How to prolong the life of your old bituminous membranes
Theodoros Yfantidis
Exports Director | Building Peace of Mind in the Construction Sector
Imagine this. After a long time you decide to visit the roof at your building. Omg...You don't believe your eyes. You need to do something urgently, as the old bituminous membranes you have, seem to count their days.
So what are you supposed to do? One of the most promising solutions is the following and guess what. You do not need to remove anything.
- Clean thorougly the surface.
- Repair the old bituminous membranes wherever they are "injured". Pay special attention at the seams. They need to be super repaired and adhered to the substrate.
- Apply an epoxy water based primer. You need to do that for two reasons. First, so as to stabilise the mineral chipping on the bituminous membranes. Second, so as to provide a bonding layer for the subsequent PU membrane.
- Apply the first layer of a liquid applied #PU membrane.
- While it is still fresh, lay a polyester fleece of at least 60 g/m2 all over the surface. This will ensure that the stresses developed will not allow the bituminous membrane (especially at the seams) to raise the PU membrane.
- Apply the second layer of the #polyurethane membrane.
Tip 1: If you want to enjoy this waterproofing for 20+ years, you should also apply an #aliphatic top coat. It possesses a high UV resistance and it will allow the whole waterproofing system to live that long.
Tip 2: Maintenance is always very important. Please, either you or a crew should visit periodically the roof and inspect the condition of the waterproofing membranes. Small repairs now can prevent big expenditures later.
All comments are welcome. #BuildingPeaceOfMind
28 years of waterproofing and the passion continues. Waterproofing Consultant | Service provider | Trainer | Flooring solutions| Repairs| Retrofits| Concrete Strengthening
8 年The life of bituminous membranes can be extended with a coat of bituminous aluminium paint over it. This reflects the heat and increases the life of the membrane. This may need to be done once in two years as maintenance. Commercially very cheap. I have shared my earlier post of a similar work, with pictures since I didn't know how to paste the picture here in the reply box.
Manager, International Sales Building Materials
8 年I have another comment considering the Epoxy primer for discussion where 20Years Life Extension is considered . The PU top coat is somehow flexible but will not provide thermal insulation Bituminous Waterproof Membrane is Flexible , Epoxy primer is rigid and during cyclic thermal differential movement the Epoxy primer may crack or the membrane . I believe It is better to look for an alternative flexible primer over the membrane rather than Epoxy.
Manager, International Sales Building Materials
8 年Thank You Theodoros for your valuable input and please allow me to comment as follows I agree on the method used of Water Base Epoxy + PU Coating + UV Barrier as extra waterproof protection but this depends on overall cost Vs replacing the existing membrane or other alternative coatings on case by case basis and region. No Bituminous Waterproofing Membrane is left exposed to UV in first place as this will get the membrane oxidised and lose its Flexibility. there might be a protective layer over the existing membrane that might require removing it to allow proper bond with Water Base Epoxy , Removing this layer by mechanical means may damage the membrane itself and Increase the cost . Therefore Investigating type of protection over the membrane for compatibility with Epoxy is essential. Yet , the cost of Repairing the existing membrane , epoxy Primer , PU coating + UV protection might exceed the cost of replacing the whole membrane with a new one , at least in our Gulf Region , as Waterproofing membranes are at commodity price while Epoxies and Pu are extremely expensive. Other Waterproofing methods may include Sand / Dust Filter over the membrane to protect it against friction then Slopes with Light Weight Concrete then Tiles ...etc . Removing all these layers to treat the membrane , then fix them back will be very costly. In this case , the suggestion of engineer Theodoros system direct over the tiles might be very effective , Alternatively for lower cost budget applying Acrylic Cementitious coating will do the same effect but would require overcoating after 3 to 5 years . While considering the solutions , costs of time and labor charges might have a big influence on overall cost in some regions like Europe. Thank You
National Sales Head @ COIM Group | Sales Management| New Business Development | Customer Centric Innovation |
8 年Theodoros Yfantidis Well written article and perfect .My rating 10/10