Rooftop Technology Detects Rising Water

By Karen L. Edwards, RCS Editor.

Smart Drain helps building owners proactively manage their roofs.

In this Roofing Roadtrips with Heidi podcast, she talks with Tremco’s Ashley Cooper, Knovi Monitoring Technology product manager, to learn more about the innovative Knovi Smart Drain. Having worked for several years as the service manager for a national roofing company, Ashley understands the problems that clogged rooftop drains can cause – a problem she saw on a regular basis. 

She also shares the story behind the naming of Knovi saying, “Knovi actually spelled N-O-V-I is Latin for being in the know. We added the K, because essentially Knovi monitoring technology is being in the know of your roof.”

Attached to rooftop drains, SmartDrain sensors detect that water levels are rising; the building’s manager will receive an email or text notification letting them know exactly which drain is clogged.  Ashley shares that this is a game changer for contractors and building owners because it allows them to address an issue proactively. “I've seen roof drains be clogged and go unnoticed for weeks, even months at a time, and the damage goes from being something minor, to something completely major,” she shares with Heidi. The SmartDrain sensors pinpoints the exact drain having an issue, this naturally will save time and money on service calls.

With water damage being a major cause behind insurance claims, some of the building owners using this technology have reached out to their insurance companies and are seeing a lowering of their premium.

To get the full scoop on this exciting rooftop technology and to learn how it works, you’ll want to listen to the full podcast on RCS.