If you live in Massachusetts and your rubber roof leaks, you can also hire us to professionally repair your EPDM Rubber Roof – fill out the Roof Repair Request form bellow. We will also provide you with an estimate to replace your old rubber roof with Lifetime IB PVC roofing membrane. We provide our rubber roof repair service for a very reasonable fee of $350, which includes 2 hours of repair work as well as high quality, peel-and-stick Rubber Roof flashing materials made by best names in the EPDM roofing industry – Firestone and Carlisle.

We recommend that you also read our guide to residential flat rubber roofing, which describes why your roof could be leaking, how most residential roofing contractors get into flat roof installations, their “training and experience” background and most importantly why you should avoid installing another EPDM rubber roof on your house.

If you are unsure if you are better off fixing your rubber roof yourself or hiring a roofing contractor like us – read our guide DIY rubber roof vs. hiring a roofing contractor. This article will explain advantages of both options as well as show you how much it costs to buy EPDM flashing materials, adhesives and required tools as well as describe step-by-step process of rubber roof repair using newer peel-and-stick EPDM flashing materials.

Rubber roof repair services in Massachusetts fill out form bellow or call: 617-444-9020

Roof repair service cost – $350 flat fee for first 2 hours of roof repair work, including peel-and-stick rubber flashing materials. Any work after initial 2 hours will be discussed and priced accordingly.

Find out more about our Rubber Roof Repair in MA – prices on projects over 2 hours, materials used, geographic area which we cover and warranty information.

We want you to also be aware that rubber roof repair can (should) be performed when the outside temperature is above 40 F. Otherwise the EPDM glue and/or primer will ether freeze or will not apply properly. In some cases contractors will keep the adhesives warm inside their trucks, and only take it out right before they actually use it. While this method somewhat works, we do not recommend it, as such repair can fail prematurely.

Rubber roof repair request form:

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	Please describe your roof, leak problems (e.g. near skylight or at the roof-to-wall flashing, etc), and any additional information that would help us better prepare for your roof repair.
Roof Details:

You can also request an estimate to replace your existing roof. Select one or more products. You can select multiple products by clicking on multiple boxes.

IB Standard Membrane: IB 50-mil White IB 80-mil White/Color IB 80-mil ChemGuard

IB Specialty Membrane: IB DeckShield IB Tradition Classics IB Solar PV Roof

Other Roofing products: Metal Roofing (Standing seam, Steel or Aluminum Metal shingles) Thermo White Spray-On Roofs (For steel standing seam)

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DIY rubber roof repair guide – learn how to fix rubber roof using black rubber glue.

This do-it-yourself rubber roof repair guide will walk you through a simple rubber roof seam patching process, using old rubber glue. Please note, that due to accelerated “black rubber glue” failures, EPDM industry has switched to newer and better Peel-and-Stick method of gluing the seams between rubber membrane and flashing material. Peel-and-stick method uses special flashing material and a so called “rubber primer”, which gets tacky faster than rubber glue and hold the seams better and longer. Still, even the seams “glued” together using the newer peel-and-stick plashing method, will fail after about 7-10 years. After that period, most EPDM rubber roofs will require some kind of roof repair and in some cases complete “re-seam” job. Re-seam repair means that all seams are covered with a peel-and-stick cover tape of 6-12″ in width. This will usually buy you another 3-5 years of roof life, after which you will have to repair it again.

Therefore we recommend that instead of installing (or in some cases even repairing) the rubber roof, you install a new, Lifetime IB PVC Roofing system, which is installed using hot-air welded seams instead of being glued together. Once IB roof seams are welded, you cannot pull them apart without tearing the membrane itself.

This ‘Rubber Roof Do-It-Yourself repair guide’ is intended to give you the basic knowledge of how to
repair a flat rubber roof. However, such repairs are NOT considered DIY projects by the roofing industry professionals, and we recommend you to seek help with your roof repair from a professional roofing company specializing in Flat Roofing. If you are located in Massachusetts, Connecticut or Rhode Island, you can contact us by filling out Free Roof Estimate Request form, and we will provide you information and options to solve your roof leaks problems.

