R400 Rubber is an excellent product that will give your roof years of useful life and can be used to pass a mandatory insurance inspection. This roof covering has a warranty that can be maintained forever at a minimal cost. The R400 Rubber installation process varies for each type of roof covering. Below we have detailed out what you can expect when having the R400 Rubber waterproofing system installed on your roof.

Step 1

The first step to any waterproofing job is to ensure that there is a clean workable roof surface. The roof must have a solid base to install the system on and the roof must be free of any mold or mildew build up. Therefore, the first step is to pressure clean the applicable areas and to inspect the roof covering for soft or rotted wood.

Step 2

Once pressure cleaning is completed, all rotted or soft wood sections must be replaced. The roof will be opened up in these areas and any rotted plywood or tongue and groove decking will be replaced. If there is any rotted fascia board or soffit in this repair area, now will be the time to replace it as the drip edge metal would be removed and the fascia board is easily accessible at this point. The area that has been replaced will then have the appropriate repair materials installed over the new wood decking.

Step 3

For flat roof coverings, a new base sheet will be nailed on per code and then a new cap sheet will be installed over the repair area. For a tile roof covering, there will be a new 30 lb felt installed to the roof deck and nailed per code followed by a new torch down or Polystick TU Plus tile underlayment. The tile will then be attached to the new underlayment using AH-160 Polyfoam tile adhesive. Now the roof coverings are ready for the R400 Rubber installation.

Step 4

R400 Rubber is not your run of the mill waterproofing product. One aspect that sets R400 Rubber apart from other products is the application of Sealer 200.  All White Manufacturing’s Sealer 200 is an anti-chalking agent and bonding agent. This ensures a strong adhesion of the R400 Rubber and also ensures that there will not be any de-lamination in the years to come. Most other waterproofing products do not have a bonding agent and that is why the warranty period offered by R400 Rubber is so much more extensive than other products, such as elastomeric coatings.

Step 5

The next step in the process is to apply the R400 liquid waterproofing to the roof coverings. This product can be rolled on with a nap or sprayed.
With either method, the goal is to seal any of the openings found at cap sheet overlap seams, lead stacks, roof vents, expansion cracks, AC mounting curbs, and any other miscellaneous roof connections. After application of the R400 waterproofing, the roof must be inspected to ensure that the minimum mil thickness required by the manufacturer specs, has been met. This will ensure that the applicable manufacturer material warranty will apply to your roof project.

Tile Roof Installation Prep Work

On a tile roof, the R400 Rubber will have a minimum of two coats evenly applied to the roof surface.  Prior to the R400 installation, all tile seams and valley runs will be sealed to ensure a solid base for the rubber to be applied.  On a roof that has not been previously sealed, either a lightweight portland cement slurry will be applied across the roof, or all field and nose tile seams will be sealed using NP-1 polyurethane. This will be determined by the shape of the roof and how wide the field and nose tile seams are. If the seams are greater than 1/2″ the best method is to install a slurry across the roof. For a tighter tile roof with seams less than 1/2″, the best method is to install the NP-1 polyurethane. This will be determined on a case by case basis, and evaluated prior to giving an estimate for the waterproofing project.

It is our opinion that it is much better to use NP-1 polyurethane as it will expand and contract with the roof covering, and with the normal settling of the buildings foundation throughout the years. All valley runs, lead stacks, roof vents, and miscellaneous roof connections will be sealed using this same method prior to the R400 Rubber installation. The goal of this prep work is to have a seamless roof surface in which the R400 Rubber is going to be applied. All water flow should shed over the roof tile and no water should be able to reach the tile underlayment prior to installing the two coats of R400 Rubber. If you would like to get your roof evaluated by Atlantic Coast Contractors please give us a call and we will be happy to set an appointment with you for a roof evaluation and estimate.

Flat Roof Installation

Installing R400 Rubber on a flat roof is a much more involved than installing the system on a sloped roof covering. When installing R400 Rubber (or any waterproofing product for that matter) on a flat roof, the roof must be evaluated to see what standing water sits on the roof. Most flat roof coverings in Florida have a very low slope that is less than .5 in 12 roof pitch which will result in standing water. Any product that is applied in standing water areas will start to de-laminate very quickly. This is caused by the water penetrating the product over time and causing it to separate from the roof surface. If your flat roof has a pitch of .5 in 12 or greater, then the R400 Rubber can be installed on the roof surface with no polyester membrane and it will still carry the 5 year labor and material warranty. However, if it is close to .5 in 12, it is suggested to install polyester membrane to the roof covering.

Polyester membrane comes in 3 foot rolls which cover 1000 square feet per roll. This polyester membrane is crucial to the integrity of R400 Rubber when applied in standing water sections. First the roof must be prepped to have a smooth roof surface which has minimal roof base variances. If water gets underneath the polyester membrane, it will de-laminate from the roof base and need to be repaired or will be susceptible to roof leaks.  A lightweight portland cement with catalyst, or roof mortar with a catalyst will be applied to any uneven roof variances. This will ensure there are no wrinkles in the membrane during installation. This will also ensure that when the membrane is pulled tight and applied using R400 Rubber that there will be no voids between the membrane and the roof base. Unaddressed, these voids will eventually hold water and will decrease the useful life of the system.

Polyester membrane is applied using R400 Rubber. This application can be very touchy and should only be installed by a certified professional crew or individual.  The membrane will be rolled out across the roof in 3 foot runs. R400 Rubber will be applied very thick over the top of the membrane in order to soak through to the roof base. Each run will have a new run installed parallel to it and will be overlapped a minimum of 4″. When applied correctly, the system will be greater than the minimum mil thickness for a typical R400 Rubber installation prior to installing the two top coats. In most cases, three top coats will be applied over the top of the membrane to ensure that the roof is a seamless rubber coating with no open seams, penetrations, or gaps at any miscellaneous roof connections. Overall, when the system is installed using polyester membrane it ends up being a seven layer system. This is the reason why our warranty is so much more substantial than any other product offered for South Florida waterproofing systems in standing water situations.

Our R400 Rubber Waterproofing System Warranty

This process will carry a 5 year labor and material warranty from Atlantic Coast Contractors. This warranty can be carried on forever by simply pressure cleaning and installing 1 coat of R400 Rubber every 5 years. Once the initial system is installed, the cost to maintain this warranty is very minimal; typically 20-30% of the initial installation cost. When maintenance is completed every 5 years, the waterproofing system will increase in thickness throughout the years and will ensure that you will NEVER have to replace your roof again!

Atlantic Coast Contractors has installed this system on hundreds of residential and commercial buildings, and maintains an excellent reputation with all of our previous customers, maintenance customers, and the product manufacturer. We take pride in our work and install every system with the utmost care and professionalism. We treat every project as if it were being installed on our own home. If you would like to get an estimate for this system or would like to have your roof evaluated, please give us a call and we would be happy to give you a free waterproofing estimate.

If you would like more information on this product please visit the Manufacturers Website directly.

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