Waterproofing

For this leaking roof the entire waterproofing system had to be removed as the existing bitumen system had failed.

The breakdown in the bitumen membrane is indicative of prolonged UV exposure. This could have been avoided if proper maintenance was carried out. Bitumen membranes are not UV resistant and require a bitumen-based aluminium coating which needs to be re-applied every two to three years.

In consultation with the client and technical sales consultant at ABE Construction Chemicals we decided to go with a 3mm base sheet and a 4mm bitumen top membrane. The base sheet is a standard requirement for torching on flat roof timber structures.

The first step was to remove the old bitumen system and inspect the roof structure to ensure all timber was sound. Once the preparation and cleaning were complete, we could begin laying the base sheet to the timber. Fasteners were placed 600mm apart to ensure the ground sheets were firmly secured to the roof. All the roof edgings were fitted with Zincalume drip edges to ensure best terminating practice. The 4mm top sheet was heat fused to the secured ground sheet, all detailing was done accordance to best practice.

After six weeks our team returned to the site to apply two coats of ABE SilverKote to ensure protection from the harsh elements.