RE: Liquid Rubber roofing - Rod

[JD]

Hey JD,

Have you used the Liquid Rubber? What do you think about it vs regular rubber? cost, install etc. I'm curious as I have no experiece with it.

Rod

Hi Rod,

There are actually 2 products, Liquid Rubber and Liquid Roof. I have used Liquid Roof several times and it is an impressive product. There are situations that this is the only product I will use, such as repairs to EPDM and PVC single ply roofs. This product is excellent on the old "rubber" sheet stuff with proper prep. It would also be an excellent RV roof product, but I don't do that work with my business. I have found that it has better adhesion than acrylic products. Liquid Rubber lays on THICK which should make it a great RV products. You can go with one coat (25 to 30 mil thick) which will wear better on a moving vehicle. It is also meant to be a one coat product which would save on labor.

Now the downside. The cost per SF is high. The can says 42SF per gallon, which may be true on a metal roof without a build up of old sealants and fairly smooth. I got about 10%+ less coverage. At $75 or so a gallon after shipping (5 gallon buckets) the cost is very high. You can save on labor though. Another thing that scares me is that it is incompatible with certain materials. Anything asphalt base is out. Shingles are a given, but this also includes the old Alumaseal products, handyman Henry's fixes, and a host of other products I would imagine. It will also blister off of silicone sealants and hypalon sheets. With these old roofs, sometimes you don't know what you are dealing with for sure. So it seems like a paranoid product.

So under certain circumstances, it is my product of choice. My main liquid roof products are from Ame's Research. This needs to be a multiple coat application, but that allows me to focus on problem areas and does not limit me to number of coats. The combination of the penetrating primer, undercoat materials and top coats allows me to customize the product to the job, existing materials and price range to suit my customer's needs. The gray undercoat is good at ponding situations which is added insurance. The stretch factor is about twice the popular acrylic products. I do prefer the Conklin roof fabric though. It is a spun material rather than woven which is better irregular surfaces.

What liquid roof products do you use?

JD[/quote]

[Rod]

JD

Thanks for the info! Most of the time when we do a roof the metal products we sell fit the bill. However there a certain situations when rubber would be a better fit. I am going to look into the products you mentioned.

You aren't kidding the cost is high. $75 gal @ 42 sq/ ft x 90% yield
1000 sq/ft almost 2k. before labor. Gotta charge a pretty penny to cover costs.

We do some seal coating jobs from time to time. Elastomeric typically. As you know a good cleaning and several coats for a quality job is nec. But to do it right has a cost. There are a couple of local repairmen that will 1 coat for a couple of hundred bucks.
And then there are some homeowners (not all) who think that a seal job is "the end all cure all"

So because of these two reasons I don't advertise for this type of work. But we do few every year.

Thanks for the info.

Rod

[JD]

Yep, you know what it is like. The 1-2 coats over old sealants kind of job is inexpensive, but does not last long. A total mop job that I would call a "new" roof would have 5-6 layers and roof fabric. But when that kind of roof approaches the price of my insulated panel roof and the panel roof will win hands down.

I feel the elastomerics are good for repairs or a refresh on a similar roof. Sometimes it can be an option for a lower price roof, but you sure get a lot less too. Liquid Rubber and a good multi-coat roof is in a different league.

On an interesting note, the Liquid Rubber people said that after mixing the catalyst into the product, that you can freeze it indefinitely and it would not cure. I have some in a bottle in my freezer that has been there about 6 years. I just checked it and it does have a 1/4" skin, but under that, it still looks usable. Even the skin is not totally cured. Just dried out. The whole point of that is, if it is applied in mild winter temps, it can do an overnight freezing without icing up and separating and then continue the curing process as soon as it warms up the next day.

JD





JD

[Rod]

JD,

Very interesting the rubber doesn't freeze. Whats the cure time in 60-70 degree temps.

I agree about the sealant jobs. The other aspect to it is the time, especially if the job is not around the corner.

By the time you clean it, let it dry, apply multiple coats with set up time in between the coats you could have installed a new roof!

Thanks

Rod

[JD]

It skins over in 4-6 hours. The manufacturer says it is waterproof as soon as it is applied. This could be true. The rubber rolls out 4-5 times thicker than Ames Maximum Stretch or KST Snow Roof. Again, it is intended to be a one coat product. It is very dense stuff and I would think rain would not effect it after it skins over. What would happen if it rained 1-2 hours after application? I don't know. I would not do this type of work if rain was expected. But I don't think rain would wash off or run the product. It is that dense. I am picturing a bunch of tiny dents though.

It seems to cure in in less than 24 hrs in mild temps. It would take 3-4 days to cure in 55 degree weather. Maybe weeks if it is only above 55 for a couple of hours a day. They say the product requires 55 degrees minimum to cure, but it can be installed in freezing weather. That is what they say anyways.

So for me, there are so many factors involved like what materials it won't work on, cure time, etc.. that I generally only use it for repairs on sheet EPDM and PVC. That is where this product really shines. You can use a peel-n-stick seam tape like Ames or Eternabond WebSeal (the WebSeal is best for sheet rubber and PVC roofs) over lifted seams, vent edges and crack damage (if you dare repair that bad of roof) and cover it with the liquid rubber.

JD