Extend roof life with restoration solutions

November 3, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.

By Henry®, a Carlisle Company.

Provide coatings options that repair, protect and renew aging roofs for long-term performance.

Replacing a commercial roof is a major investment that can disrupt operations and drain budgets. However, roof coatings offer property owners an effective way to restore and protect existing roof systems without the expense and downtime of a full replacement. These advanced coatings form a seamless, waterproof barrier that seals small cracks, enhances durability and reflects harmful UV rays to reduce heat absorption and energy costs. By choosing a trusted solution from Henry®, a Carlisle Company, you can help building owners extend the life of their roof, improve performance and save thousands in maintenance and energy expenses.

Here are five ways a roof coating extends the roof’s lifespan and saves money:

1 – Roof coatings protect against water and wind damage

Water intrusion represents the leading cause of roof failure. Excess moisture often seeps in through tiny cracks in the roof and creates a path of destruction along the roof, into the walls and often spills over onto the contents. Mold takes root, emitting toxic spores into the air, while the wet conditions weaken the infrastructure.

Roof restoration systems prevent water damage by creating a waterproof membrane that repels water in even extreme conditions, such as heavy rain, snow and ice. Additionally, high-performance commercial roof solutions also protect against wind damage. In hurricane-prone areas, they provide an extra layer of security by reducing the risk of wind damage, flying debris and leaks during storms.

2 – Roof coatings deflect ultraviolet rays

Nearly every day, the sun beats down on your roof. If you depend on a traditional roof to protect the building, you will soon see how the constant onslaught of ultraviolet (UV) rays erodes your roof, causing cracks and fading.

Instead of absorbing UV rays like many traditional roofing materials, reflective roof coatings — such as acrylic and silicone — deflect UV radiation. As a result, they help block heat absorption and prevent roofing materials from degrading.

By reducing UV-related damage, roof coatings help maintain the flexibility and longevity of roofs, especially in areas with intense sunlight.

Learn about the roof restoration system that restored a 41-acre roof at the New Orleans Convention Center.

3 – Roof coatings reduce energy consumption and costs

Designed to minimize sun and heat-related damage, white roof coatings reflect visible light, infrared radiation and ultraviolet radiation. These reflective roof coatings reduce the overall temperature within the building while minimizing the sun's damaging effects on the roof's surface.

How heat-reflective roof coatings turn a hot roof into a cool roof

Traditional roofs can be considered hot roofs because they absorb sunlight, which heats up the inside temperature. Cool roofs can reverse this effect by deflecting the sun’s harmful rays. Government research organizations define a cool roof as a roof comprised of a material or coating that can lower the roof’s surface temperature and the amount of heat transferred into the building.

The government describes a cool roof as a roof with high solar reflectance that keeps the roof and the building cooler. A cool roof can also release or emit heat (infrared radiation), which is known as high thermal emittance.

White and light-colored roof coatings are considered cool roofs because they reflect the sun's heat.

According to Energy Star, “an ideal cool roof is a roof with both high solar reflectance (SR) and high thermal emittance (TE). While lighter color roofs tend to have the best SR and TE, new coating and material technologies now exist for other colors that have high SR and TE.”

If you depend on air conditioning to keep the building comfortable, you will find these energy-efficient roof coatings particularly beneficial. By lowering roof temperatures, roof coatings reduce indoor cooling demands and energy consumption. This proves particularly beneficial for commercial buildings with substantial cooling costs. Even if your building is located in an area where air conditioning is not standard, you will appreciate how sustainable roofing materials reduce heat absorption and help keep indoor temperatures more comfortable.

“Cool roofs — roofs that stay cool in the sun by minimizing solar absorption and maximizing thermal emission — lessen the flow of heat from the roof into the building, reducing the need for space cooling energy in conditioned buildings.” According to the research report, the potential benefits of cool roofs on commercial buildings are conserving energy, saving money and reducing the emission of greenhouse gases and air pollutants.

Reflective roof coatings reduce the energy the building uses and alleviates the demand put on the electrical grid, especially during heat waves. As a result, energy-efficient roof coatings help reduce the risk of power outages during peak seasons.

One study claims that retrofitting 80% of the 2.58 billion square meters of U.S. commercial roofing could save $735 million in energy costs annually.

4 – Roof coatings mitigate the urban heat island effect

Cities often feel much hotter than the outlying suburbs and rural areas. Buildings generally have concrete, asphalt and dark-colored roofs. Tall buildings and skyscrapers can block the wind, making it harder for natural breezes to cool the area. Meanwhile, the dense population contributes to the overheated feeling many occupants feel.

Dark-colored roofing materials contribute to higher temperatures in urban communities, a phenomenon the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) classifies as the urban heat island effect.

“Urban areas, where these structures are highly concentrated and greenery is limited, become islands of higher temperatures relative to outlying areas. These pockets of heat are referred to as heat islands." U.S. EPA, What Are Heat Islands?

Energy-efficient roofing helps counteract this effect by reflecting solar energy and reducing heat absorption.

Roof coatings can transform a hot roof into a cool roof, mitigating the urban heat island effect by reflecting solar energy and lowering ambient temperatures. EPA studies show that a cool roof keeps the building 5.59°F cooler than a conventional dark-colored roof.

“On a typical summer afternoon, a clean white roof that reflects 80 percent of sunlight will stay about 55°F cooler than a gray roof that reflects only 20 percent of sunlight, according to Berkley Lab.” Why Cool Roofs are Critical to Urban Resilience, Dupont.

By lowering heat absorption, these sustainable roof coatings enhance roof longevity and support the environment, improving air quality and reducing carbon emissions.

“When it comes to white roofs in flat-roofed areas, there is a compounding effect – many buildings with white coatings can lower ambient air temperatures, which help lower urban air temperatures by reducing the amount of heat transferred from roofs to the air, mitigating the urban heat island effect. Like all cool roofs, white roofs also help decrease heat absorbed at the Earth's surface, which can lower surface temperatures and reduce the flow of heat into the atmosphere – helping to offset warming caused by greenhouse gases. Meanwhile, there are a myriad of health benefits associated with improved air quality.” According to the Dupont report, Why Cool Roofs are Critical to Urban Resilience.

5 – Roof coatings defend against wear and tear

Even the best roofs do not last forever. Most wear out a little at a time, beaten down by daily exposure to bright sunlight, fluctuating temperatures and precipitation. Heavy wind, rain, snow and hail wear down roofs more quickly.

Roof coatings prevent wear and tear by creating a protective barrier against elements that deteriorate the roof, such as UV rays, extreme temperatures and storms, which cause damage, premature aging and failure. In other words, roof coatings act as a sacrificial layer, absorbing the impact of environmental stressors while protecting the underlying structure.

High-quality coatings contain elastomeric resins, allowing them to expand and contract with temperature changes without cracking. This flexibility ensures long-term performance and reduces the likelihood of costly repairs or premature roof replacement.

Roof coatings enable you to protect the roof from daily wear and tear, extending its life and saving thousands in replacement costs and utility bills.

Today, you can choose from several types of roof restoration systems to meet specific climate and performance needs. High-performance roof coatings include: