Recently the Roof Coatings Manufacturers Association (RCMA) wrote an article titled “Roof Coatings Designed to Extend, Not Replace, Roof’s Life” by Kelly Franklin. This article addressed five potential application errors to avoid when applying a roof coating system:
1.) Coating Too Thinly – Applying a roof coating that is too thin will not provide the roof coating system with the necessary strength needed to perform properly. This is because a portion of the water or solvent in the roof coating evaporates while the coating application is drying. To avoid this kind of application error, you need to add additional wet mils during application to the roof in order to compensate for the mils that will evaporate during set up. This will give you a roof coating system with the proper thickness. Read our article “Determining Dry Film Thickness for Roof Coatings Using a Wet Mil Gauge” to learn more.
2.) Coating Too Thickly – When a roof coating system has too heavy of an application, blisters, bubbles and wrinkles in the film can occur. The coating beneath the surface does not have enough time to dry before the surface itself dries, causing water and other chemicals to become entrapped.
3.) Mixing Improperly – Mixing your roof coating thoroughly is necessary to achieve proper consistency throughout the coating. Often times heavier ingredients in the coating can settle to the bottom of the container making it necessary to stir the roof coating. Be careful to avoid stirring too forcefully as bubbles can occur, creating issues on the surface of your roof.
4.) Applying Before Rainstorms – You want your coating to be dry before any rainfall occurs because surface defects can occur or the coating can wash off the rooftop. The AcryShield Quick Set roof coating line was specifically formulated to aid in a situation like this. These coatings resist early wash-off associated with light rain and heavy dew. To learn more, download our Quick Set Brochure.
5.) Cold-Weather Misapplication – When temperatures are too cold, the time a coating takes to dry and cure is lengthened, potentially allowing time for a rainstorm to occur before proper setup has taken place. Frost and freezing temperatures can also negatively affect the adhesion of the coating to the roof surface. Make sure the forecast matches the roof coating manufacturers required temperature and weather conditions for proper application.
These issues are easily avoidable and an experienced roof-coating contractor can advise you of proper roof coating installation techniques. For a list of skilled coating contractors, contact National Coatings at 800-423-9557. We have a group of approved applicators that have excellent reputations and skill sets to ensure our roof coating systems are installed properly and will perform to our standards. For more information on our roof coating systems, download our FREE Product and Application Brochure. If you are interested in become an Approved Applicator, fill out our form.