Rubber or Epdm roofs came to existence in 1960′s and since then, billions of sq. feet of rubber roofs have been installed all over United States. Rubber roofs are probably the Most used flat roofing technology, mainly due to its Very Low cost. Epdm roofs are very cheap to produce, so most commercial roofing manufacturers jumped the band-wagon and started making them in mass quantities. While Epdm rubber-like membranes are very common, so are the roof leaks associated with them.

Epdm membranes themselves are a decent roofing product, hence most of them carry warranties that range from 30 to 40 years. However, those warranties ONLY cover the membrane itself, which unless is physically damaged, will usually remain intact through it’s service life.

However, the long warranties of Epdm DO NOT cover the cause of 99% of all flat roof leaks – the seams between sheets of membrane. Seams are the inherited flaw and a weakness of not only Epdm rubber roofs, but most other flat roofing technologies available today. Seams are put together with adhesives, and lately with peel-&-stick tapes, which after some time on the roof just comes apart, and the roof starts to leak. Unfortunately there is nothing that can be done to prolong the life of seam adhesives, and the only two options to deal with leaks are: Repair or Replace

Rubber roof repair How-To in 4 steps.

Note: Do not attempt to repair you rubber roof if the outside temperature is below 35-40 degrees, as it might be too cold for the adhesive to dry properly. Consult the sales people at the roofing supply warehouse listed below. Also request installation documents for adhesives and/or seam tape that you will need to purchase. These document will give you exact application requirements and directions.

Step 1: Locate the source of leaks

Tools you will need: Ladder, Paint-Brushes, Rubber gloves, Seams Probe Tool and Silicone hand roller. These tools can be purchased from the roofing supply warehouse like Bradco Supply or Harveys Industry or from a local lumber yard. We recommend getting the brushes from the roofing warehouse, to make sure it is compatible with the adhesive and cleaning solution. Home Depot and Lowe’s will probably not
have the hand roller on the probe tool, but you can find something similar there. They will certainly have ladders, and will usually have a better price on them.

You will also need the solvent-based cleaning solution for seams and Epdm seam adhesive and/or seam tape. These should be purchase from the roofing warehouse. Home-Improvement stores do not have what you need.

Caution: Do not use ‘Ice&Water tape’ – you should only use the seam tape made for Epdm rubber roofs.

Seam Probe Tool

2″ Silicone Hand Roller

As we stated previously, most of flat roof leaks occur at the seams, so we you will need to inspect all seams on your rubber roof. Once you acquired the needed tools and supplies, you will need to find the source of leaks. To locate the leak in your rubber roof, you will need to actually get on the roof and with a simple probe-tool check all the seams to find the place where adhesive no longer holds the membrane together. Also check all roof penetrations (Pipes, Vents, etc.) and curbs such as Sky-lights and HVAC units. Mark the spots where the seams are broken.

If you have loose gravel on the roof, you’ll need to sweep it off the seams with a heavy broom, so it is not in your way. Do not use shovels or any thing that has metal edges as you may cause additional damage to the membrane.

Step 2: Prepare your roof for repair

Now that you’ve located the source of your roof leaks, you need to clean the surface of the rubber, so you can apply the adhesive and/or seam tape. With cloth and warm water, thoroughly wash off as much dirt as you can and let it dry. Do not use gasoline to clean the rubber membrane. Although many installers will tell you it is safe – any manufacturer’s warranty prohibits cleaning epdm rubber with gasoline.

I’ve found a rubbing alcohol to be a good and inexpensive solution. There are also cleaners available from the manufacturer, and these are the best to use, but they are expensive and only come in 1 gallon cans. So if you have a very small area to clean, get the rubbing alcohol.

Once the roof surface is clean and dry, pull the seams apart about 1 foot away from the location of the leak. According to manufacturer’s directions, thoroughly clean seams with the cleaning solution, making sure you remove all existing adhesive and let it dry. The procedure may have to be repeated.

This and next steps are MOST crucial to the quality of the repair and elimination of the future leaks.

