Any advice for a flat roofer noob - to tearoff or not?

Went up to my flat roof this weekend as I was planning to prep (clean)and put a layer of aluminum coating on.

My roof is flat, with a very slight pitch.
The last time it was redone was about 20 years ago .
It was done with some sort of rubber…and so far, as of today, NO LEAKS.

However, in my process of cleaning my roof, I discovered there are some areas that do puddle very minor, and there is some areas that have air bubbles.

I am debating

  • leave it alone till it leaks
  • be proactive and have the rood redone.

Tearoff or Not.
The house is a about 80 years old and alot of the my neighbors that have had their roofs redone on the last couple of years did not do a tearoff.

Spoke to a roofer today and he told me that he would just cut the bubbles and then roof on top.

Out here in NYC, torchdown is not allowed by law so SBS is the general premium out here with the IB PVC being $$$$$$.

With that said, what do you guys think. I’d hate to revisit this again so I’m leaning in tearoff. Seems like the general consesus though is that either the local roofers either advoid tearoff & or just don’t like doing it…

From what I read, SBS cold applied has come a long way and the glue is quite good these days…

For a 80 year old house, which may possibly have never seen a tearoff, should I do it or not, depending on roof conditions. There are NO leaks…just thinking about doing it to be proactive.

WILL all flat roofs develop air bubbles over time.
I was advised from one roofer that do they as it outgasses, and it’s more a matter of the roof floats so once installed, it’s best to not be on the roof …as you may create more problems than not.

The last time I was on the roof was 3 years ago when I had the gutters replaced. Went up there this season as we had pretty bad storms and just want to make sure things are in check.

Should I even consider this or wait till it leaks…

Take a few photos and post them.

And btw, it is almost always better to tear-off down to the roof deck before installing a new roof system. As for yours being 20 years old, it sounds like it is about time for it to be replaced.

With regard to roofing membranes, I personally don’t care for either option you gave; the SBS mod. bit. or the IB PVC roof system. If you are going to go with a PVC, the only one I’ll use is Sarnafil, but that is a personal preference that has evolved over the past 30 years by using and specifying different roofing products.

Now for the big question: Why in the world would you be applying aluminum coating to rubber since they are not compatible? And if you have a mod. bit. roof and someone has called it “rubber”, you need to run that idiot off your property as soon as you f-ing can, and certainly don’t hire them to roof your house. Afterall, if a roofer can’t properly identify the type (not manufacturer) of roof system installed, they shouldn’t be in the roofing industry.

I hear nothing but good things about IB PVC KEE membranes.

WILL all flat roofs develop air bubbles over time?

check your private messages for the answer.

thx for the feedback RL.

I spoke with a highly recommended roofer and he seemed pretty trustworthy. I told him it’s been 20 years old since it was done, there was some air pockets, and he told me to call him when it was leaking…

Call me old school but one would think hot gooey tar (any form or variant of torchdown or hot mopping) would be more reliable than cold roof (SBS) system…

I may be wrong and ain’t not guru.

In some ways, good ole fashioned coal tar pitch BUR are the best.

"the local roofers either advoid tearoff & or just don’t like doing it… "

Aint that the truth.
If I were to do it again, I’d have someone other than the roofer do the tearoff and buildup.

I would consider EPDM (this one is rubber). It is reliable and affordable. No torch neccesary.

thx. I found this post which was interesting


Of all the rubber roofing matereal on the market, EPDM has the highest volume of actual rubber in it. However it is not the best choice for a residential roof.

EPDM was originally created and intended for large warehouse roofs with a minimal amount of foot traffic and a minimal amount of cut-outs.

EPDM comes in sheets that are 10’ high X 100’ long. Unlike other roofing materials, EPDM is not adhered by glue, adhesive or tar. The reason is EPDM’s high concentration of rubber expands and contracts at a much higher rate than any adhesive glue or tar on the market. Therefore, it needs to float on the roof to prevent it from prematurely deteriorating. The glue that is used in conjunction with EPDM is only to be used on seams, cut-outs and low parapet walls. Some contractors glue all the EPDM to the roof decks, this is a great injustice to the homeowner. The reason is that the glue expands and contracts at a much lower rate than the EPDM membrane itself,
causing a conflict between the glue and the membrane and also causing a guaranteed premature deterioration of the roof system itself.

EPDM is first cut to the width of your roof. Including parapet walls. For example, if your roof measures 20’x 60’, you will have six 10x20 foot sheets of EPDM installed.

EPDM is then mechanically fastened at each 10 foot seam with a screwed down windbar and a sealing tape. The parapet walls (if any) can be glued on. All cut-outs will be sealed by glue and a special caulking adhesive. So in between each 10’x20’ sheet is a hollow non-adhered membrane with dozens of screws fastening the seams. If there is a leak (tear)on the front of an EPDM roof and the slope is going toward the back of the house, you can be in big trouble. If the tear is large enough it is possible for the water to travel underneath the whole system causing leaks in every room of the house.

