I have a flat roof over my kitchen that serves as a balcony. I have lived in the house for 6 years and didn’t have a problem with it leaking until last fall. I striped the old roll roofing off (several layers) and replaced it with new. This got me through winter but this weekend the 4 inches of rain we received exposed yet another leak. The roof has very little slope (almost flat) and I would like to continue using it as a balcony. Are there any products on the market that would allow me to put down a seamless roofing material that would hold up to foot traffic? Any suggestions on this or otherwise would be appreciated.
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Roll roofing is appropriate neither for a very flat roof or for a finished living area such as a kitchen. It should have enough slope to drain without puddling water and because it is prone to failure it is better for porch decks, carports, utility sheds, etc.
You need to find an installer for an EPDM rubber roof. There may be a few other new products available since I got out of the roofing game in the last century (grin) especially developed for residencial walk-ons.
Steve might help if he's here still
EPDM is a great roof system , one of the best for flat roofs. But foot traffic and looks require a different system. You should look into fiberglass as it looks great and stands up to traffic well. Are there railings? How large is the roof (dimensions)? Does it terminate against a wall on one side ?
Sorry I forgot the attachemt for the layout of the balcony.
I'm not familiar with fiberglass as a roofing material. Is this applied as a liquid?
Yes there are a few products out there that are basically the same roof once applied. One way is with 4 different applications of a primer,base , fiberglass then top coat of color choice. I will try to locate the product names. I install a lot of epdm,modified and roll roofing. I don't suggest any of it as a walkable surface and niether does the manufactors. The fiberglass is both a walkable deck and a roof , it looks great and comes in many colors. One of the companies is called Polar Systems. My guess is you don't have the hieght under your door to build a deck on top of your roof ?
Thanks All Trade . . . Steve
Hi Fletch,
I don't know anything about fiberglass roofing, but if it were my balcony, I'd install EPDM, and then install a wood or vinyl deck overtop the EPDM. The deck would rest on 2x4 sleepers laid flat. I would have extra EPDM in place where all sleepers sit to guard against rubbing a friction hole. If your balcony is fairly large, the sleepers do not need to be anchored. Attach band (rim) joists to your deck and fasten these to the outside perimeter walls. Your deck won't move.
LOL
Davo
There is a liquid applied membrane system made by Sonneborn I believe. Used it a few years ago on a screen porch roof, complete with lots of railing penetrations. No call backs yet. I think it may require a recoat depending on wear. This stuff can be driven on i.e. parking structure roofs. Seems to me material costs were in the $3 /sf. range. Somewhat messy to work with. By the way I live in a northern climate.