Epdm Rubber Roof Question

letscut

hi i am going to be bidding a epdm rubber roof about 35 squares flat roof with no pretusions it has a foam roof with i believe conklin coating i the owner does not want old roof tore off i am going to install a 1/2 hdfb then the rubber what do you think about any moisture in the old roof and what kind of labor warranty would you give i have done alot of rubber work but here in kansas we give a 2 year labor work warranty and A 5 YEAR MATERIAL WARRANTY the reason i ask i see alot of you are giving 10 year labor warranty around here you just don't see that though in 10 years i have never had a leak or a shingle blow off i know one day i will knock on wood i would also like to say there are a few of you that realy do know what nyou are talking about and i am glad i joined this sight thgis is for grumpy, darryl and aron do you guys live on this site lol

darryl

Roofing is my life lol we have problems with epdm in sunny florida so we don't use it we are commercial contractors dealing with hot asphalt and modified we have replaced all types of roofing material, most of the problems are with the installations contractors or so called contractors that do not know what they are doing. Therefore I'm a big believer in tearing off the existing roof covering down to the deck and start from scratch a little more expensive but well worth it in the long run, just a small wager if you put that epdm on over the existing I'm willing to bet that it will leak again lol I'm not saying that your a bad contractor but the facts are down here that most roofovers will leak again.

jmorgan

If you're going to recover, you had better make sure there is NO moisture in the system. If this old foam roof is leaking...there is moisture in the system. When I used to do big, flat work, I took roof cuts every 10 sqs. When we found wet areas, the old roof/insulation was torn off there. The 10 yr warranties they are talking about are mfr material & labor warranties from the mfr. You need to be approved by the mfr to get one. They all have a 50 sq minimum, though. I would NEVER go over old poly foam roof.
Jim

AaronB.

From what I understand of it, polyurethane foam is a closed cell foam and does not absorb moisture itself. You may have areas of trapped water, but not absorbed into the insulation.

WHy not tear off? It is ALWAYS best to tear it off and do a proper job. I would be weary of this.

I only live here in my off time.

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roofstuff

Encountered an EPDM roof once which had bubbles resembling small hills, about 20-40 ft. wide, 1.5 ft. high in the middle. I imagine it was moisture under the rubber which had expanded the whole thing as it heated up. All the rock had just rolled off.

Teetorbilt

Aaron, Polyurethane foam is available in both open and closed cell. I have seen lots of closed cell absorb water despite what it is 'supposed' to do.

roofstuff

Have seen the same thing.