Step 3: Applying Adhesive and/or Seam Tape

Use the brush to apply the adhesive to both surfaces of the seams. Try to get the adhesive as deed as you can under the top sheet of membrane (6-8 inch wide seams a recommended). Also thoroughly apply adhesive to ‘corners’ – where you pulled seams apart and the new adhesive comes in contact with the old one.

Once you’ve applied adhesive, put the seams together and use the silicone roller to apply pressure to the seams. This will ensure a quality seam repair. Let the new seams completely dry. Do not attempt to test them with the probe tool just yet. Wait 24 hours until the next step.

Step 4: Testing the seams and applying the Seam Tape

Now your newly-repair seams should be dry and ready to be tested. Use the seam probe to test all seams that you have repaired. If you followed the previous directions and used the silicone roller, your seams should be like new, and the probe should not be able to split the seams. If you do find imperfect adhesive bond, repeat Step 3 by reapplying the adhesive and using the silicone roller to apply pressure.

At this stage, we recommend to also use the seam tape to further ensure quality of your repair job and extend the length of time which the repair will last. Apply the seam tape with the silicone roller, extending it by 1 foot in each direction from the end of your seam repair. Use the edge of the silicone roller to make sure there is good adhesion where there is a slight elevation change from one sheet of rubber to another. If your seams job was done well, there is no need to test the seam tape. You are now done!

Conclusion

Now that you have done the seams repair, you eliminated the leaks. However, even when done by a professional, such repair job usually lasts up-to one year. Sometimes as little as only 6 month. There are many factors affecting the length of the rubber roof repair.

To name a few:

• The quality of the repair itself
• Presence of ponding water (which will greatly reduce the length that such repair will last)
• Moisture and condensation trapped under the rubber will also speed up the occurrence of more leaks

There are many more reasons why your roof may and probably will begin to leak again. Check out our Flat Roof Repair Guide for more info regarding the causes of leaks and what to do when they happen.

To minimize your Costs associated with flat roof repair we recommend you to contact us to get IB Cool Roof. IB Roofs differ from the regular rubber roofs in the way the seams are
attached together. IB PVC roofing system uses Hot-Air fusion welding process, to permanently attach the seams together. With IB roof, you will never face the same problems associated with the rubber roofs, hence, to need to repair, unless there is some sort of physical damage puncture through the membrane. But even in case of such damage, repair is as easy as welding a patch over the damaged area – no need to use solvent cleaners and adhesives.

To back up its products, IB Roof Systems is the only roofing manufacturer to offers the Lifetime Residential Warranty. IB roof can also be upgraded with IB SolarWise BI-PV – the only Fully Integrated Solar PV system available for flat roofing Homes and Commercial buildings.

Disclaimer: This ‘Rubber Roof repair guide’ is intended for informational and reference purposes only. We do not recommend implicitly or explicitly, to anyone, performing any of the procedures described in this guide. We are also not responsible for any property damage or personal injuries resulting from following this informational guide.

Copyright © CoolFlatRoof.com – 2006-2008. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the content of this guide is against the law. You may only place direct URL link to this guide.

If you have a leaking rubber roof in Massachusetts, Connecticut or Rhode Island we can repair your rubber roof at a relatively low cost, using only the best materials that rubber systems have. Example of such materials are peel-and-stick flashing and seam tapes. We do not use black rubber glue as it is outdated, and leaks much faster.

Quick Navigation:

• Why homeowners should avoid rubber roofing – The truth of about residential flat roofing market and why you should stay away from rubber, and carefully choose your roofing contractor.
• Alternatives to rubber roofing – Find out what other, better flat roofing products are available for a similar cost, but without the EPDM’s inherited problems.
• Residential rubber roofing – Learn why rubber roofs should NOT be used on a roof of your home.
• Commercial rubber roofing – Limitations of EPDM rubber in the commercial flat roofing applications.
• Why rubber roofs are so popular – Quick history of EPDM rubber in US flat roofing market, and key to its popularity

Truth about residential flat roofing market and contractors.

This rubber roof is just 1 year old, and has been leaking since day one, until we replaced it with a lifetime IB PVC flat roofing membrane.

