Inspection

See the whole building before anyone climbs

Drone inspection puts a camera where a ladder, lift or rope team would otherwise go first. You get a complete, dated record of the condition, and the professional who signs off gets better evidence to work from.

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What drone inspection is

A screening and documentation tool, done properly

A drone inspection is a planned flight that captures high-resolution photos, video and, when the job calls for it, radiometric thermal images of a roof, wall, solar array, tower or storm-damaged property. The aircraft does not diagnose anything. It gathers evidence, systematically and from angles that are slow, costly or dangerous to reach any other way.

That distinction matters. A roofer, building envelope consultant, engineer, thermographer or adjuster still interprets the images and signs the report. What changes is the quality of what they work from: every slope, every elevation, every panel row, captured in one visit, with location and date attached. Instead of a handful of phone photos from the eaves, the reviewer gets overlapping images of the whole surface and can go back to any spot later.

It also changes the order of work. Fly first, and the scaffold, lift or rope access crew goes only where the images say there is a problem. For owners, that usually means fewer surprises in the quote and a shorter time with people at height. For the people doing the hands-on work, it means they arrive knowing where to look.

DroneLink handles six kinds of inspection work, each with its own page: roofs, building envelope and facades, thermal, solar, telecom and utilities and insurance claims. On Vancouver Island the flights are flown by Elite Drone Solutions, a Transport Canada certified team with Advanced Operations certification. Elsewhere, tell us where the building is; we confirm a certified local operator before you commit.

A screening and documentation tool, done properly: Illustration

Types of inspection

What the drone captures, and who makes the call

Inspection	What the flight captures	Who interprets and signs off
Roofs	Every slope and penetration in detail: shingles, membranes, flashing, gutters, skylights, rooftop units	Roofer, home inspector, building envelope consultant
Building envelope and facades	Systematic elevation-by-elevation images of cladding, sealant, balconies, windows, parapets	Building envelope consultant, engineer, architect, qualified facade inspector
Thermal	Radiometric images showing surface temperature patterns: wet roof insulation, heat loss, air leakage	Certified thermographer, envelope consultant, roofing consultant
Solar	Thermal hotspots, strings offline, soiling, cracked glass, vegetation and shading	Solar O&M technician, electrical contractor, asset owner's engineer
Telecom and utilities	Antennas, mounts, hardware, corrosion, conductors and insulators from a safe standoff	Tower engineer, utility asset team, qualified line crew
Insurance claims	Dated evidence of hail, wind, tree and storm damage across the full roof and exterior	Adjuster, insurer, restoration contractor

What goes wrong

Where inspections usually fall apart

Nobody looked at the whole roof

A walk-on inspection on a steep or fragile roof is often cut short for safety. Photos cover what was easy to reach, and the report says 'limited access'.

How we handle itA drone captures every slope from above and close in, without anyone on the surface. The reviewer decides what needs a hands-on visit. →

Scaffold goes up before anyone knows where the problems are

Access equipment is booked for the whole building, then most of the time is spent on elevations in good condition.

How we handle itFly the elevations first. Your consultant marks the areas that need close-up work and the access plan shrinks to match. →

Thermal images that prove nothing

Thermal flown mid-afternoon in the wrong season shows sun-loading and reflections, not moisture or heat loss.

How we handle itWe plan thermal around temperature difference, time of day, wind and surface moisture, and tell you when conditions will not support the result you need. →

Photos scattered across emails and phones

The roofer has some, the property manager has others, the adjuster asks for them again, and nobody knows which set is current.

How we handle itEvery flight and deliverable sits in one DroneLink project record, shared by link. That is live today. →

Last year's inspection cannot be compared to this year's

Different angles, different photographer, no reference points. You cannot tell if a crack has grown.

How we handle itWe repeat flight plans where the site allows and keep each visit in the same project record. Side-by-side comparison between flights in the viewer is coming. →

The people around the job

Who needs what from whom

Property manager or strata council

They need from you: A clear record of condition for the owners, the depreciation report or reserve fund study, and planning the next repair.
You need from them: Roof and building access, a site contact, and notice to residents about the flight.
On the DroneLink record: They approve the images in the DroneLink project and forward the link to their consultant instead of a folder of attachments.

