Adhesives play a vital role in roofing, particularly single ply membranes used in flat roofing systems such as TPO, PVC or EPDM. Industrial roofing adhesives are critical to roofing installation success and typically hold the entire roofing system together.
Industrial Roofing Adhesives Instead of Fasteners
In some roofing installations such as flat roof systems on structural concrete decks, the use of specialized roofing screws, mechanical fasteners, can be impractical or downright impossible. Roofing adhesives bond the roofing deck to the bottom layer of insulation and thus attach the entire roofing system. In other types of roofing decks which allow for the use of mechanical fasteners such as ribbed steel, it is typical to mechanically fasten the base layer of insulation to the deck and utilize industrial roofing adhesives to attach all other layers of the roofing system.
TPO roofing adhesives can be used to bond a cover board layer to insulation, multiple layers of insulation, and can be utilized to connect a waterproof membrane to the cover board.
Single Ply Roofing Membrane Systems Fully Adhered with Adhesives
Roofing systems are known as fully adhered systems when adhesives are used to attach a single ply roofing membrane in entirety. Fully adhered describes attaching the roofing membrane itself and is distinguished from using mechanical fasteners or ballasted, weighted down with pavers or stones, single ply roofing membrane systems.
Mechanical fasteners can still be used in fully adhered systems to attach the cover board and layers of insulation together and attached to the deck. One of the most reliable methods for adhering TPO roofing membranes is to use roofing pucks, plates or attachments that are already coated with a two-stage TPO roofing adhesive. This allows for accurate and quality installation and long-lasting, durable adhesion when sealed with heat induction. Heat sealing is a common method of activating industrial roofing adhesives for TPO roofing systems.
uniBOND TPO Provides Long-Lasting Roofing Membrane Adhesion
uniBOND TPO industrial adhesive by Universal Chemicals & Coatings, Inc., UNICHEM, is proven to provide reliable and long-lasting, durable adhesion for TPO roofing systems. UNICHEM offers high-quality, customized TPO roofing adhesive which when applied to roofing pucks and plates, allows for B-stage curing. This two-stage curing method is ideal when installing single membrane roofing systems and allows for durable adhesion during heat induction bonding.
Temperature Range during Roofing Adhesive Application
Installing single membrane roofing systems with quality industrial roofing adhesives should be done within the recommended temperature range for proper curing. This is typically between the temperature of 35°F to 95°F, although custom coating and adhesive specialists like UNICHEM offer industrial adhesives with a wider curing latitude. UNICHEM also offers the ability to customize properties such as curing temperature range to meet specific application requirements.
UNICHEM is a leading custom coating and adhesive supplier, with more than 50 years of experience in developing high-performance coatings and industrial adhesives. We offer dedicated teams of resin and adhesive specialists with deep technical knowledge and market expertise. Contact us to learn more about improving your single membrane roofing installation with high quality TPO industrial adhesive.