Flat Roof Garage = Usable outdoor area!

 It seems like every neighborhood has at least one, a flat roof garage.  To bad so many of them are a money pit, never able to get the right product or contractor that can waterproof it as a roof and allow us to use it for our furniture and friends.  When they are done right (like this one) they are a real asset to the home and can add significant value too!

Duradek of Utah was contacted and right away we knew to call the guys at Lonepeak Contracting.  The roof had been covered with outdoor carpeting, looks good for a year or two but it hides what is happening and actually helps retain the moisture.  The damage was so extensive the entire roof was tore off and redone with 3/4 plywood.

Once the plywood was in the Lonepeak installers prepared the entire surface for the Duradek walkable roof membrane ensuring this garage roof would become an extension of the home.

As you can see in these photos the neighborhood eyesore has become the talk of the block.  What a great feeling to have, peace of mind that my roof is done right AND I can use the area (more than 500 sq ft) to entertain my family and friends.

Go ahead and BBQ all year too, rock salt, ice melt and shoveling won't bother Duradek at all, simply wash it off in the spring and your good to go!

Short Cuts, can cost you $$$

So many homes in the area have decks like this one.  Too many are thought of as a simple deck rather than considering what a waterproof deck can do. 

 By installing a waterproof system like Duradek's Ultra Supreme Sonoma Chip the entry ways below are now protected and the entire are is now usable for storage.

 This home owner was on the right track, but then lost focus along the way.  They used OSB (chip board) as the substrate.  OSB outdoors on a horizontal surface it never a good idea, regardless of the products being used.  It does cost less then plywood but that is only a short term gain.  A coating was applied directly to the OSB and it may have worked for a short time but as you can see the OSB has swelled at the seams from water penetration.

The best thing thing to happen to this deck was when they called Lonepeak Contracting for help!

 Not a difficult job at all but notice the details.  Where the OSB had been tight at the wall the Pro's at Lonepeak understand that to waterproof this deck you have to get the wall flashed too.  They ran the membrane up the wall and counter flashed is with metal that compliments the railing.  This is no longer just a "deck",  it's a DURADEK!

Henry Walker Homes, Columbus Court

Columbus Court, by Henry Walker Homes

 When your building homes with views like this how can you best take advantage of them?  Henry Walker Homes has the answer, call in the experts and make every use possible of the space available with the design.  Here they have used a roof top deck to bring the city views into the home.  Imagine waking up, looking out your bedroom to this breath taking view of the capitol.  There are two steps to be taken when adding a walkable roof to the design - First - use a product that meets or exceeds building code for a walkable roof.  Second - Have a trained professional installer do the work.
In this case Duradek and Lone Star Builders Inc. who have a long history together again teamed up to provide an awesome waterproof walkable roof top deck that is bound to be a drawing feature of this home.  Doing a job like this has to be done right the first time and with ascetically pleasing details.

Flush drip edge

Builders and roofers have been doing membranes for a very long time.  Membranes are the best option when it comes to providing a cost effective roof that will last without any ongoing maintenance costs.  But, they have a tendency to be "ugly" the way they are installed.  This is where the folks at Duradek have stepped in and provided the correct details in order to make the walkable roof design a focal point of the home.  Here are but a few of them as they were being done on this Columbus Court home.  To the right you can see where the Lone Star installer has recessed the edge of the rooftop substrate.  By doing so they have made it so the drip edge will fit flush to the plywood, eliminating seeing the drip edge and aiding in water run off.

Notice the recessed area, lower right corner             

Since the membrane is going to be fully adhered to the plywood substrate preparation is key.  Any imperfections in the plywood such as knot holes are filled in.  The seams where the plywood meet are also addressed so there is no line showing thorough the finished product. In the lower right hand corner the trained installer has already measured out the location of the seam and has recessed the 3/4 inch over lap.  This will allow the bottom sheet to drop into the groove, the top sheet then will be aligned thus eliminating the "bump" often seen with over lapped seams.  Although the seam doesn't go away completely they are more difficult to locate and will not impede the water flow.

As you see on the left a Duradek installer uses a scrapper and rubs the membrane in by hand.  This provides them an opportunity to catch any debris that may have been trapped under the membrane as well as assuring the best bond possible. Here they are aligning the bottom sheet with the recessed seam.

Here installer is heat welding the recessed seams together.  Basically the two sheets are melted back as one. As you can see here, the recessed seams are not even noticeable.




Roof decks are fast becoming a highly sought after feature of any new home in the Utah market.  Virtually every location has a wonderful view and with the right design, like the one seen here will help to increase the builders sales and customer satisfaction.

Concrete, radiant heat. Lonepeak Contracting does it right

No this is not a new design being used on this concrete radiant heated roof deck.  This type of work can be found all to often, it is called a band-aid for a water intrusion problem.  What you see here is a concrete roof deck (over living space) that began to leak into the rooms below.  This design like so many others in the Park City area has a radiant heat system buried in the concrete.

