There are many advantages with flat roof coatings. These coatings can extend the roof’s life by several years because it protects from the weather elements such as hot, cold, rain etc. It also reduces or lowers the roof temperature. If temperature is lowered in the interior, automatically your energy costs are reduced.
There are many types of roof that are in use today but installing a flat roof coating is not easy. Coatings are applied based on different substrates. A coating’s texture might depend as much on the substrate’s characteristics as on the coating type. In general, we can say that it is more difficult for coatings to adhere to hard, smooth, chemically inert surfaces and easier on rough, irregular, chemically active surfaces.
A coating’s texture or bonding to a substrate is improved when the installer puts a primer or base coat on the roof. Many roof coating manufacturers specifies that certain primers or base coats for managers trying to match a specific topcoat with a specific substrate. Here remember that managers should follow or use only the base coat or primer specified by the coating’s manufacturer.
There are many flat roof coatings available for roof membranes such as ethylene propylene diene monomer (EPDM), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), thermal poly olefin (TPO), Hyperion, modified bitumen, and built-up roofing to address multiple substrates with different adhesion and weathering characteristics.
Managers can specify asphalt and tar-based coatings for use with coal-tar-pitch built-up roof systems. Non-asphalt coatings, including urethane’s, acrylics, and polyurethanes, are most commonly used on single-ply systems.
Cost varies based on the coating types and its performances. In order to apply these flat roof coatings to flat roofs, managers should consult roof consultant because there is a variation in coating formulations.