ID Flat Roof - Massachusetts and New England flat and metal roofing contractor (617)299-0291

A beautiful mansion in Newport on the infamous Bellevue Ave has a penthouse with an EPDM rubber roof and deck and multiple issues.

Flashings on the lower roof were installed improperly and were leaking, seams on both roof and deck were leaking as well due to the ponding water, and also green carpet on the deck served more like a sponge, which held the water within it for days, making the deck practically impossible to use and causing a nasty smell.

To fix all these problems we decided to go with white 50-mill IB Membrane on the lower roof, mechanically attached over ½ inch fan-fold insulation and with gray DeckShield Membrane on the deck, fully adhered over ½ inch Dens Deck boards.

There were a couple of things we had to do differently than usual, because the mansion is right next to the ocean. First of all, due to the high wind uplift we had to install double half sheets along the edges, and use barbed plates every 6 inches to ensure that membrane will stay in place no matter what. Second of all, because of the salty ocean air, which dramatically increases corrosion, a regular drip edge could not be used, so we had to order custom made stainless steel PVC coated drip edge. Another thing we had to keep in mind was that under any circumstances we could not allow any water to get inside the penthouse during roof replacement because it would ruin the freshly made interior. To address that issue we decided to brake this roof into a couple of segments and do them one by one, striping and covering them one at a time and making temporary PVC to rubber seams every evening using Solar Seal 900 adhesive and barbed plates.

And finally we had to build a parapet wall along the far side of the roof, because there is a skywalk underneath it and owners did not want nay water falling from the roof on it.

Once all these major points were figured out it was pretty much usual IB membrane installation.

On the upper deck old carpet and rubber were removed and the Dens Deck boards were installed.

They were glued down using liquid nails and then screwed down to ensure the proper bonding. After Dens Deck boars were installed all gaps and holes were filled using joint compound to make sure the surface is smooth and even, because any imperfection or seam would be seen after DeckShield would be installed.

The next step was adhesive and the DeckShield application, after which we welded the overlapping sides in the manner we do with the regular IB membrane.

As the result – all issues are taking care of, both roof and deck are watertight and look much better.

This is a waterfront house in Warren, Rhode Island facing the bay. The old rubber roof was failing, there were multiple leaks along seams and corners, plus owner complained that it gets pretty hot in the dining room located below during the sunny days.

Both these issues were resolved by installing single ply 50-mill white IB membrane. First of all old rubber and insulation were removed and roof deck was inspected for the rot damage. Because homeowner addressed his leak issues in the timely manner no rot damage was found and no repairs were necessary. We installed new ½ inch fan fold insulation and IB membrane on top of it. To properly flash the membrane to the walls 3 rows of siding where removed, membrane was flashed 1 foot up to the wall and a few inches into the gap under the sliders.

After the siding was reinstalled and all the gaps sealed, leaking problem was taken care of, as well as dining room’s overheating, because white membrane reflects about 90% of sunlight, thus making living areas under it much cooler.

Even though this was a relatively big two family house with the roof being about 1200 sq. feet it only had one 3 inch drain in the middle of it – that was just the way houses were built back in the days. The roof was originally tar & gravel and naturally, after installing couple more new layers, it lost its slope towards the middle of the roof where drain is. That, of course, caused water to pond making the situation even worse and resulting in multiple leaks. Roofing contractor who was called for repair charged $3500 and installed another patch right where water was ponding – naturally, story repeated itself in no time. So, when we met the owner he was very frustrated and angry about the whole story – costly repairs were done but with no improvements.

We decided to strip top two layers, recreate original slope and install 50 mill IB PVC membrane over ½ inch fan-fold insulation.

After the strip was done we discovered that because water was getting under the roof for a long time there were multiple places were roof deck was completely rotten and deteriorated, we even found a termite colony at one place (wood and moisture, talk about better combination for termites!). Another problem was the drain itself: after multiple repair attempts it had some build-up around it making it not the lowest point of the roof.

After all rot damage was repaired and frame was rebuild we proceeded with installing IB membrane. 6 inch wide pressure treated wood nailer was installed around all edges. Than we installed ½ inch thick insulation and started rolling out IB membrane.

Two old vents were removed and replaced with IB vents; both chimneys were wrapped around about two feet high and terminated with masonry anchors and termination bar. After all seams were hot air welded together – forming one continuous piece of membrane – it was a time to replace the drain. We cut the old piece out and installed new 3 inch IB drain with rubber gasket to prevent possible back-flow and aluminum dome over it to prevent it from clogging with leaves and other debris.

As a result – nice watertight roof, no ponding water and one happy customer.