Alvin holds the United States record for rainfall in 24 hours: 43 inches, set during Tropical Storm Claudette in July 1979. For a roofing company that is not a piece of local colour, it is the design case. It means the sizing question here is not how much rain falls in a year, it is how much can arrive in an afternoon, and that shifts the emphasis from the panel system to the drainage attached to it.
In an event of that intensity the roof itself usually performs. What fails is the drainage. Gutters overflow at the eave and put water straight against the foundation, valleys back up where they were sized for ordinary rain, and downspouts discharge faster than the ground can take. We size gutters and discharge for burst intensity on Alvin properties and look at where water goes once it leaves the roof, which is a conversation we do not have in the same way in Tomball.
Alvin is also in Brazoria County rather than Harris, and lots run larger than the suburbs closer in. Shops, barns and detached garages are common here and they are a different, simpler and cheaper job than the house.
Around Alvin
We regularly work near:
- 📍Alvin High School
- 📍Alvin Community College
- 📍Nolan Ryan Museum
- 📍Brazoria County Fairgrounds
- 📍Mustang Bayou
Metal Roofs Houston in Alvin — Local Notes
- •Alvin holds the US 24-hour rainfall record at 43 inches from Tropical Storm Claudette in 1979, so drainage here is sized for burst intensity rather than annual totals.
- •Gutter and downspout capacity fails before the roof does in extreme events, which is why discharge sizing and ground routing get specific attention on these jobs.
- •Alvin is in Brazoria County, so permits come from the City of Alvin or Brazoria County, never Harris.
- •Larger rural and semi-rural lots mean barns, shops and detached garages are a common part of the work, usually as simpler exposed-fastener systems.
- •Open ground south of town gives wind a clear run, so ridge and gable-end fastening is upgraded relative to sheltered inner-city streets.