Florida Building and Facility Maintenance Show - Day 1

Day one has just come to a close for the Florida Building and Facility Maintenance Show. We had a great time talking to many people about their roofing needs. Check out some of the great pictures below. We also had fun with our "Puttin' On The Roof" feature where you can try to sink a put on an actual piece of Firestone modified bitumen cap sheets made with UltraWhite roofing granules. Sound interesting? The show still has one more day. Come by and check it out for yourself...and say hello to the RAMCON team!

Come See Us!!!

We are going to be displaying at and talking with attendees at the 2011 Florida Building and Facility Maintenance Show at the Florida State Fairgrounds Expo Hall. So, come out and visit us, and see how you could possibly win a $50 gift card to any Darden restaurant, or $50 off your next roofing service!

We will be at booth #424, so stop on by, and see how we can help extend the life of your roof!

For more information on the show, feel free to call or email us at 877-726-2661, info@ramconroofing.com.

Talking About Counter-Flashing

All roofs have to end somewhere. Either they terminate at a wall, parapet, expansion joint, metal edge or a tie-in with another roof. In all cases, where the roof ends, there is a weak link. Walls and parapets require vertical flashings. The flashings are generally attached at the top to keep them from sliding down the wall. The flashing attachment is usually screws, concrete fasteners, nails, or some other fastener fastened through a termination bar — a flat strip of metal with pre-punched holes. Termination bars are supposed to provide attachment along its entire length because it will continuously press against the wall.

Most roof manufacturers understand that this is a weak point in the roof and require a counter-flashing. A counter-flashing is a material, usually metal, that covers the upper edge of the flashing to divert water away from it. If the counter-flashing is not properly installed, water can get behind it and the membrane flashings. The counter-flashing then requires a sealant to be applied at the top.

This problem is just a sample of the considerations that need to be addressed in designing, installing and maintaining a roof. A good understanding of how a roof actually works and knowledge of the strengths and limitations of the different types of roofing systems is essential for the long-term performance of any roof system. The roof system should be designed with the particular building in mind, not just which is cheapest.

Protect the Roof from Stress

Where the roof changes plane or terminates at a wall, metal edge, curb or other obstruction, it has the potential to be stressed. The vertical portion of the flashings is especially prone to damage by people on the roof. Ropes hung over the side of the roof for boson chairs or window washer fall protection can abrade the flashing, causing tears and punctures. Unprotected roofing between access doors and ladders and mechanical equipment is subject to premature wear from foot traffic. Dropped tools and debris left behind can cause punctures and tears in the membrane. Simply put, you roof can go through a lot of abuse.

The simplest and best way to protect a roof from this abuse is to limit the traffic on it. If roof access can’t be limited, such as the need to change AC filters, the next best solution is to provide protection at those areas that are the most vulnerable — around the HVAC equipment and the pathways to them. Adding walk pads around each unit will help to minimize the damage to the membrane from excessive wear. When swing stages or boson chairs are used, the contractor should be required to provide protection for the parapet walls. Plywood can be used to protect the field of the roof by spreading out the load on the membrane and by providing a physical barrier to flashing damage.

In asphalt-based roofing systems where the deck is not supported by the walls and the two are allowed to move freely, the flashings can be subject to stresses caused by differential movement between the deck and the parapet walls. The result will be diagonal wrinkles in the flashings that will eventually crack due to material fatigue. This is less a problem with single-ply membranes because their greater flexibility allows them to stretch and relax better with the building movement.

Unfortunately, once the roof is installed, there is no way to protect it from diagonal wrinkling. The only way to minimize damage from the building movement is by proper design of the flashings or by understanding the demands of the construction and to choose a different type of system.

What can you do to stay ahead of roof stress? Make sure all HVAC units and pathways have protective walkway pads. Limit access to the roof as much as possible and utilize your resources at RAMCON to ensure proper design that meets the buildings requirements.

Roof Penetrations Can Be the Weak Link

Every roof has them, and many of us know the headaches they can cause. We’re talking about roof penetrations (vent pipes, drains, pitch pockets), which are often a roof’s weak link. With single-ply membranes, this means a boot or field-formed membrane that is adhered or welded to the roof membrane with a draw band — a metal collar that fits around the protrusion — and sealant at the top. It’s important to ensure that the draw band is tightly attached but does not cut into the flashing and that the sealant at the top is installed with no voids or unadhered sections. The membrane flashings on single ply roofs at pipes and other penetrations, no matter what the material used, are usually the first items on the roof to deteriorate from age and abuse, so careful attention should be paid to the condition of these flashings.

A modified-bitumen or asphalt roof will often use pitch pockets with pourable sealers. Alternatives are goosenecks and perma-flash. Pitch pockets are the most common, with a weak link occurring when the pourable sealer deteriorates and cracks over time. This is accelerated by any movement in the penetration, causing a separation between the penetration and the sealant. Watching for signs of cracks in the sealant in the pitch pocket and around the penetration. Re-sealing these areas routinely will help keep the roof watertight. Your RAMCON technician can ensure that the sealer is filled to the pitch pocket top to keep the penetration from holding water.

With pitch pockets, there can be additional problems. It’s vital that the sealant applied be appropriate for the roofing system. If the sealer used is asphalt or roofing cement, it will shrink over time, causing cracks within the sealer itself or causing it to pull away from the penetration. This leaves a direct path for water to enter the roof. Regular maintenance of the pitch pans includes crowning the sealer to shed water away from the penetration. RAMCON always utilizes stainless steel pitch pockets on our roofing systems, but many contractors do not. If another contractor used galvanized pitch pockets, checking the pan for rust is essential. Wherever the rusting occurs, there will eventually be a hole.

Metal penetration flashings are dependent upon compression tape and elastomeric sealants to keep the penetration watertight. The sealants should be examined on a regular basis and replaced when they begin to harden and crack. With both the pitch pockets and the metal flashings, the membrane stripping between the flanges of the metal and the roof should be adhered tightly to both the metal and the roof for an adequate seal.

If you have problems on your roof, there is a good chance it is directed from roof penetrations. Trust the professionals at RAMCON to install these correctly and fix any problems the right way.