Gaco silicone flat roof treatment.

nudger

Anyone use or know anything about this new product supplied by Igoe in Dublin i.e.
Seen an article about it in the Northside people.

nudger

Well any takers?

It's meant to be a 2 coat process, first gray then a white finish applied with a roller onto felt roofs.
New to Ireland from the U.S.

Any reviews?

karlitob

nudger wrote: »

Well any takers?

It's meant to be a 2 coat process, first gray then a white finish applied with a roller onto felt roofs.
New to Ireland from the U.S.

Any reviews?

Thinking about using this product - has anyone used it?

Thanks

jack of all

I'll chip in! I've no personal experience of this specific product but I have been working in the construction industry for more than 25 years so I'll give you my tuppence worth, for what it's worth. Most modern flat roofing membranes/ systems are pretty good but most of the flat roof failures I've observed can be atttributed to the following:

1. Poor design- inadequate roof falls and poor siting or lack of adequate rainwater outlets. In fact I'd go as far as to say it's rare to see proper roof falls etc on a domestic type flat roof. Get the water off quick, it's simple but often ignored!

2. Poor workmanship/ poor detailing around penetrations, upstands, kerbs and rooflights etc.

3. Water vapour build-up within roof constructions due to poor understanding of building physics. Often the roof structure itself (joists, deck and insulation) is well shot before the leaks appear.

4. Poor/ no maintenance- nothing lasts forever and everything needs some kind of maintenance or at the very least some casual inspection at least on annual basis. As the saying goes "an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure"

karlitob

jack of all wrote: »

I'll chip in! I've no personal experience of this specific product but I have been working in the construction industry for more than 25 years so I'll give you my tuppence worth, for what it's worth. Most modern flat roofing membranes/ systems are pretty good but most of the flat roof failures I've observed can be atttributed to the following:

1. Poor design- inadequate roof falls and poor siting or lack of adequate rainwater outlets. In fact I'd go as far as to say it's rare to see proper roof falls etc on a domestic type flat roof. Get the water off quick, it's simple but often ignored!

2. Poor workmanship/ poor detailing around penetrations, upstands, kerbs and rooflights etc.

3. Water vapour build-up within roof constructions due to poor understanding of building physics. Often the roof structure itself (joists, deck and insulation) is well shot before the leaks appear.

4. Poor/ no maintenance- nothing lasts forever and everything needs some kind of maintenance or at the very least some casual inspection at least on annual basis. As the saying goes "an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure"

Thanks so much for this. Excellent.

I’m finding it a challenge to know what to do. Have a flat roof - half is concrete roof and the other half is an extension with a cold flat roof.

There're no leaks and I inspect regularly but there is some cracking on the roof (like what you’d see on an old tyre) and there is some ponding in one part as the bathroom empties onto the flat roof. Other than that it’s lasted 30 years.

So really I’m trying to stay on top of prevention as you suggest, but whenever roofers come out I get a lot of different opinions, which include
- replace and get fibreglass
- never get fibreglass cos it’s hard to do well and there are problems with cracking
- don’t go near it until it leaks - you can patch the leak and then get it fixed
- maintain it with a bitumen product and mesh
- maintain it with an acrylic product and mesh
- maintain it with our on rubber product
- and now it’s the Gaco silicone.


I like the idea of the ‘don’t go near it until it leaks’ and keep an unopened pot of cromapol in the house always.

I just want to put something on the roof to keep it ticking over for the next while and the opinion of the roofers differ and seems to be based on the product that they enjoy using. Any advice?



Could I ask you one other question?
I’ve put a pvc pipe from the toilet outlet which pours onto the flat roof to the nearest downpipe. Do you know of a product that keeps the pipe - which is now on the flat roof - steady and stable and is appropriate to put on a flat roof. The neighbours has two bricks on the flat roof keeping his pipe stable. I know this isn’t a good idea so just wondering was there a simple plastic product that was sturdy and appropriate to put on a flat roof. The winds earlier this year knocked the pipe off.



Thanks again.

jack of all

Probably the simplest solution for your pipe is to clip it to a 400x 400mm x 40mm concrete paving slab, using a standard wall clip bracket, plugs and screws, using one slab at each end of the pipe run (longer pipe run= more slabs). The weight and broad base of the slabs will resist movement and wind uplift. This is perfectly acceptable and reversible/ moveable for future maintenance/ repair etc.

You're doing well to get 30 years from your flat roof, it would be close to the end of it's design life at this stage, is it mastic asphalt? Keep an eye on it, patch/ remedial repairs as required but expect to have to do a full replacement at some stage! No real personal experience of fibre glass but seems to be a lot of reservation about it's ability to accommodate movement (particularly on a timber deck).

karlitob

jack of all wrote: »

Probably the simplest solution for your pipe is to clip it to a 400x 400mm x 40mm concrete paving slab, using a standard wall clip bracket, plugs and screws, using one slab at each end of the pipe run (longer pipe run= more slabs). The weight and broad base of the slabs will resist movement and wind uplift. This is perfectly acceptable and reversible/ moveable for future maintenance/ repair etc.

You're doing well to get 30 years from your flat roof, it would be close to the end of it's design life at this stage, is it mastic asphalt? Keep an eye on it, patch/ remedial repairs as required but expect to have to do a full replacement at some stage! No real personal experience of fibre glass but seems to be a lot of reservation about it's ability to accommodate movement (particularly on a timber deck).

You’re not wrong. 30 years is a long time. We’ll have to redo it at some stage but will wait until I have to!!

Great idea on the paving slab. Didn’t think of it.

So - might do the silicone waterproofing then. Thanks for the advice.

sohappy

Ive used the silicone for a small shed roof and its easy to apply and pretty impressive when dry, joints need to be taped first, ive also used the gaco patch which has fibers in it for repairs,
Igoe have a showroom in glasnevin you can go in and have a look at finished samples, it sticks to just about anything,

Goodwins. ie do it a bit cheaper its called hydrosil, they also do an acrylic resin coating which is cheaper again,

karlitob

sohappy wrote: »

Ive used the silicone for a small shed roof and its easy to apply and pretty impressive when dry, joints need to be taped first, ive also used the gaco patch which has fibers in it for repairs,
Igoe have a showroom in glasnevin you can go in and have a look at finished samples, it sticks to just about anything,

Goodwins. ie do it a bit cheaper its called hydrosil, they also do an acrylic resin coating which is cheaper again,

Thanks this. I’ve a tin of cromopol always on hand and wondered about doing the whole roof in this?