They be like:
“Back home I never had this problem”
“even after fixing one leak we see another one when the next rain comes”
“we changed all the metal sheets but still have problems”
First you have to understand what’s different in Panama compared to the US or Europe. Here it’s very hard to find a real craftsman when it comes to roofing. Maybe it’s because of the extreme weather but generally speaking the smartest part of the population tends to end up working inside buildings, not outside. So when it comes to roofing local people see it as a plan B career. So they do everything fast, without passion, just to survive to the next meal. They don’t see the opportunity.
Think about the massive roofing market in the United States where most of the big residencial jobs are paid by insurance companies. Lots of blue collar guys made millions, specially after storms. Panama is a totally different market, almost nobody has a home insurance and roofs are not a gold mine like in the US.
Another reason is that this country is very little and we don’t have all the options that we can have in a first world country. This is why generally speaking you will always see cheap metal roofs and low quality service in Panama.
A metal roof is not the best option for a house. It looks industrial and “cold”, not like a real home. A metal roof makes your house look like a warehouse.
Plus it’s veeeery noisy when the rain comes…and guess what…in Panama we have rain almost every day. Is not the best experience to talk in a living room during a hard rain if your roof is made with metal sheets in Panama.
When you watch a movie and the rain starts hitting either you stop it or turn up the volume right?
But keep calm.
If it’s built properly a metal roof can still provide a good solution even in the tropical rain of Panama
So why we still see all of this problems in our metal roofs in Panama? Why is it always leaking?
As I already told you, you will not find the best brains of Panama on a roof, so the average roofer is not a nobel prize. You will hardly find a real roofer, but only self proclaimed “general contractors” that do a different service every day to bring some food to the table.
But rain and roofs are a serious issue in Panama, specially for expats. You don’t want buckets all around your living room like local people, it’s so damn frustrating!
This is why I have focused my company only on this big tropical issue. I only do roofs.
I will not lie, I never met another roofer in this country since 2017 when I landed from Italy. Apparently I am the only one who saw the opportunity.
Everybody is doing roofs here. Plumbers, electricians, retired police officers…but no roofers.
The main reason why your roof is leaking in Panama is because it has less than 15% inclination.
With this amount of rains, and specially with exposed screws, we cannot have a metal roof with less than 15% inclination and expect it to perform good. It’s simple physics. And by the way you can find this information on technical data sheets or websites. But, again, not the cream of the crop is working on this in Panama and local people hate to read an installation manual.
American standard for roof inclinations. Your Panama roof will probably have 1:12 (around 8%), that’s why it leaks.
If your roof has poor pitch you only have two options: rebuild it or install something on it. The “something” I am talking about is my Liviatecho system. I will simply screw on your existing roof a insulation panel to make it flat and then a waterproof membrane. I can install this system on every roof. We did it already on plastic roofs, metal roof, wood roofs.
Pic of Liviatecho system on plastic roof.
It’s the only way to solve the problem forever without living the nightmare of modifing all the house structure and build a new roof with a better pitch.
We will install our waterproof and insulation system on your roof in a matter of days, 5 or 10 days. You will not stress, not have too many people around and noise during the process.
Installing Liviatecho has solved some very big problems for my beloved customers throughout the years.
Your benefits will be:
- less heat
- zero leakings
- less rain noises
- better temperature distribution inside your house
- less electrical expenses on A/C
- no maintenance
- a safer roof because it’s very difficult to cut or break for any thief
- better aesthetics
Don’t loose anymore time. Contact me. I am Luciano Felicetti, your italian roofer in Panama.
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