Rubber Roof Contractors: It is unfortunate, but most residential flat roofs are installed by roofing contractors that specialize in asphalt shingles. Since they can easily purchase rubber roofing materials from their roofing supply warehouse, and are not required to be certified installers, nor do they need any special training or equipment, they will often undertake such projects to keep their crews busy.

Incorrectly installed EPDM roof in Quincy, MA – rubber glued right over shingles:

The truth is such that to get a quality, rubber roof installed, it usually has to be done by a commercial roofing company that specializes in flat roofing. However it is often the policy of such companies not to work with residential customers, for which there are many reasons. These contractors work with large commercial and institutional customers, employ union workers who are trained roof mechanics specialized in their particular niche. For example, a commercial roofing contractor will have separate crew doing metal roofing or slate – these guys are “roofers”, and yet another crew doing flat roofing ONLY – these are “roof mechanics”.

A residential roofing contractor, usually employees just roofers, who are good at what they do all day long – installation of asphalt shingle roofs, and often do not have a clue about how flat roofs work. When they get a potential client with a flat roof, they go to their supplier, as what supplier has for flat roof, and the salesman at the supply warehouse TEACHES the roofer how to install EPDM rubber. This is not creative fiction or product of my imagination – I see this happening nearly every time, when I come in to get something.

“Trained rubber roofing installers”: If you are lucky, you may get a roofer that has received some sort of training about rubber roof installation. For example, one of my suppliers, provides installation training programs for their roofing contractors who install only asphalt shingles. The idea behind such training seminars is to increase awareness and solicit sales of more roofing products. A manufacturer technician provides a sample installation on a 8×8 feet demo stand.

Bellow is and example of such “hand-on rubber roofing training”.

As you can see, the roofers just sit around the demo stand while the MFG Installation technician shows them what to do. The whole demonstration took about an hour and a half, and covered thing like installing flat roofing insulation (ISO), adhering rubber to the ISO board, flashing a sky-light / chimney penetration with un-cured flashing material, installing the membrane up the vertical wall, cleaning & priming seams and installing seam tape, installing drip edge and a tape to seal the drip edge fasteners, and installing termination bar. In the same 1.5 hours we’ve also learned “learned” how to correctly apply yellow glue – membrane adhesive, seam primer – seam & flashing glue and how to install these systems in the winter, while violating manufacturer’s installation specs.

Out of 25 or so roofing contractors present, there were about 15 or so questions particular to the installation details. 7 of them where asked by me! Bear in mind that I already knew how to install a rubber roof and attended the event to talk to my salesman, representatives of the metal roofing manufacturer and for free refreshments

In any case, each one of those 25 or so roofing contractors, willing to learn a new, and very complicated roofing system, asked an average of 0.3 questions about this systems.

Rubber roofs for residential customers: It was clear that my supplier and the roofing representatives were selling to Residential Roofing Contractors. Not once did they mention roof-top HVAC units, roof hatches, elevator shafts, gas/electrical pipes, roof drains, etc. They did however insisted that the rubber is a good choice for a low slope shed dormer (without mentioning the poor low slope roof ventilation and ice dam prevention associated with shed dormers). They also mentioned that rubber is a good choice for a flat roof decks and patios.

EPDM Rubber roofing and flat roof homes.

Homeowners with flat roof homes often find themselves in a situation where their roof starts to leak rather unexpectedly – i.e. only after a few years since the roof was installed. This for the most part happens to homes which have a rubber roof on them. While most flat roofs will only last 10-15 years, older systems such as Tar & Gravel, Bur and in some cases Modified bitumen roofs are usually installed by roofing contractors that are somewhat specialized in their scope of work – these are “the old-timers” or former union guys that decided to try their luck working for themselves, and they actually went through a special training and have years of experience. Problem is that roofing systems they install do not last long for many reasons outside the scope of this article.

Homes that have a rubber roof, begin to leak well before their minimal life expectancy is reached because in many cases they are roofed by your typical shingle roofing contractor that is so confident in his/her abilities, and a rubber roof is merely a roof with a low slope.

Why rubber roofs are so popular?

