TPO Roofing

[Belial Black]

Can anyone point me to a good resource on TPO Roofing Installation. It looks easy, so it must not be. There must be something I'm overlooking. I've got three flat roofs to replace and tear-off looks to be the hardest part (3+ tar roofs on each section). I was considering EPDM but since two of the roofs are visible from other parts of the building, TPO is attractive.

If anyone has any general tips on the matter, those are welcomed, too.

"Save money/hassle/hire an expert" responses are appreciated (for their concern) but entirely unnecessary.

thanks in advance,

-BB

[No]

I'm not a pro roofer but have a fair amount of experience for a DIYer.

I have never installed a TPO roof, I had to google to see what you were talking about. TPO = thermoplastic polyolefin

A TPO roof, as I understand it, is a single ply rolled roofing sealed at the seams. May come in larger sheets. Probably a simple install.

I have installed several Modified Bitumen torch down roofs. They are relatively easy to do but definitely not for the faint of heart or sloppy DIYer. You risk burning your building down if you drop the torch or point it to something you shouldn't. These roofs do also come with granules if that's the look you want. They even sell loose granules to use for touch-up. These roofs are very good quality from what I can see and have experienced.

Last weekend I was doing a small roof repair job on a flat roof where a TPO roof was installed (I didn't know it was a TPO roof till today). This roof was installed in April and was leaking. The roofer that sold it to this unsuspecting family called it a "50 year rubber roof". It was not rubber and I know of no flat roof installs with a 50 year warranty.

Anyway, they key to any good roofing job is not only the roofing but the flashing, seams and transitions (Valleys, slope changes, wall to roof intersections, crickets,etc.) That was the problem I was correcting, no flashing where a flat roof met an adjoining wall!

OK - None of that answered your question. This site has some very brief install instructions for TPO roofs.

You are correct - Tear-off is usually the hardest part.

If you are considering torch-down, there are videos (as well as for other techniques) here

^^^^ Click on "installation videos" at the link above.