Benefits:
- Lightweight
- Minimal odor
- Less labor intensive
- Weather resistant
- Easily maintained
- 10-30 year system warranties available
- Flexibility of installation
- Adhered, Mechanically Fastened, Ballasted & metal retrofit
- Reduced application errors
- Quick detection of roof failures
- Fewer seams than tradition built up roofing
- Excellent resistance to ultra violet rays standing water
- Black and white colors available
Weakness:
- Not very resistant to oils and chemicals
Features:
- Lightweight
- Light in color
- Different color varieties available
- Heat welded seams and flashings creating a monolithic seam
- Higher tensile strength than EPDM
- Less labor intensive
- More resistant to oils and chemicals
- Can be installed in colder climates
- 10-20 year warranties available
Weakness:
- Most sheets contain plasticizers which eventually will migrate from the sheet making it become brittle.
- Maintenance becomes more difficult when sheet becomes older
- A little more expensive than EPDM
Features:
- Has excellent Insulating R-Value
- Very lightweight ( Approximately 8 oz. Per sqft)
- Self flashing
- Adheres to all types of substrates
- Versatile
- Minimal caulking and sheet metal
- Ease of installation
- Ease of tapering roof system
- Low maintenance
- Has longevity with recoating
- Excellent application for heavy penetrated roofs
Weakness:
- Not ideal for heavy foot traffic
- Must be coated at all times with at least 15 mils in thickness
- Moisture sensitive if raw foam is exposed
- May be affected by birds pecking through coating
- Overspray liability
- Very expensive to remove
Features:
- Redundancy with multiple layers
- Excellent resistance to oils and chemicals
- Very durable and difficult to puncture or penetrate
- Different surfaces available
- Longevity depending on design
- Designs can vary to fit budgets
- Oldest roof system in industry
Weakness:
- Strong, but harmless odor during install
- Easy to maintain and repair, but must be done annually
- Must have positive water drainage or can be susceptible to premature failures
- Labor intensive
- Asphalt quality may vary
- Volatile oil market can cause pricing to change daily
- Quality and capable contractors are hard to find.
- Limited expansion and contraction
Features:
- High tensile strength
- Made with high quality asphalt
- Very durable and difficult to puncture or penetrate
- Redundancy with multiple layers
- More pliable than built-up roof systems allowing for more expansion and contraction
- Excellent resistance to oils and chemicals
- Can be installed using hot asphalt or torched applied
Weakness:
- Seams every 3 feet
- Bald cap sheets need protected from ultra violet rays meaning sheet needs to 100% coated at all times.
- Will fail prematurely if roof has standing water
- Torch applied application can vary in installation quality
- Strong, but harmless odor during install
Features:
- Multiple Manufacturers to choose from
- A wide range of colors and designs to select from
- Designed to withstand volatile weather
- 30 to 50 year warranties available
Weakness:
- Labor quality can be an issue because of the abundance of contractors
- Shingles will fail prematurely if ventilation is not adequate
- Shingles installed over existing shingles typically will fail prematurely
Features:
- Durable
- Flexible
- Variety of colors and designs available
- Lightweight and can usually be installed over existing sloped roof assemblies
- Excellent resistance to oils, Chemicals, ultra-violet rays and foot traffic
Weakness:
- Some designs are not suitable for some certain climates
- Can be noisy with certain weather elements