Spray foam roof for large industrial building

Commercial Real Estate Investing
7yFollow

Spray foam roof for large industrial building

Michelle R.
Investor · Brooklyn, NY · Member since 2016 · 46 posts · 5 votes

We have a 90000+ square foot flat roof industrial building. The roof itself is not in great shape. There are walls between the sections of the roof which are probable causes of some leaks. 

We are considering to put on a spray foam flat roof covered with a silicone coating. There is a 15 year manufacturer warranty. In theory, in 15 years when the silicone coating is starting to wear down, another such coating can be put on top economically.

We are curious to hear if anyone has put such a roof on their building and what is your experience with it. 

The flat roof is already a second layer so it would be pricy to tear down the old roofing material to start again with a new first layer. The price of the spray foam roof and coating is approx $3.50/ft.

0Reply
22 views

Most Popular Reply

Ron Fiscus
Member since 2018 · 19 posts · 6 votes
7y

I did spray foam roof and walls in my house remodel and I’m not happy.  This was supposed to be a much better product and the best way to go according to the contractor.  I spent a lot of extra money and have had a lot of headaches.  I would never use this product again. Keep digging and asking questions, I wish I did.  I’m happy to chat on the phone to tell you my issues, just too long of a story.

1Reply
See this reply in the discussion

5 Replies

Jump to latestLatest
  • Ron Fiscus
    Member since 2018 · 19 posts · 6 votes
    7y

    I did spray foam roof and walls in my house remodel and I’m not happy.  This was supposed to be a much better product and the best way to go according to the contractor.  I spent a lot of extra money and have had a lot of headaches.  I would never use this product again. Keep digging and asking questions, I wish I did.  I’m happy to chat on the phone to tell you my issues, just too long of a story.

    1Reply
  • Michelle R.
    OP
    Investor · Brooklyn, NY · Member since 2016 · 46 posts · 5 votes
    7y

    Hi @Ron Fiscus- thank you for your input. What are some of the issues? 

    We spoke with a property owner of a large commercial building who had this work done, and he was very pleased. 

    I am wondering if it could be different based on ability of the contractor?  Or if you feel that sprayfoam in general is not a good choice?

    0Reply
  • Ron Fiscus
    Member since 2018 · 19 posts · 6 votes
    7y

    Hi Michelle,

    Yes, I think a better contractor would have helped, but the main issue I have is when the OAT is around 12F or below with an inside temperature at 68F (a delta of ~55F or more) I get heavy frosting on the exterior (cold) surfaces, in localized areas. Once we warm up this turns into a leak in some areas since the frost buildup melts and runs back in from the hole the air leaked out of. Or in some areas I have wet wood that never dries out because hot humid air is always blowing on it. Sounds easy to fix, just go find the air leaks and seal them, but not so easy since a small 1/8” gap that runs 2’ along a truss is enough to cause this problem and some areas are not accessible. I talked to an energy auditor and he said he has seen this before and thought that it could come from the wood drying and shrinking a bit and causing voids in the thermal envelope. He said he was impressed with the R-value of the foam, but he was still a fan of old fashioned fiberglass insulation. Contributing to this might be that my walls are also spray foam this exaggerates it since the house is very tight other than the small air leaks that are in the insulation.

    I was told by my contractor and the spray foam contractor that this foam didn’t need a vapor barrier since it dries with a water tight skin on it. I also confirmed this with the city inspector, and he confirmed no vapor barrier needed. I would highly recommend using an additional vapor barrier.

    Another issue I have is once you penetrate this skin on the foam it no longer has the vapor barrier qualities and the foam will become saturated and hold water. This became an issue when the electrician came through punching holes to run wires. Again if my primary contractor was doing his job, this should have happened since the timing should have been planned and coordinated better. I could go on, but I just wanted to let you know to ask around a bit more than I did.

    1Reply
  • Parker Fairfield
    Rental Property Investor · North Conway, NH · Member since 2016 · 104 posts · 26 votes
    7y

    Michelle, 
    Have you considered TPO or PVC rolled roofing? Here are two roofs that a company I built up (and sold) did - and I did the selling, and I ran the crew that put them on:

    Both systems were similar in size to your 900 squares (1 square - 100sq feet; its a roofing term). 

    There's no down side to using it IMO. You would NOT need to tear off the previous. You can insulate it easily. You can control the water flow EASILY by using built up sheets UNDERNEATH it to direct the water where you want it to go. It'll save TONS of money in the summertime - as it will reflect 95+% of the sun's energy without insulation (it looses its reflective nature when lots of debris builds up on it - so considering cleaning it at  the beginning of each summer. 

    The greater the likelihood you'll own the building for greater than 30 yrs, then you need to correspondingly veer towards using PVC (which will last longer). 

    1. Get up on your roof, 
    2. Take photos of the whole thing - especially anything ugly, old, dirty, or confusing to you. DIGITAL PHOTOS ARE FREE
    3. Take photos of everything that sticks thru your roof (pipes, antennas, etc). 
    4. Visit your local ABC Roofing Supply and show them your photos
    5. Ask them for the local COMMERCIAL sales reps for the TPO and PVC suppliers ... you want to have them all come to your building and discuss with you their products, warranties, and their "CERTIFIED" roofers; the certified roofers can sell warranties - even if you don't BUY the extra warranty, it's good to know which companies are certified (which required training). 
    6. Lowest Price is NOT Highest Value - but HIGHEST PRICE is NOT HIGHEST VALUE either. 
    7. Build into the bid that you want them to water test your entire roof; it's a rare request but easy to do. (Force them to block the drains, and to flood the roof with hoses. (They're not creating a pool - they're creating LOTS of water hitting an area at once. START at the most difficult details (corners, drains, etc.). If the contractor is afraid of WRITING THIS into the agreement, they are worried of their team. 
    1Reply
  • Parker Fairfield
    Rental Property Investor · North Conway, NH · Member since 2016 · 104 posts · 26 votes
    7y

    For RESIDENTIAL ROOFS I would ONLY use www.ibroof.com 's PVC

    For commercial consider the following (plus any others!) PVC will last longer, or TPO which will be cheaper for the material. Manufacturers include
    www.jm.com
    https://usa.sarnafil.sika.com
    www.carlislesyntec.com
    and GAF https://www.gaf.com/en-us/roofing-products/commerc...

    0Reply
Join the conversationCreate a free account to reply, vote on answers and follow this thread.
Log InJoin for Free