicated other areas are likely to need such maintenance soon. Some of the corrugated steel in the work area ceiling below the patched section was noticeably corroded, and coming loose. Evidently that area had prolonged leakage. The roof structure had wood framing between the ceiling and the roof surface, which appeared to be sound throughout.
I reported the roof as likely to need resurfacing within the next few years, and mentioned that top-coating after a thorough cleaning and drying may prolong the life of the surface before more extensive repairs are needed. The fact that part of the roof had been essentially covered over suggested to me that the roof would not have to be completely torn off
This morning my client called, and told me the seller is agreeable to “repairing the worst areas” of the roof. I’ like some advice as to how my client could get the most “bang for his buck” as far as partial repairs go, i.e., how to prioritize the work. Top-coating first? Patch the areas that are cracking the worst? What about the area of damaged corrugated steel under the patched area?
I’ve included a few pics of some of the bad spots, one of the patched area, and one of the corroded corrugated steel underneath.
Any suggestions would be much appreciated.