The truth is, rubber roofs (EPDM) are the most used flat roofing products in the US / Canadian commercial roofing market. Rubber roofs we first put in service over 40 years ago, and since gained popularity among roofing contractors and their customers. The reason for such success lyes in the condition of flat roofing market of that time and the available alternatives.

Back in 1960′s oil was still very cheap, it was more than a decade before the oil crisis of the 70′s and there wasn’t that much demand for oil. The oil refining process was far from being efficient and the industry was looking to get rid of many by-products of oil refining process.

At the same time flat roofing industry at that time was the same as at the turn of 19th century, and the most common product to use on a flat roof was either a BUR (built-up roofing, using multiple layers of tar paper, saturated in hot tar or hot asphalt) or Tar & Gravel roofing, which was essentially a BUR roof with gravel added for additional protection. Flat roofing technology has not changed for 100 years and contractors needed a new, easier to install and cleaner product, hence, the EPDM was born.

EPDM consists mainly of oil (carbo-hydrate) based by-products with some modifiers and stabilizers added to extend its service life. Rubber roofing was cheap to produce, easier to install that conventional (BUR) roofs, did not require any special equipment to put it down and the membrane could potentially last for decades, as it was UV stable and did not break down when exposed to the weather.

Because rubber roofing was cheap, quick to install, and offered a potentially long service life, and with lack of any opposition from better roofing products, it quickly became the king of flat roofing and the pioneer of the single-ply flat roofing market.

Useful resources:

DIY epdm rubber roof repair – Our original article on how to fix a rubber roof with EPDM rubber adhesive (no peel-n-stick tapes)

Rubber roof repair guide – A part 2 of our Do-it-yourself guide teaching you hot to fix EPDM rubber roofing systems with primer and seam tape.

What you should do when your flat roof leaks:

First of all put up buckets to collect water, so the leak does not cause more damages than is already done. Once the dripping water is not causing any more damage to the interior, consider the following steps:

Step 1) If your roof is fairly new, call the roofing company that installed it and have them fix it.

Step 2) If it is an older roof, or the original installer will not fix it for some reason, you will have three options – either fix the roof your self, have a repair performed by a roofing contractor, specializing in flat roofs, or if your roof is near the end of its life, it is best to replace it, and not through any more money away, repairing it.

Step 3) To prevent more damages to your roof, interior of your home, or the inventory and the equipment of your business, it is a good idea to put up a tarp on you roof, until you choose a course of action – either fixing a roof your self or choosing a roofing contractor to repair or replace your roof.

Step 4) Estimate real cost to repair flat roof. Learn what’s involved, what hidden costs and fees there are and why we consider flat roof repair to be “sunk cost”. This comparison will help you decide if it is time to finally replace your flat roof, or if repair is a feasible option.

NOTE: If your rubber roof is leaking, we are offering Rubber Roof Repair services in MA, RI and CT, and can usually fix your EPDM rubber roof during first roof inspection / repair visit. Some rubber roofs can be repaired and you can extend the life of your roof by few years, for relatively low price.

DIY Flat Roof Repair guides

Because of wide scope of flat roofing materials and different roof problems that cause leaks, it is virtually impossible to caver everything related to flat roof repair in one article. For your convenience, we have several DIY roof repair guides for specific flat roof type and specific repair methods. This guides are easy to follow and are aimed at both home and business owners.

Identifying and repairing leaky roof:

• Rubber roof repair – our original article about fixing EPDM rubber membrane roofs using “black glue” or rubber seams adhesive.
• EPDM Rubber peel & stick repair – Part II of rubber roof repair guide above, concentrating on the more advanced and more efficient way to fix rubber roofs, using EPDM primer and Peel-n-Stick flashing and Seam tape, instead of just using glue.
• Tar & Gravel roof repair – Learn how to detect and repair leaks in your Built-up or Tar-and-gravel roof, using inexpensive supplies from Home Depot, Lowe’s and other Home improvement stores.

What you should know about Flat Roof Repair, before you spend any money.

