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Flat tar roof

G

Gabriel

Member
What is the best alternative to re covering or covering over an old tar flat roof that leaks and is no longer flat enough to cover with tar. It leaks really bad and has uneven sinks in the roof. Some have suggested trusses with a regular pitch roof over the flat roof, graduated slope to the back by adding new sheet metal roofing sloping to the rear of the building. Any ideas or technique that has worked for you. I hate flat roofs!!!
 
In 2008, I participated in a panel discussion of industry best practices at the NACS industry summit. The panel included John MacDougall, President, CEO, Nice N Easy Grocery Shoppes Inc.

John’s company installed a “white reflective roof” made from plastic/rubber on one of their newest stores as part of green program.

The application of a thin layer of white rubber is designed to reflect sunlight and keep heat away from the store so it stays cooler in summer months requiring less air conditioning.

I would also suspect that a thin layer of white rubber would be an inexpensive alternative to replacing a flat roof with pitched.

My last e-mail for John was

john@niceneasy.com
 
I had same problem, I had an A roof built over the old building. Looks so much nicer, and was less expensive then redoing old flat roof. They stick built it, quoted for both prefab truss and stick build. I now have an upstairs office, a ton of storage attic, and really nice roof lines to light up.
 
I would think it might be time to spend some big bucks and call in a couple of roofing contractors and have them evaluate your needs. If you have the room and can do it I’d build a second story on top of the car wash. I’ve seen offices and living space on top of car washes. I saw one car wash that had a 1200 sq. ft. apartment on top of it that the owner lived in. All of our car washes have a metal roof system.
 
Gabriel said:
What is the best alternative to re covering or covering over an old tar flat roof that leaks and is no longer flat enough to cover with tar. It leaks really bad and has uneven sinks in the roof. Some have suggested trusses with a regular pitch roof over the flat roof, graduated slope to the back by adding new sheet metal roofing sloping to the rear of the building. Any ideas or technique that has worked for you. I hate flat roofs!!!
Click to expand...

I agree with Robert Roman on the membrane approach .. with a few comments to add.

Gabriel,

We had an 8 inch thick hollow core prestressed sections for our car wash roof with a built up tar roof. We do not regret having gone a Duralast membrane on top of the existing about 12 years ago. The following video shows a contractor doing an install: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FvOtX0MhWY This is pretty fresh in my mind ... about 3 weeks ago when we installed the extra heavy Mosmatic-Hydrospray booms we were concerned about using just anchors instead of going clear through the roof. It was nice to be have to been able to plastic weld the penetrations ... in house ... & not have to call the specialized contractor during their absolute busiest time. We did have to be careful of rebar to make sure we did not compromise the structural integrity.

I also agree with Kevin James on the potential of adding another story ... that is exactly what we did with no regrets with our laundromat back in 1985.

Mike Walsh www.kingkoin.com
 
Thank all of you guys for replying. I plan to check into the membrame idea and probably will price a truss roof. Someone suggested laying a 3' straight truss across the front of the building and additional strips dropping a graduated amount from front to back, then over laying them with metal roofing graduating from front to back making a slanted top metal roof. I did something like that over our dryers and it worked fine. I am concerned that the distance from front to back of this building is about 50'. I may have a contractor look at it and get an estimate for each of the above. Thanks again. rlm
 
I bought a wash in 1995 with a flat hot mop roof that needed replacing. I went with a white membrane roof and in 18 years it has not leaked or given me a problem. It still looks great and had a 15 year warranty when I bought it. We get a lot of snow and it is the only type of roof people put on flat roofs around here.
 
Do a Google or Bing search for "tapered polystyrene roof panel". These products will add a slope to your roof for proper drainage and elimination of ponding. Then, the applied vinyl/rubber membrane will likely last beyond the product warranty.
 
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