Membrane Roof Repair?

[Wee Hooker]

Anyone out there have experience with a shallow pitch membrane roof?
I'm in the process of helping my son buy a small cottage with an aged (20 yr?) asphalt membrane roof. The roof underpayment (ply) is solid but the surface /membrane has a few small leaks. The roof has some varying pitches so re-sheeting it is not a do it yourself job (at least not for me.) I've called 4 contractors and no-one seems interested in looking at it.
SO, I'm thinking of just rolling a coat (or two) of sealer on it to try to get a half dozen years out of it.
Anyone have any pointers/recommendations on poducts and/or how to go about the project?

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Do not put a sealer on that roof!!! You will cause future repairs and installation a mountain of work, which costs your son money!

Repairs are very simple. There will be a membrane roof supplier in the phone book. They will have all the supplies you need, including any sized scraps of membrane! I put a repair kit together in a orange crate for repairs up to 2 feet square.

Small cracks and holes up to 3/4" can be filled with membrane seam sealer. It comes in the standard caulking tubes. If the are dusty or full of debris, sweep or blow them out first. Then use membrane seam cleaner and a paint brush or rag, dries in a few minutes, then caulk.

For serious holes and damage. (These principles apply to huge areas or smaller.) Locate the leak/puncture. It can be from firework after the 4th of July, New Years celebratory gun fire or even falling meteors! Trim off any puckers that are sticking up and if necessary repair the roof deck and insulation. Then cut a piece of membrane 2 inches bigger on each side of the hole. It can be square, round, or any shape you please. Lay the patch over the damage and mark the outline, this helps make sure you are centered. Pull the patch off and clean the 2 inch border of the roof and the patch, allow to dry. Put patch back over damaged area and make sure it is wrinkle free. Now fold back the patch a little over half way, and paint the cleaned edged with seam cement (some brand need to dry first, some brands work tacky) fold the patch carefully back over damage. Now fold the other half over what you just finished and repeat. Seal the edge of the repair with the appropriate sealer.

Tools needed: rags, some disposable paint brushes, utility knife, caulking gun tape measurer, and a way up to the roof.

Once you have done one you will find it goes almost as fast as you read this! Do a few, and you can start a small job repair business. I set #2 son up for this as a college money maker, but he works with computers, not his hands. #3 son does this all the time at the college he works at as a maintenance supervisor.

If you have questions, ASK IN PERSON at the supplier and buy what they say!

Hope this works out for you and you son

Ivan

 

[richardw]

Ivan the Butcher's advice is good. I know a fellow who fif his own repairs that way and got ten more years out of the roof by repairing it as needed.

 

[Wee Hooker]

Thanks for that advice. I never thought about just laying patch's down. I thought the sealer would do a better job to be honest.

That said, the only supplier I found in my area to date is Home Depot. I'm not sure they can be of any help.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

Home Depot is not a roofing supplier! I don't know where in New England you are, but there options all over!

 

[richardw]

Forget Home Depot. They will try to sell you rubber roof sealant. That is not what you want.

All trades and business types have associations of some sort. Search the Internet for a roofers association or union. Call them and ask where you can find roofing supplies.

If you search YouTube for Neoprene Roof Patching, you will find several good videos about the process.

 

[dave holl]

Do a search for a product called "ETERNABOND". It is a rubber roofing product with a peel-away revealing a tenacious adhesive. It is available in different widths and lengths, and can be applied in wet or dry conditions.

I have used it to patch a rubber roof just like yours on my house, and the roof on my 5th wheel camper.

Excellent product. Sounds like just what you need.
Dave

 

[Rule3]

There are several "types" of membranes

The common ones around here on flat roofs is Modified Bitumen
There are also rubber/synthetic. type

You say asphalt??

They are usual hot mopped, or if replaced they roll out the membrane, torch it to seam it and then apply a coating. Any Roof Company should know about these??

 

[Wee Hooker]

There are several "types" of membranes

The common ones around here on flat roofs is Modified Bitumen
There are also rubber/synthetic. type

You say asphalt??

They are usual hot mopped, or if replaced they roll out the membrane, torch it to seam it and then apply a coating. Any Roof Company should know about these??

I say asphalt because that's what the profesional home inspector called it. It does look like it has had something "mopped " over it. Either when new or over the years.

If(!!) I could get a roof repair company out there to look at it, I'd likely just pay them to do whatever it needs to get us through the next 6-10 years. (then the house comes down anyway.) There is a "to do " list on this property that is a mile long. I'd rather focus my time on stuff I am handy with (carpentry, painting, plumbing and elec.) than messing with something that is completely foreign to me.

Funny thing is that I went into debt and built a new one story low maintenance house 5 years back so I wouldn't have to be dealing with nasty stuff like this in retirement. Ah, the stuff we do for our kids!

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

"The stuff we do for our kids!"

If you're lucky enough to have them close buy. The one that needs help remodeling is 411 miles away! and to make matters worse he has the newest grand kid! It's blackmail, I tell you!!!

Ivan

 

[Muss Muggins]

Why does "the house come down anyway . . . " ? ? ?

I say asphalt because that's what the profesional home inspector called it. It does look like it has had something "mopped " over it. Either when new or over the years.

If(!!) I could get a roof repair company out there to look at it, I'd likely just pay them to do whatever it needs to get us through the next 6-10 years. (then the house comes down anyway.) There is a "to do " list on this property that is a mile long. I'd rather focus my time on stuff I am handy with (carpentry, painting, plumbing and elec.) than messing with something that is completely foreign to me.

Funny thing is that I went into debt and built a new one story low maintenance house 5 years back so I wouldn't have to be dealing with nasty stuff like this in retirement. Ah, the stuff we do for our kids!

 

[rwsmith]

The one that we had in my workplace....

...you just laid a piece overlapping the next and shine a heat gun on it and it fuses together. It's a good system IF you don't have idiots poking holes in them. We had a guy that threw his tools on the roof from the next level.

Also, it's good to have allowance for foot traffic if there is any at all You had to cross the membrane roof to get to everyplace else and it will damage it.

I thought the roof was great, but it had a big flaw. The penetrations were PVC or some such and the membrane wouldn't bond with them to seal. Pretty stinky if you ask me. Cut a hole to go over the penetration, stick the edge to the other membrane and seal the part against the PVC. The system that you have may actually be worked out better. I see some systems use solvent for a sealer instead of heat.

I can see that some people wouldn't want to mess with it. I thought that membrane roofs would catch on big time, but they aren't as popular as I thought they would be.

 

[catadjuster]

That looks like a built-up roof system to me. Especially if the inspector said something about asphalt. If that is the case, then none of the rubberized patching materials will work properly for a spot repair.

If it is a built up ply system, then an asphalt flood would be an appropriate repair; but not likely a good DIY project.