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Learned Western Roofing Article
Lessons Learned: Simple
But Effective Waterproofing Solutions
by Lawrence Evensen
It's no surprise to anyone
who makes his living bidding, designing or installing roofs that
nothing learned in life is free.
As the owner of a roofing company, I have paid
to learn many times. When I first started out, I made warranty
calls that were not the result of our workmanship. On one call,
water was entering a structure but showing in a kitchen several
floors below. While inspecting the roof I noticed a slice through
the soft insulation that wrapped around the group of copper tubes
that originated from the roof mounted HVAC condenser units. I wrapped
a piece of tape on the sliced insulation, which stopped the leak,
and got a lesson in the roofer’s school of hard knocks. Roof
leaks are not always due to faulty work, but are often caused by
poor roof penetration details.
As a roofing professional, the learning experience can get extremely
expensive, so attention to details can pay dividends. Two decades
of “learning” and “paying” has taught me
a few tricks.
In the next paragraphs, I will provide sound methods of waterproofing
difficult roof penetrations, eliminating the need to rely on the
band-aid techniques of the past. These methods provide innovative,
flexible waterproofing solutions without resorting to the dreaded “pitch
pocket” or installing expensive roof curbs. These waterproofing
solutions are easy to understand, easy to install, and will last,
saving time, materials and money. Let me explain.
Over The Top Installation: The kitchen leak was caused
by a poorly designed HVAC penetration. Ask any HVAC guy about leaks
and he’ll say, “My work never leaks.” He feels his
liability ends with a $3 roof flashing. The trouble is that his system
includes two copper tubes (one insulated), and one thermostat conduit
that form a tight group called a Line Set. My crew installed the 2
inch flashing into the roof system, which allowed the Line Set to pass
into the building. After I took a close look, it became obvious that
the only way to stop water from leaking inside the insulation and between
the tubes was to isolate the individual lines and seal them separately.
My solution was an EPDM Rubber Storm Collar with a hole for each
penetration.
Each hole has a nipple and a clamp secures the
nipples onto the individual roof penetration tubes. Our Collars
create a dam that water can’t flow past, so the water stays on the
roof. They counter flash any roof jacket without creating a mechanical
connection to the roof. This allows for movement of the penetration,
which can occur from seismic events or heat-related expansion and
contraction. Finally, if the roof flashing jack is configured with
an 8 to 10 inch rise, then there is no need to install roof curbs
in order to meet the National Roofing Contractor Association’s
(NRCA) height standards. Our Standard Storm
Collars can seal many
different multiple pipe roof penetrations and do it better
than
any other system on the market today, at an
affordable price.
Side Installation: Our EPDM Retro-Split
Storm Collars® grew
from a practical need. While installing our Line Set Collars on
a job, a roof consultant asked for a Collar to waterproof angle
iron supports that couldn’t
be taken apart. There are instances
where round, square, or angle iron posts are used for equipment screens,
fences, or signs. Difficult geometries are nasty to seal using round
flashings, since you can’t put a round flashing around a square
or angle post. Roofers have had little choice but to rely on pitch
pockets for these locations, until now…
 Our Retro-Split Storm Collars® open to allow
a side installation. These Collars have wraparound skirts with
waterproof push-together locks. However, the secret to the Retro-Split
Storm Collar's® versatility
is the top plug geometry, which enables the Collar to conform to
any shape. Using only a screwdriver, any geometry can be waterproofed.
Our Retro-Split Storm Collars® are available in large
and small sizes, and can be configured for penetrations from
1/4 inch to 6 inches in diameter. Try using our Retro-Split
Storm Collars® over a
leaking pitch pocket. Now that’s versatility!
Side Installation: About
a year ago I was at a roof convention in Florida. Everyone
had just been through a year of terrible hurricanes. I was
demonstrating the versatility of our Retro-Split Storm Collars® as
a counter-flashing for electric service mast flashings. Roofers
liked our Collars, but a common response was, ‘What
about the flashing’?
Insurance companies and inspectors were demanding that they replace
damaged electric mast flashings. It was costing them $2,000 for
the utility company to cut and reconnect the power in order to
install a new flashing.
I stayed awake all night working out the problem. In the morning
the patent pending Retro-Spin Flashing® was born.
 |
Retro-Spin
Flashing® open and closing |
It is designed with tightly fitted flashings that
enable the interior flashing to rotate within the confines of the
exterior flashing. Our closing door technology allows for retrofit
installations. No hand tools are required. Just ‘Slide It
On And Spin It Closed’. Try finding a more economical or
versatile waterproofing solution than our Retro-Spin
Flashing® and Retro-Split Storm Collar®.
There is not a day that goes by that I don’t learn something
new. New ideas and methods are welcome if they save me time, money
and aggravation. Our Retro-Spin Flashings®, Retro-Split
Storm Collars® and Standard Storm Collars provide
simple solutions to common problems. They are used extensively
for remodels and new construction across the country. Roof consultants,
contractors and developers love our products. We have worked
with some of the largest including Avalon Bay, Essex Properties,
Trammel Crow, UC Irvine, and many more. Our goal is to provide
cost effective and innovative solutions to problems faced by
those in the roofing industry.
If you have questions, let us know. We will help you find solutions.
Remember, nothing learned in life is free - but wait – we
learn a lot in the Roofers Exchange, and it’s free. How can
this be?
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