Flat roof reality check: Roof leak, is an inevitable outcome for 99% of flat roofs in service today. If you have a flat roof, chances are that it is already leaking or will begin to leak soon – even if your roof is fairly new and was installed within 5-10 years.

This article is an overview of issues related to flat roof leaks. Here we review the cost of flat roof repair, actions you should take to get your flat roof fixed, and outlook of what will happen after your roof is fixed.

Purpose of this Flat Roof Repair Guide, is to help you avoid the costly mistakes many home and business owners make, when their roof leaks, and also to help you choose the best solution for your particular roof and budget.

Note: Due to a wide variety of different flat roofing technologies, this
article cannot cover all aspects of flat roof repair. For specific DIY ways to repair your flat roof, refer to our Epdm or Rubber Roof repair and Tar roof repair How-To articles.

Stop before you waste any more money fixing your flat roof!

Whether your roof just started leaking or the water has been coming in for some time now, we recommend that you stop repairing it, read the article and make the smart choice.

Have you seen ads like this in the Yellow Pages, on the Web or stapled to a light pole?

Home Improvement Contractor

“XYZ Construction Company” proudly offers all services relating to home contracting. This includes, but is not limited to: Roofing, Commercial Roofing, Rubber Roofing, Flat roofing, Roof Repair, Siding, and Deck builders, Gutters, Additions, Dormers and Remodeling. All types of residential roofing – we fix it all!

Here is what happens when you have the “we do it all” roofers fix your flat roof:

As a result of unprofessional flat roof repair, the homeowner had to pay extra for the roof repairs, sheet rock replacement, painting and a deck repair. The longer you let the water to come it, the more repairs the will be.

General purpose roofing and home-improvement companies that offer roof installation and repair services may do a decent job foxing your regular, asphalt shingles roof. But when it comes to a flat roof, these folks, who “DO IT ALL”, will waste your money and your roof will still be leaking.

Why? – Answer is simple: Flat roofs are VERY different from pitched roofs and require professional to install and repair them. You want to work with a roofing contractor that specializes in Flat Roofs, and flat roofs ONLY. There are such contractors, but 99% of them only do commercial work. For residential market, there is not enough business to keep a crew busy with just flat roofing. That is why you see these “do-it-all” establishments.

Another thing to keep in mind is that there are more than a dozen different flat roofing product types which are often incompatible with each other. When a “do-it-all” company comes to fix your flat roof, chances are, they will use a “fix-it-all” solution for any roof – the roof cement. Well, there is a catch – roof cement is not compatible with black rubber (Epdm membrane). Once roof cement hardens, its expansion/contraction ratio is much smaller than that of rubber. As a result, the seal will break after just a few weeks, and your roof will leak yet again. This is just one example among many others.

One more example of neglecting the roof leaks can be seen here – total deterioration of roof deck:

These folks just neglected the fact of roof leaks and now over 25% of their 2×4 tong & grove decking is rotted and has to be replaced.

Do not let the “do-it-all” roofers profit at your expense!

What you need is a professional roofing contractor who specializes in Flat Roofs, and knows it well. You also want this contractor to install a quality flat roofing product with proven track-record.

We are such a contractor. We install just one product and we do it well! Our flat roofing product of choice is IB flat roof – a cool PVC single ply membrane that comes with Lifetime Residential and 25 years Commercial warranty. The performance of IB Roofs is unmatched by any other roof technology or manufacturer. The secret to such a performance is IB’s own formulation and hot-air welded seams that create a permanent bond between separate sheets of membrane.

We specialize in flat roofing installation and repair services for both Commercial flat roofing and Residential flat roofing customers and we know all the aspects of our flat roofing product.

The nature of Flat Roof Leaks

Flat roofs in New England have for decades posed problems for home and building owners. Harsh climate, outdated roofing technology, and very often – standing water, are the major factors affecting the lifetime and performance of flat roofs.

