Walking on your roof.
Safe to walk on flat roof.
First off we don t recommend that you walk on your concrete tile roof if you can avoid it and neither do tile manufacturers.
Crouch down slightly to walk down a metal roof safely.
Walk up a roof and lean your body over towards the roof to help maintain your balance.
The majority of flat roofs are not built to withstand the pressure of being walked on and doing so may cause weakness over time not only making it a health hazard but also putting your investment at risk.
People ask all the time if it s safe to walk on their rv roof to perform maintenance view a beautiful sunset or watch a nascar race.
Benefits of being able to walk on your flat roof.
The steeper the metal roof the more you ll need to lean over.
They can easily bulge and cause leakages that will be costly to repair.
Walk up a steep roof sideways.
Even small foot fall movements cause minute cracks in the surface materials this then fills with water in the winter and freezes causing bigger more serious problems in the future.
4 steps for walking on metal roofs the first thing to do is check the manufacturer s advice for their recommended method of walking on that particular roof product.
Max baker s marvelous book.
Metal flat roofing flat or low slope commercial roofs can also be covered with steel zinc aluminum or copper.
I am a buildings surveyor be careful when walking on a flat roof as it can shorten the life of the covering.
The answer depends on several factors such as the rv manufacturer s recommended weight limit the type of material used to construct the roof system and the condition of the roof.
Wet icy or snow covered roofs are unsafe to walk on in most circumstances possibly excepting expert inspection of flat roofs with safe parapets or railings installed.
Your roof seems like it should be strong after all it needs to be able to withstand massive gusts of wind pelting from hail dosing in rain that can add hundreds of pounds of weight and so much more.
However standing seam or screw down metal panels are not practical to walk on.
Also see building safety hazards guide and see our list of inspector safety articles at home inspection education services safety articles.
The book now out of print was sponsored by the national research council of canada and it brought together information into one document from canadian building science digests research papers and building science seminars and workshops from the division of building research.
Every time you walk on the tiles you put stress on them that can crack them or loosen them.
Cleaning your roof without walking on it.
Generally speaking it is as safe to walk on a metal roof 30 or 50 years after installation as the day it was installed.
It s something that seems like it should be so simple and yet presents so many risks.
Sure concrete tiles are strong.
