Say No to Tarps on Your Roof

By Stormseal. 

This ingenious new product replaces tarps, making the roofing businesses that use them a favorite of insurance companies and homeowners. 

Stormseal is an ultra-strong, lightweight film that works as an alternative option to tarps. The Australian invention, now manufactured in the U.S., is resistant to wind, rain and hail and doesn’t leak, flap or detach. Further property damage is avoided because Stormseal solves the problems tarps present, thus insurance claims don’t have to escalate to replace failed tarps.  

Stormseal founder and managing director, Matthew Lennox, said insurance companies and homeowners are increasingly choosing businesses with Stormseal accreditation over those who only work with tarps. And contractors charged with securing a storm-damaged property are typically getting called by the homeowner to complete the repair work.  

Stormseal is manufactured from polyethylene resins combined with fire-retardant and ultraviolet-resistant additives. The product then heat shrinks to the roof, resulting in a strong plastic film that strengthens a structure without damaging the underlying materials.  

Unlike a tarp, which anyone can put on, Stormseal installers require accreditation through the company and their training providers. Lennox said Stormseal also creates incentive for contactors to do the job right the first time. That’s because the installer must sign off on a Stormseal job when the house is completed. It’s a big change from tarps, which are almost guaranteed to flap and leak regardless of the installer. When you hire a Stormseal-accredited contractor, you know you’re not only getting a good product on your roof that will last, but the contractor is specifically trained to work with the material. 

Lennox said every time a tarp fails it “puts a ball and chain” on the insurance claims process, causing cost blowouts and unhappy policyholders. “The damage has to be reassessed and the tarp reinstalled when subsequent storms occur,” he said. “It blows out costs for the insurer and the contractor. In a recent hailstorm in Sydney, Australia for instance, the estimated cost went from $350 million straight after the storm to more than $1 billion.” 

Lennox said in his experience the average tarp blows off four or five times before repairs can be made. But in thousands of Stormseal applications over three years, only three have ever failed (and one was on the top of the Swiss Alps after surviving 7 months in the harshest conditions). That means no more 2 a.m. wake up calls when a tarp has failed, and no more asking your contractor to do the same job twice. Instead, Stormseal is boosting businesses by giving them the best chance at securing the temporary repair job, and the subsequent repair work, from insurers. 

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