When your roof starts leaking, repair is the first option that comes to mind. Second, you begin to think about the costs of repair, and how to minimize them. Depending on severity of the leak these cost may be just a few hundred dollars, or few thousand of dollars. Here is why: When you begin to see stained ceiling in you bedroom, it is the last stage of the leak. It means that your roof has been leaking for some time now and finally after last heavy rain it showed up on that ceiling. It also means that water had to completely soak the insulation, roof deck and rafters before you could see it on the ceiling. So if you choose the cheapest and most common solution which is patching the flat roof, you will leave behind the moisture trapped under the under your roof. This will cause the rotting of your deck and rafters, since there is no way for that water to escape.

What happens if you ignore roof leaks for some time?

Once a flat roof starts leaking, the inside damages will span from stained ceilings in the best case scenario to thousands of dollars in damages. Falling sheet-rock, electrical system damages, popping hardwoods and destroyed carpets, damaged furniture and home goods; these are only some of the outcomes of those leaks. Patching these leaky roofs may seem like the best solution, and the cheapest way out, but in reality, it usually proves to be the worst solution. Consider the following: the cost of patching the roof + fixing whatever damages the leak caused to the interior. Then, in 3-9 months, depending on the type of roof covering and quality of the patch work (which by the way, no contractor will ever warranty or uphold), your roof starts leaking again -
maybe in the same place, maybe in a different one, but the process is irreversible. Patch is only a temporary fix and usually won’t last, the roof will keep on leaking, and every time you patch it, you through away your money.

Majority of flat roof systems were not ‘designed’ with repairs in mind – best you could do to repair a flat roof was to pour some tar on the leaky spot. In fact, tar was pretty much the only feasible option. Unfortunately, after a short period of time you had to fix it again, as tar would dry up, crack and let the water in. New leaks would form elsewhere. So it was a constant repair, until a new leak begins and more money is spent. Such repairs are a perfect example of sunk costs, which cannot be recovered, and the fix lasts only a short period of time. After a series of such repairs, the owner would get sick & tired of it, and get a ‘new’ roof. Maybe a different type of flat roof, which unfortunately had the same inherited problems as the old one, but carried a different name and was made of different materials. Seems like a very sad situation for somebody with such a roof, doesn’t it?

Many people are faced with a choice to either continue this cycle for the lack of other options, or to build a pitched frame roof with asphalt shingles on top of their flat roof and be done with it. However there are two problems involved here. First one – such an ‘upgrade’ is very costly and you would still have to re-shingle your roof every 12 to 15 years. The second one is more complex. While it might be pretty straight-forward process if you have a small, rectangular house, that is not always the case. Many houses have odd shapes, multiple levels and mixed pitched and flat roofs. Now, if you have a 200′ x 100′ factory, that task becomes extremely difficult to implement, and I will not even try to guess the costs involved.

The REAL cost of a flat roof repair:

Repairing a flat roof in Massachusetts can and often will cost more than you anticipate (In other parts of the country, market conditions may be different, but the following prices should be just about right). Let’s see what goes into the price of flat roof repair.

• First: is the cost of patching a flat roof – you can expect to spend anywhere from $300 to 500 or more. If some one offers you to fix a flat roof leak for less than $300, that person either desperately needs money or in not a Pro, and does not really know what is involved and what to do (unless all that has to be done is to apply s bead of caulking, something you – the homeowner can usually do yourself).
• Cost of interior repairs – fixing wet sheet-rock, painting ceiling, etc, – $250-400. If it’s just a stain on the ceiling, then you could pick up a can of white paint at Lowe’s or Home Depot and do it yourself.

Above, are your direct coats of flat roof repair. Let’s also consider the indirect cost, to which most people don’t
pay attention:

Cost of Your Time. When your roof starts leaking, you don’t usually wait until the weekend to take care of it. You grab a phone book and start calling local roofers, or someone in the trade, whom you know already. You set up earliest time for the roofer to look at it and give you the price. You may get a few more people too look at your roof leak, but since it is more of an emergency, you need to fix it fast. So you give the job to the first reasonable bidder. Unfortunately leaks usually start when it is least convenient – during the week, at night or when you are away. So now you have to take a day off at work to meet with the roofer- thus you use your sick or vacation day. If you make $20/hour, you just lost $160.

