Epoxy roof sealant over shingles?

27936 Views 15 Replies 5 Participants Last post by Tom Struble, Apr 12, 2009

P550

Discussion Starter · Apr 11, 2009

Hi everybody, first time posting here, just found this site and it certainly seems like a treasure trove of information.

I have a question about an epoxy roof sealant product I have been eyeing, for use on a home I made an offer on. The house has asphalt singles that seem to be in deteriorated shape, and may be leaking in some parts- judging from some stains in the inside of the home.

The home needs quite a bit of work all around, so started looking at options for the roof, in order to avoid doing a complete shingle replacement right off the bat. So doing a search online I found this product (I won't provide the name here, not interested in doing any promotion for it) that is a water based epoxy that you apply by brush, roller, or spray right over the shingles, over the whole roof, preferably two coatings if they are in bad shape. The company states that this will completely seal and waterproof the roof, and that it will last for some 15 years.

So I asked my realtor about it (and will talk also to my inspector, when and if our offer goes through) who told me that products like these have been around for a while, but that the problem is that the seal can trap moisture between the new coating and the old shingles and roof, thereby causing wood rot and even more deterioration. Makes sense, but is that truly the case, for producs like these? Or if so, can this be avoided somehow? The cost, as best I can figure out, for applying this sealant would be around $1.5k, which is better than the $10k minimum I would have to spring right after buying the home. My intention is to replace the roof maybe 2-3 years down the road, after I fix all the other things that need immediate attention elsewhere (and can recover a bit financially after the purchase).

So, has anyone ever used epoxy roof sealants for this application, applied drectly over shingles? Any experiences with this or thoughts on viability, in particular the issue of trapping moisture?

Thanks in advance!

Paul

p.s. I did do a search in previous posts but did not find a specific answer to the questions.

p.p.s. I attached a few pics from the site, showing the product applied:

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DUDE!

· #2 · Apr 11, 2009

of course in their photos the shingles are laying flat, might work, but if your shingles in question are deteriated as you say, you will have a hard time applying this material over them. I understand your finance part. I would fix the roof first, before making repairs inside. You would be better off repairing the bad section or sections the correct way by installing new shingles. I have no idea if that is cheaper then applying the epoxy.

Ed the Roofer

· #3 · Apr 11, 2009

Can you increase the mortgage amount to have an escrow account set up to be utilized for the roof immediately?

If the shingles are truly deteriorated, I do not think it will help and only throw a case of Snake Oil on the fire.

www.chirienterprise.com

Is that the product?

I will look into it if it is.

Ed

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P550

Discussion Starter · #4 · Apr 11, 2009

Ed the Roofer said:
Can you increase the mortgage amount to have an escrow account set up to be utilized for the roof immediately?

If the shingles are truly deteriorated, I do not think it will help and only throw a case of Snake Oil on the fire.

www.chirienterprise.com

Is that the product?

I will look into it if it is.

Ed

Yep, that's the one. And actually it's a polymer not an epoxy polymer, my mistake.

The shingles in the property look flat, I couldn't see any curling. As far as setting up an escrow that's a possibility, but actually our best case scenario is for the funds to come from the seller, but that's a long shot given that it's an as-is REO property.

As far as applying the stuff I would use a Graco airless (I would have no intention of lugging pails up there!) so maybe even if the shingles are not in too good a condition, spraying can work a bit better, especially with 2 coats. I just want to waterproof it for the short term duration.

I am crystal clear that the true solution is to replace the roof, but since the interior is pretty beat up, with no appliances, flooring, a deck that needs to be torn down, plus the money I need to put up front for the purchase (down payment + closing) I'm exploring any options I can use to delay the roof.

Any info you can dig up on this, Ed, it's appreciated.

Have a great weekend everybody.

