The case for SPF roofing here is unusually strong, for a reason specific to this climate: the roof is working harder in summer than in winter.
Sun is the load
Medicine Hat gets more sunshine than almost anywhere in the country. On a low-slope commercial roof that means a surface absorbing solar energy for long hours, day after day, through a hot season.
Two things follow.
The building takes a real cooling load from a roof radiating heat downward all afternoon. In a warehouse or shop that is working conditions; in temperature-sensitive space it is a specification problem.
The roof itself ages under UV and thermal cycling. A surface that expands and contracts daily under strong sun stresses seams and laps - and seams are where sheet roofs fail.
A continuous adhered SPF surface has no seams to work. Combined with a reflective coating, it addresses both the cooling load and the ageing mechanism in the same system.
That is the argument, and it is a genuinely better one here than in a cloudier climate.
Coating matters more in this much sun
The foam is not UV stable. The coating is what protects it, and in this location the coating is doing more work than it would elsewhere.
Which makes the recoat cycle a real part of the decision rather than a footnote. Recoating on schedule extends the roof's life; neglecting it does not merely age the coating, it exposes the foam. Any quote should state the coating specification and the expected recoat interval plainly. If that is vague, the warranty is too.
Recover rather than tear off
The strongest use is recovering an existing low-slope roof near end of life but structurally sound - avoiding the tear-off, the disposal, and the open-building period.
Whether that is appropriate depends on what is already up there and whether moisture is trapped in the assembly. A wet roof must not be recovered. That requires a survey, not an estimate.
Drainage and the dry-climate trap
Low rainfall makes it easy to ignore drainage - until it rains hard, or a snowpack melts fast. Ponding on a low-slope roof is a design problem, and being applied as a fluid means SPF can be built up to improve fall toward drains, correcting minor issues a sheet system would simply follow.
Why work with us
Alberta's spray foam specialists. Every installer in our network is checked for CAN/ULC-S705 certification, current insurance and WCB standing before they set foot on your property.
Roofing is survey-first. No price without someone on the roof. Get a quote, and tell us the roof's approximate age and what is on it now.
See also spray foam roofing province-wide and warehouses.