Lets do the math. I will be conservative and use the low numbers – so you are looking to spend at least $300+250+160 = $710 in direct and indirect sunk costs which you cannot recover. Keep in mind it is usually won’t be that cheap. You also get what you pay for. And when six month later your flat roof starts leaking again – double that $710.

Bottom line: Flat roof repairs are a waste of money. They last only a short time and are not covered under warranty. If you opt for a more expensive repair such as aluminum powder-based coating form Home Depot, you might face an issue of incompatibility, as well as others. In the end, when you finally decide that you are sick and tired of repairing your flat roof and wasting money, you may have spent as much as it would cost you to get a new IB Flat Roof. This is the what happened in our second Case Study. Replacing a flat roof is what we recommend 99% of the time.

But I cannot afford a new roof now…

Although there are different payment options, new IB Flat roof can be costly, and might not always be able to afford one. When that is the case, we recommend the following steps to minimize costs and aggravation.

• Only hire a roofing contractor – not a handy-man. You need a professional, who knows the aspects of flat roof repair, not a jack-of-all-trades.
• If you are not in a big rush and can wait a day or two, ask your friends and neighbors if they could recommend someone. See if there are flat roof houses nearby, and talk with the owner. They must have encountered a problem with their flat roof in the past.
• Use Angie’s List – people there discuss local service businesses, including roofers. Contractors have no say in what others write there, and cannon buy advertisements.
• Do not use referral services like Quality Smith or Service Magic, as contractors go to them when they cannot find any work – maybe due to bad reputation. Their so-called pre-screening is nothing more than obtaining a copy of Contractor’s License. All these companies really care about is getting paid – not your satisfaction. Contractors pay for these appointments anywhere from $35-75. That is how you get ‘free estimates from 3 contractors’.
• Finally, replace your flat roof as soon as you can afford it. Stop the endless repair cycle once and for all. Choose a new flat roof that you can trust – not the inferior, but cheaper option like Epdm rubber – which most roofers will offer you. For more information on different flat roof choices, visit our guide to Flat Roofing technology and see what your options are.

Do-It-Yourself Flat roof repair articles:

Rubber EPDM roof repair – Procedures involved in repair of Epdm rubber roofs. Solutions that should be use, that those you should avoid.

Tar & Gravel roof repair – Options that you have when you need
your Built-Up Roof fixed.

Single-Ply Flat Roofing – Stop repairing you old flat roof that has exceeded its service life, and wasting your money. Learn about Single-Ply – roofing technology of the future.

IB PVC roof – Finally, there is a solution to the endless repair cycle, and it has been around since 1978 with a proven track record of zero material failure and leak-free service for 30 years.

Case study: how IB roof eliminates a constant repair cycle.

Case One: Home-owner’s struggle with a 1 year old Epdm rubber roof.

In October of 2006 we received a call from a homeowner living on the East Side of Providence. We had just completed a flat roof near the Miriam Hospital, and the person calling us happened to live in the same neighborhood. We scheduled an appointment with them and at the meeting the said that they just had a new roof installed a year ago. However this new roof was leaking like a sieve and they actually had to remove a skylight to get rid of the major leaks. It did not eliminate their problems though, as there were other leaks here and there – mainly around a hot-stack pipe.

After thoroughly examining their roof we came to a conclusion that repairing the roof was not an options as the system installed there was not up to the job. First, due to the roof’s shape, two large puddles of ponding water would form in the center of the roof, including the spot where a badly leaking sky-light once was. The Epdm rubber was not designed to withstand the ponding water accumulating on the roof, and the water was slowly coming inside the house. Second problem was the mentioned above round-shaped hot-stack pipe that was patched a number of times, and was still leaking.

50-mil white IB roof was chosen to replace this nearly new, yet badly-leaking rubber roof. With IB’s pre-made pipe flashings, the leaks around hot stack pipe were eliminated. The ponding water was no longer an issue, as hot-air welded seams created a permanent, water-tight protection for this roof. The cool roof properties also made this house more energy-efficient than before. In the end, the customer finally eliminated all their roofing headaches and is now covered by the best roof and the best life-time residential warranty. You can find more photographs of this roof here: Flat roof in Providence, RI.