Paul

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Tom Struble

· #5 · Apr 11, 2009

it just seems like it could be a problem if you dont get full sealing in the keyways the sealer along the bottom of the shingle will block water under the shingle[right where the nails are,seems like money wasted to me,maybe you would be better off using temporary tarping

P550

Discussion Starter · #6 · Apr 11, 2009

Hm, it occurs to me that I can bypass the shingles all together: I rmove the old shingles and paper, and just apply the sealant directly on the plywood. but this would increase heat inside the home, wouldn't it? I live in Florida

Ed the Roofer

· #7 · Apr 11, 2009

Paul,

I have seen those photos from a home owner once before on this forum, but couldn't find which topic thread it was in and since any roofer will tell you it's not worthy, I didn't recall the extent of the discussion.

What you want to do with it is a bad idea, especially if you tear-off your existing shingles.

The expansion and contraction would crack that chit all over every horizontal and vertical joint.

If you can do the tear-off and pull all of the nails and repair any deflected or deteriorated deck sheathing yourself, find a roofing company that will do the labor to install the shingles for you, but make sure they ventilate the attic properly with balanced intake and exhaust ventilation per code and manufacturers specs.

Ed

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Tom Struble

· #8 · Apr 11, 2009

P550 said:
Hm, it occurs to me that I can bypass the shingles all together: I rmove the old shingles and paper, and just apply the sealant directly on the plywood. but this would increase heat inside the home, wouldn't it? I live in Florida

your not serious:no:

P550

Discussion Starter · #9 · Apr 11, 2009 (Edited)

tomstruble said:
your not serious:no:

Can you elaborate?

Tom Struble

· #10 · Apr 11, 2009

Ed the Roofer said:
Paul,

I have seen those photos from a home owner once before on this forum, but couldn't find which topic thread it was in and since any roofer will tell you it's not worthy, I didn't recall the extent of the discussion.

What you want to do with it is a bad idea, especially if you tear-off your existing shingles.

The expansion and contraction would crack that chit all over every horizontal and vertical joint.

If you can do the tear-off and pull all of the nails and repair any deflected or deteriorated deck sheathing yourself, find a roofing company that will do the labor to install the shingles for you, but make sure they ventilate the attic properly with balanced intake and exhaust ventilation per code and manufacturers specs.

Ed

hopefully Ed elaborated enough

P550

Discussion Starter · #11 · Apr 12, 2009

tomstruble said:
hopefully Ed elaborated enough

His post was helpful, yes.

Tom Struble

· #12 · Apr 12, 2009

well if you do what you propose to do please post some pictures
they could turn out to be useful for other people in your situation

P550

Discussion Starter · #13 · Apr 12, 2009 (Edited)

tomstruble said:
well if you do what you propose to do please post some pictures
they could turn out to be useful for other people in your situation

Will do. I sure hope it works, if only for a few years. It would help minimize initial costs. And who knows, maybe it could in fact last the 15 years the company claims it does. Will keep you all posted, with before-during-after pics. The shingles will stay on, no worries. I went out there again and climbed the roof and although it has patches and repairs galore, they are pretty much all flat, so application should be simplified. But if it doesn't work then I'll share that too so others don't make the same mistake.

tinner666

· #14 · Apr 12, 2009

I've seen products like that last a few months to a year before leaks showed up inside. In most cases, the product held so much moisture in the deck that major damage was done beofre the leak was visible.

P550

Discussion Starter · #15 · Apr 12, 2009

tinner666 said:
I've seen products like that last a few months to a year before leaks showed up inside. In most cases, the product held so much moisture in the deck that major damage was done beofre the leak was visible.

Well that was what my realtor told me about sealants like this. I did write to the company that sells the product and their (predictable, I suppose) response was that since they started selling this in '96 they've never had a complaint about moisture getting between the layer of sealant and the roof/ shingles underneath. They claim it forms a complete seal so nothing gets through. But there will be water vapor generated from within the house, correct? That means that I will have to make sure that there is sufficient ventilation and air exchange in the attic, since the sealed roof will no longer allow vapor to escape in some fashion...is this correct? I apologize if my questions seem elementary.

Tom Struble

· #16 · Apr 12, 2009

your thinking is definitely on the right track,you just need to think this thru alittle more, listen to Ed and Tinner and decide for yourself if the benefits outweigh the risk of more damage to your house and money spent on this ''repair''

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