Over the years, this EPDM roofing system has been nothing less than a nightmare for residential roofing when a leak occurs. And leaks could be caused by many things such as fireworks, foot traffic, cable dishes, atennas, sharp edge tools, falling branches, etc.

I’ve repaired hundreds of EPDM roofs over the decades and have a first hand experience with the extensive damage that it can and has caused. These experiences leave me to highly recommend that you stay away from EPDM roofing unless it is a large warehouse roof with a very minimal of foot traffic and a minimal amount of cut outs.

There are several other options for re-roofing with rubber. SBS Granulated Rubber being the best of them all for residential roofing. SBS rubber roofing is installed over a blanketed bed of adhesive. The adhesive alone seals every single nook and cranny on the entire roof. And when the SBS rubber is installed on top of the adhesive you will get just as many years of water proofing as you would from an EPDM roof for a much lower investment.

The other good news is that if a leak occurs in a SBS roof system it is confined to an isolated area. The reason for this is that the bed of adhesive that is under the SBS rubber prevents it from traveling to much further than the hole in the roof.

I hope that we have addressed your concerns with EPDM roofing adequately; if you have any other question, please feel free to call us.

It looks like you have found one persons opinion about EPDM. Keep looking and you will find others.

I have a friend who has been roofing residentially for 30 years. In that time he has installed countless EPDM rubber roofs. Never one callback for EPDM. And a fully adhered system with EPDM is ok.

This article you’ve posted, do you have a link for it? Sounds like he’s selling a cold applied mod bit product, and calling it rubber.

mobile dynamics I think you are a clever spammer. Good try, cold applied salesman.

Just when you think you’ve heard it all. Is this article some kind of late April fools joke? While I do not consider EPDM to be the best roof, with proper maintenance they perform well for many years. I have applied fully adhered EPDM on just about every type of structure from a dog house to a warehouse with out a single catastrophic failure. My biggest complaint is the shrinkage factor.

no SCHILL here. I will try to find the link…

I’m just trying to found out what are my options regardless that I do not plan to redo my roof this year but it’ could be soon. I have gotten 20 years out of it…

In my area, NYC, torchdown of any sort is not allowed.

So between IB PVC which is very localized/specialized and hugely $$ in this area, SBS cold applied seems to be the norm in my area.

I have stopped calling roofers but I came across that thread as others in my area have considered EPDM which was on my punchlist of products to look into as well

That whole article is horseshit.

I plan to call Firestone tomorrow but do you know if they have a search function where you can find a list of certified epdm or tpo installers ?

firestonebpco.com/roofing/

[quote=“mobiledynamics”]I plan to call Firestone tomorrow but do you know if they have a search function where you can find a list of certified epdm or tpo installers ?

firestonebpco.com/roofing/[/quote]

I still have a hunch your a spammer, but just in case, follow your link, go to building owners and select a contractor. I don’t believe firestone will issue warrantees on residential properties.

shangle…u can think what you like. Mods you can delete this thread if you want. I came here as a avid consumer trying to do as much research as one can …like anyone who does due their due diligence of researching what options are out there - instead of having whatever information is being advised from the local guys.

NYC has banned torches so there is NOT alot of options out there. A quick call to 2-3 roofers and each one was pushing SBS. Research on locals who have roof done locally were either SBS or AFF back when torches were legal…

IB PVC, TPO, etc from what I read briefly seems like it will be awfully big $$

So fellow roofers, what do you guys recommend for the Northeast climate (we see our fair share of the 4 seasons), flat room with no traffic…assuming that EPDM or SBS is probably more in line with my $ per ft budget vs $$$ PVC

Assuming it will be cold applied (again - NYC had banned torches), which material would be better for my application. I do not mind the maint of apply whatever coating every 3 years or so.

[quote=“mobiledynamics”]shangle…u can think what you like. Mods you can delete this thread if you want. I came here as a avid consumer trying to do as much research as one can …like anyone who does due their due diligence of researching what options are out there - instead of having whatever information is being advised from the local guys.

NYC has banned torches so there is NOT alot of options out there. A quick call to 2-3 roofers and each one was pushing SBS. Research on locals who have roof done locally were either SBS or AFF back when torches were legal…

IB PVC, TPO, etc from what I read briefly seems like it will be awfully big $$

So fellow roofers, what do you guys recommend for the Northeast climate (we see our fair share of the 4 seasons), flat room with no traffic…assuming that EPDM or SBS is probably more in line with my $ per ft budget vs $$$ PVC

Assuming it will be cold applied (again - NYC had banned torches), which material would be better for my application. I do not mind the maint of apply whatever coating every 3 years or so.[/quote]

If you’ve read anything briefly here about TPO you wouldn’t be putting in the same $ class as PVC. You sure don’t talk like a HO. What do you do for a living? Are you calling us fellow roofers because you are about to do a roof?

Torch application is not the only hot app. An SBS can be mopped down with asphalt. A 3 ply with SBS cap would be the best VALUE but not the lowest price. SBS can also be cold applied. I recommend giving it a shot.