Hail, freeze-thaw and altitude
A reserve study is a forecast of when things wear out. Colorado has three forces that make the forecast harder than the national averages suggest: hail on the Front Range, freeze-thaw on every paved surface and strong sun at altitude.
National lives, Colorado pressure
A reserve study puts a remaining life on every component. Each bar is the typical national range. The hatched end and the arrow mark the direction Colorado conditions push it, and the tag names the force doing the pushing.
- Asphalt shingle roofsHail
The Front Range sits in Hail Alley; RMIIA says residents can expect three or four storms a year that each cause $25 million or more in insured damage.
- EPDM flat roofsHail and UV
The damaging hail season runs from mid-April to mid-September, the same months the sun is strongest on a flat membrane.
- Asphalt pavingFreeze-thaw
Denver's average first freeze is October 7 and its last is May 5, about seven months in which water in cracks can freeze overnight and thaw by afternoon.
- Wood decksUV at altitude
The WHO puts the rise in UV at 10 to 12 percent for every 1,000 meters of altitude. Denver is about 1,600 meters up; Breckenridge is close to 2,900.
- Exterior paintUV at altitude
Stronger UV chalks and fades coatings faster, so mountain buildings often need repainting at the short end of the range.
Hail on the Front Range
The Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association places the Front Range in Hail Alley, the part of North America with the most frequent large hail. Its figures put insured hail losses in Colorado above $5 billion over the past ten years, with the damaging season running from mid-April to mid-September. The costliest storm on its list hit metro Denver on May 8, 2017, at $2.3 billion in insured damage.
For a reserve study this cuts two ways. Unrepaired bruising shortens a roof's remaining life, while an insurance replacement resets it. A good preparer asks for the claim history before estimating lives.
Freeze-thaw on paving
The National Weather Service gives Denver an average first freeze of October 7 and an average last freeze of May 5. Sunny afternoons above freezing followed by cold nights let water in cracks expand again and again. Crack sealing and seal coating on a schedule are usually cheaper than early resurfacing, and the study should show both.
UV at altitude
The World Health Organization's UV index guide says UV levels rise by 10 to 12 percent for every 1,000 meters of altitude. Coatings, sealants, wood decks and membrane roofs in mountain communities face noticeably more sun than the same products at sea level, and their repaint and replacement cycles tend to sit at the short end of national ranges.
Questions on this topic
If insurance replaces our roofs after hail, does the reserve study change?
Yes. The roofs restart at a full useful life, so the next replacement moves decades out and the funding plan should fall. Send the preparer the replacement date and scope so the study does not keep funding the old roofs.
Should a reserve study plan for hail damage at all?
A reserve study plans for wear, not for insured events. What it can do is use realistic lives for exposed components and flag where the deductible would come from, which is a question for the board and its insurance agent.
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Colorado Reserve Studies introduces; it does not prepare studies. One firm active near your community gets picked, you learn its name, and the request travels only after your yes.
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