Infrared Roof Moisture Survey
Wet insulation does not announce itself. It quietly stops insulating, adds weight, corrodes the deck below, and spreads outward from a failure that may be nowhere near the drip in the ceiling. Infrared is how you find its extent without cutting the roof open in thirty places.
- Free to post
- No commission on the job
- Part 107 certified pilots
117 inspection pilots ready to quoteAcross 37 states & regions
Extent, not just location
The reason to scan rather than probe is that you get the shape of the wet area across the whole roof in one pass. That is what turns a leak into a costed decision: patch the two wet bays, replace the north third, or replace the roof.
It works because water is slow
Wet insulation stores more heat than dry insulation and gives it back more slowly. After a sunny day, the wet areas are still warm when the dry roof around them has cooled — which is why the survey is flown after sunset, not at noon.
Marked up and measurable
The useful deliverable is not an infrared picture. It is the anomalies mapped onto a plan of the roof with areas quantified, so a contractor can price the work and you can compare that price to a replacement.
Free to post
Posting and receiving quotes costs nothing, and SkyLog takes no commission and adds no markup. You pay the pilot you hire, at the price the two of you agree.
What this settles
- Maps areas of a low-slope roof where the insulation is holding water, as outlined anomalies with areas totalled.
- Works best on built-up, modified bitumen and single-ply assemblies with absorbent insulation under the membrane.
- Gives you a repeatable baseline: flown the same way every few years, it tracks a roof's decline rather than just describing today.
- Targets a repair, so you replace the wet areas rather than the whole roof.
What it does not
- Work on a wet roof, in wind, or before the surface has had solar gain to give back. It is a dry, calm, post-sunset survey or it is nothing.
- Read ballasted roofs, inverted assemblies, or closed-cell insulation that absorbs little water.
- Distinguish trapped moisture from a duct below the deck, a patch of different age, or debris — not on its own.
- Stand as a finding without verification. An anomaly is a temperature difference until a moisture meter or a core cut says otherwise.
Ask how verification is handled and who does it. A scan delivered with no verification and no caveats is a hypothesis presented as a finding.
How it works
Three steps, no account needed to start, and nothing to pay at any point in it.
- 1
Describe the job
The form opens with this page's answers already filled in — service, deliverable, site access. Add the location and anything specific to your site.
- 2
Pilots quote it
Every pilot whose service area and services match is notified. You get itemised quotes back with their credentials, kit and sample work attached.
- 3
Compare and hire
Pick on price, proximity or portfolio, and pay the pilot directly. SkyLog takes no cut and adds no markup to what you agree.
Inspection pilots with published profiles
Real published profiles. Open any one to see credentials, kit, service area and sample work before you post.
chris aldridge
Texas, United States
20 work samples
I’m a commercial drone pilot providing aerial mapping, property line overlays, topographic mapping, construction site data, radiometric thermal inspections, 3D modeling, real estate listing photography and video, property marketing, and professional aerial imagery for businesses and landowners.
Real estateWeddingEventInspectionMapping / surveyFilm / TVConstructionOther- George Benes
Oregon, United States
13 work samples
I've been a Part 107 drone pilot since 2019, working with Pacific Northwest clients on Real estate, construction progress, mapping, telecom inspections, architectural photography and events. I am very flexible and can provide deliverables within 24 - 48 hours. I take great pride in my work and having a photography business, my delivered photos are edited and culled to the best of the best. I worked for 30+ years as a commercial construction Superintendent, managing multi-million dollar construction projects and this experience allows me to be very safety oriented and knowledgeable on construction sites, providing the construction companies with usable deliverables that they can share with all stakeholders involved in their building project.
Real estateEventInspectionMapping / surveyConstruction 
Andy Jones
California, United States
12 work samples
FAA Part 107 Certified Remote Pilot based in Southern California, specializing in construction documentation, infrastructure inspections, mapping, orthomosaics, and aerial imagery. With more than two decades of experience managing complex federal construction projects, I understand the importance of accuracy, safety, and delivering actionable data—not just photos. I operate professional DJI Enterprise aircraft, including the DJI Matrice 4E, DJI Matrice 4T, as well as the DJI Air 3S for high-resolution imaging and the DJI Neo 2 for specialized close-range operations. My services include construction progress documentation, roof and property inspections, land development, infrastructure photography, photogrammetry, mapping, and custom aerial imaging. I also conduct search operations for lost pets using aerial search techniques and thermal imaging. Every mission is conducted in compliance with FAA regulations, with careful mission planning, clear communication, and a commitment to delivering high-quality results on schedule. Whether you need a single inspection or recurring project documentation, my goal is to provide reliable aerial data you can confidently use to make decisions.
