Dorn Management - Chicago, IL

Chicago, IL

10,900 sq. ft. roof sections in Chicago, IL

Claim Adjustment

$239,894
Initial Claim
$366,376
Final Claim
153 %
Claim increase

Four Elements brought $366,376.00 worth of equity back to the building owners’ asset. The owner had zero out of pocket expenses aside from their $10,000.00 deductible and had zero headaches of handling negotiating with their carrier. He was also able to write off the settlement money for his capital improvement using Section 179 of the IRS tax code.

The Challenge

Four Elements Adjusters represented the owner in an insurance claim for storm damage at 1632 Howard Street in Chicago, IL. Prior to the storm that took place in April 2020, this building had a smooth modified bitumen roofing system with acrylic coating. The roof system composition was different between the Upper roof and Warehouse. The Upper Roof Section consisted of two roofing layers comprised of a wood deck, 3.0” Poly ISO insulation, a modified base sheet, a smooth modified bitumen roof membrane, and a second modified bitumen roofing membrane installed directly over the original layer. The warehouse consisted of numerous roofing layers comprised of a wood deck, multiple built-up roof systems with gravel, and two modified bitumen roofing layers. After the storm the owner noticed damage and he contacted Four Elements to assess the property.

The storm that impacted the building produced sizeable hail accompanied by high wind speeds which caused physical damage to the roof membrane, skylights, flashings, window capping, gutters, and downspouts.  Elements Adjusters handled all the negotiations with the insurance carrier. When the claim was settled it resulted in approval of a roof replacement, window cap replacement, and skylights, and soft metals. The owner also had code coverage in their policy so the new roofing system would have 5.5” of insulation as opposed to the original roofing assemblies.  

Existing Roof System

• Smooth Modified Bitumen w. Acrylic Coating

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Age / Condition

• Warehouse: 15+ years old – Fair/Poor

• Upper Section: 5 years- Good/Fair

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Composition

• Upper Section: Wood, 3.0” Poly ISO, Modified Base Sheet, Smooth Modified Bitumen Membrane with Acrylic Coating, and another Smooth Modified Bitumen Membrane with Acrylic Coating.

• Warehouse: Wood deck, multiple built-up roof systems with gravel, and two smooth modified bitumen roofing layers with acrylic coating

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The Solution

The owner decided to upgrade the roofing systems to a fully adhered 60 MIL TPO roof system using the funds from the insurance claim. The roof specification chosen followed Mule Hide guidelines for installation of a single ply TPO roofing system over a wood substrate. In addition to the roof replacement, the owner replaced the skylights, roof accessories, gutters, and downspouts with new.

A certified Mule Hide roofing contractor removed the existing roof systems, insulation, curb flashings, perimeter and flashing metal, and roof accessories to expose the wood decking. All the debris generated during the project were disposed of utilizing a waste management service facility that recycles the material. Upon tear off the wood substrate was inspected by the roofing contractor to ensure it was in suitable condition to accept the new roofing system. The contractor then installed 5.5 inches of new Poly ISO insulation which was mechanically attached to the decking (The insulation thickness meets R30 insulation requirement for Illinois). When ready, the contractor fully adhered the 60 MIL TPO roofing membrane to the insulation per manufacture requirements.  All seams and laps of the membrane were hot air welded using a Robotic Leister self-propelled hot air welding machine. All roof penetrations were raised to accommodate the new roof height and were flashed using a separate layer of 60 MIL TPO membrane which was fully adhered to the flashing substrate. All new TPO roofing accessories were installed at the penetrations following manufacturer guidelines. New 24-gauge perimeter sheet metal gutters, and downspouts were fabricated to accommodate the new roof system and installed per manufacturer guidelines. This specification came with a transferable 20-year NDL full system warranty from the manufacturer and a Four Seasons Labor Warranty from Four Elements Restoration.

Replacement Specification

• Tear off existing roofing assembly and install a new fully adhered 60MIL TPO roofing system following a specification from Mule Hide.

• Remove all perimeter and flashing metal and replace with new 24-gauge galvanized sheet metal.  

• Install new TPO accessories at all penetrations per manufacturer.

• Install new skylights, gutters, and downspouts.

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Waranty

• 20-year NDL warranty and Four Seasons Labor from Four Elements