Roofer or envelope consultant

They need from you: Complete, sharp, well-lit images of every surface and detail, with the location of each one clear.
You need from them: Their checklist of what to capture, and any areas they already suspect.
On the DroneLink record: They pin comments directly on images in the review tool, and we reshoot anything they flag.

Insurer or adjuster

They need from you: Dated, unaltered evidence of damage and the overall condition of the building.
You need from them: Claim number, date of loss, and the scope they want documented.
On the DroneLink record: The project record keeps each flight dated and every version tracked, so the evidence trail is clean.

Neighbours and tenants

They need from you: To know why a drone is overhead and that their privacy is respected.
You need from them: Nothing, except patience for a short flight.
On the DroneLink record: We plan camera angles to stay on the subject building and brief the site contact to answer questions.

How a job runs

From request to report

Tell us the building and the question

Address, what you need to find out, who will read the result, and any deadline. 'Check the roof' and 'find the source of the leak in unit 402' are very different flights.

Site and airspace check

The pilot reviews airspace, nearby airports and heliports, obstacles, people, and any permission needed. Near an airport or in controlled airspace, that means an authorization request through NAV CANADA or, in the US, LAANC or an FAA authorization.

Plan the capture

We agree camera type (visual, thermal or both), distance, overlap and angles with the professional who will interpret the images.

Fly

The crew sets a take-off area clear of the public, flies the plan and checks coverage before leaving. Thermal work may be early morning or after sunset.

Review and approve

Images land in the DroneLink project. You and your consultant review them, pin comments on specific spots, and request reshoots.

Deliver

Final images, video, thermal files and any orthomosaic or 3D model are delivered by link, in formats your professional's software opens.

What you can receive

Typical inspection deliverables

Full-resolution still images, organized by elevation, slope or asset
Close-up detail images of flagged items, with a wider shot for context
Radiometric thermal images that keep the temperature data for later analysis
Walk-around or orbit video for context and for owners who will not read a report
Orthomosaic of a roof or site, and 3D models when measurement matters
A project record with every flight dated, shareable by link, with comments and version history

Rules and credentials

What the pilot needs, in Canada and the US

In Canada, commercial and recreational drone flights fall under Part IX of the Canadian Aviation Regulations. Most inspection work near buildings, in cities or near airports needs a pilot with an Advanced Operations certificate, a registered drone suitable for the operation, and permission from NAV CANADA to enter controlled airspace. Rules changed on November 4, 2025, adding new privileges such as sheltered operations close to structures and some beyond-visual-line-of-sight work under a new certificate. Check the current rules on our Canadian drone rules guide.

In the United States, commercial flights fall under FAA Part 107. The pilot holds a Remote Pilot Certificate, the drone is registered, and flights in controlled airspace need LAANC or FAA authorization. Cities and states add their own rules about where drones can take off and land. See US drone rules.

A pilot certificate is not an inspection qualification. It means the flight is legal and safe. The judgment about what the images mean belongs to the licensed or certified professional in that field, and a good drone team knows where that line is.

What the pilot needs, in Canada and the US: Illustration

Questions

Can a drone inspection replace a roofer or building inspector?

No. A drone captures the evidence, and a qualified professional interprets it and signs the report. What it replaces is the risky, partial access that used to come first, so the hands-on visit is shorter and targeted.

How long does a drone inspection take?

A house roof is usually a short flight. A mid-rise facade, a solar farm or a set of towers takes longer, and thermal work is tied to a specific window of weather and time of day. We give you a time estimate once we know the building and the question.

Do I need permission to fly a drone over my building?

You can give permission for your own property, but the pilot still needs the right certificate and airspace authorization, and must keep required distances from people who are not involved. Near airports, heliports or in city centres, extra authorization is common in both Canada and the US.

What drives the cost of a drone inspection?

Building size and height, number of elevations, whether thermal is needed, airspace permissions, travel, and how much processing or reporting you want. A one-slope visual check and a full thermal envelope survey are different jobs.

Can a drone inspect in the rain or wind?

Visual inspections need dry, reasonably calm weather for safe flight and sharp images. Thermal work has stricter requirements on wind, sun and surface moisture. If the conditions will not support a useful result, we reschedule rather than fly a bad survey.

Who owns the inspection images?

You agree on it before the flight. The images sit in your DroneLink project record and you share them by link with the people who need them.

Do you inspect outside Vancouver Island?

Tell us where the building is. We confirm a certified local operator in our network before you commit, and the work runs through the same project record.

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