Real estateEventInspectionMapping / surveyConstructionAgricultureOtherFilm / TVWedding
George Colonna
Maryland, United States
12 work samples
Started flying drones for General Dynamics Robotics Systems in 2009 as the subject matter expert and lead test engineer for RCTA and a program called the Soldier Machine Interface. We developed leader/follower code for up-armored autonomous assets a full decade before Google fielded their driverless car "train" and a UI that let soldiers/marines plan missions on the ground and in the air. My job was to ensure the software worked, more importantly, met customer requirements. Working in the field afforded me a wealth of experience regarding process and implementation, but also how to think critically and resolve issues on the fly. If interested in learning more about my credentials, please see my website. My current fleet is primarily DJI and Autel. I have RTK capability and a complete field kit to sustain remote operations for several days.
InspectionMapping / surveyConstructionOtherFilm / TV- K Enagonio
Tennessee, United States
10 work samples
I've been flying since 2015 and specialize in both cinematic filmmaking as well as surveying, construction, sensitive infrastructure capture, and music videos and events.
Film / TVConstructionInspectionEventAgricultureReal estateMapping / surveyOther 
Casey Jones
Arizona, United States
9 work samples
FAA Part 107 commercial drone pilot specializing in RTK mapping, aerial photography, thermal imaging, property documentation, construction progress, and detailed site capture. I operate professional DJI aircraft including the Matrice 4E and Matrice 4T, with RTK capability for repeatable, high-quality data collection. I approach each assignment as a complete mission, from airspace and site planning through safe flight operations, field verification, data handling, and final delivery. I serve clients throughout the California, Nevada, and Arizona tri-state region and am available for both individual assignments and multi-site projects.
Real estateEventMapping / surveyConstructionAgricultureOtherInspection
Inspection pilots by state
The conditions this needs
More than most aerial work, this survey is a weather and timing problem. It needs a dry roof — a rained-on surface reads uniformly cool and hides everything. It needs meaningful solar gain during the day, so the roof has something to give back. It needs low wind, because wind carries away the surface temperature difference the whole method depends on. And it needs to be flown in the window after sunset while the differential is at its strongest. That combination is not available on demand, and a survey booked for a specific evening sometimes has to move. Building the possibility of a second attempt into the arrangement up front is cheaper and less annoying than discovering it on the night.
What kind of roof this suits
It works best on low-slope commercial roofs with absorbent insulation under a membrane — the built-up, modified bitumen and single-ply assemblies most flat roofs use. It is much less reliable on ballasted roofs, where the stone hides the thermal signature, on inverted assemblies with insulation above the membrane, and on roofs with closed-cell insulation that absorbs little water. Standing water on the surface will mask what is underneath, and a heavily reflective new membrane can be awkward. A pilot who asks about the roof build-up before quoting is asking the right question.
Verification is part of the method, not an extra
An infrared anomaly is a temperature difference, and temperature differences have other causes: a duct beneath the deck, a change in insulation type, a patch of a different age, debris. This is why a survey worth commissioning includes verification — physically confirming a sample of the flagged areas with a moisture meter or a core cut before anyone acts on the map. Ask how verification is handled and who does it. A scan delivered with no verification and no caveats is a hypothesis being presented as a finding.
What the report should contain
A plan of the roof with anomalies outlined and areas totalled. Radiometric thermal imagery, not screenshots, so the data can be re-examined later. Matching daylight visual imagery of the same areas, because half of what infrared flags is explained by something visible. The survey conditions — date, time, sky, wind, roof surface state — since anyone reading the report later needs to know whether the conditions supported the conclusion. And where verification was done, the results. Given that these surveys are often repeated every few years to track a roof's decline, the ability to compare like with like is worth specifying from the first one.
Common questions
How much does an infrared roof survey cost?
It is priced by roof area and by how much reporting and verification is included, so a small commercial roof and a warehouse are very different jobs. Inspection quotes on SkyLog have run from $100 to about $1,550 with a $300 median across 13 quotes, spanning all inspection types — commercial roof surveys sit at the upper end of that. Post the roof size and the deliverable you need for a real figure.
Why does it have to be at night?
Because the method relies on wet areas cooling more slowly than dry ones after the sun goes down. During the day, solar loading swamps that difference. The usual window is the few hours after sunset.
Will it work on my roof?
It suits low-slope roofs with absorbent insulation under the membrane. It is unreliable on ballasted roofs, inverted assemblies and closed-cell insulation, and it will not read through standing water. Say what the roof is built from when you post and pilots will tell you honestly.
Is aerial better than a walked survey?
It is faster, it covers the whole roof in one consistent capture, and nobody has to walk a possibly compromised surface at night. A walked infrared survey can get closer to detail and can carry a moisture meter at the same time. For a large roof the common answer is to fly the survey and walk the verification.
Do I need to be there?
Someone with roof access usually does, particularly if verification is part of the scope. Say what the access arrangements are when you post, because an evening flight at a site that locks at six is a scheduling problem worth raising early.
How often should this be repeated?
Many owners scan on a two-to-five-year cycle, and more often on a roof already known to be failing. The comparison between surveys is where the value compounds, so ask for deliverables in a form you will be able to compare against next time.
Related drone services
Post your roof moisture survey free
Give the roof size and build-up and what you have seen inside. Pilots with radiometric thermal payloads will quote you.
- No commission, ever
- Part 107 certified pilots
- No obligation to hire
Prices and guidance on this page were last reviewed .