The home owners made great use of the deck and the ability to use it fro entertainment and just plain relaxing, getting this job done right was imperative. Thanks to the professionals at Lonepeak Contracting in Salt Lake City they have their beautiful roof deck back even better than it was with a peace of mind that the water issues will be gone for decades.

In order to make the installation as quick as requested and yet keep all the furniture, barbecue's, umbrella's and other items together Lonepeak simply took advantage of one of Duradek's greatest features.  It is in use as soon as it is down.  So they simply moved all the stuff to one side, installed half the deck and then moved all the belongings to the finished side.  So much easier then trying to remove all these things from a roof top.
Once done it was a simple re-arrangement to the home owners liking.

The choice of Duradek's Utra Marble Mocha really added a touch of elegance to the roof deck.  With these wonderful glass wind breaks they can sit outside and relax in comfort with their new roof deck.  There is enough room to have dozens of friends over and have a great time.

Adds value and outdoor living space!

This beautiful home has a over sized yard with a play area for the kids but was lacking and outdoor area for entertaining and watching the sun sets.  The home owners knew they wanted to accomplish several things to improve the home and increase the value as well.  First thing they wanted was a waterproof, long lasting deck that would be virtually maintenance free an yet stand up to the harsh winters and allow shoveling, rock salt etc. By making it waterproof they opened up the lower level slab deck too, double the area of use providing them with 600 sq ft of outdoor entertaining area and lots of dry storage. 

Above the Duradek Ultra Mocha Marble surface allows them a wonderful design that compliments the exterior of the home.  Now they don't just welcome friends out to the deck, they marvel at the difference a waterproof solid surface can provide for years and years to come without the concerns about winter and water intrusion.

Here is where the design really made sense.  The lower slab deck being dry was important to them but they also wanted to have a true "dry storage" area that could be secured.  Great idea to use the stairs and landing as that area!  Both the stairs and landing are covered in Duradek (with composite steps) providing them with a nice place to put the furniture, lawn tools, or whatever.

Because Duradek is a true roofing membrane and meets or exceeds the ICC testing requirements it is common to see the use of lighting or ceiling fans as you see hear.  There is no concern that water will short out or damage the electrical system that can happen with other products.

This is a great example of Duradek being used to protect the initial investment (building the deck). Adding dry storage (the lower deck and the under stair storage). Most important adding value to the home because of these things.

Open House Rivercrossing Town Homes, Logan Utah

Be sure and come by Saturday the 28th of April and visit with us while taking in beautiful views off these roof top decks. Relax and enjoy listening to the river or watch some golfers hitting into the green. DRD Properties as well as Duradek of Utah will be on hand from 10-2

Rivercrossing Town Homes Logan, Utah

We have been posting about the Rivercrossing Town Homes in Logan, Utah and will continue to add more so you can have a before during and after view of the project.

This article just came out as well and has some highlights / comments form DRD Properties too.

http://www.duradek.com/_customelements/uploadedResources/RoofTopDecksAddValueMarch2012.pdf

Roof Decks - Rivercrossing Townhomes Logan, Utah

Rivercrossing Townhomes - Creating Value in Real Estate and Quality of Life.
If your from the East coast the term "Roof Deck" is very common. Condo's and Townhome designers have been using them as a feature for decades. If your a fan of the many home improvement shows like HGTV or House Hunters you have probably seen an episode where the perspective buyer wants a Townhome so the maintenance is minimal but they all require that it has a roof deck for entertaining.

When done correctly they are a great addition to the home. Duradek is the way to do a roof deck right, ask David Rupp of @Home Realty. David has been instrumental in bringing this very unique design to life in one of the harshest climates in Utah.

What makes Duradek different than the other products is really very simple. They don't mess around, waterproofing is a serious business and not one to be taking shortcuts in. Duradek's walkable roof membranes meet or exceed both traffic coating and roofing approvals. That means they go through more than four times as much testing! A coating product will only be tested in four areas while Duradek goes through eighteen of them, there are very, very few products in Utah that are approved as a walkable roof system.

Over the next couple of posts here we will walk through the installation process from beginning to completion and explain the steps taken that will provide you with a waterproof deck that will last for decades. Oh yeah, the maintenance program is - Wash it off!

Ideas for Decks interview

Here is an interview based on a project in Capitol Hill, Salt Lake City, Utah.
http://duradek.blogspot.com/2012/02/ideas-for-deck-designs-offers-quality.html

Why is Tiledek different? What makes it the Best choice?

Duradek for years (more then 35 of them) has been the industry leader in walkable roof membranes. When asked if they could help solve the challenges of using tile on flat roofs and roof decks they were quick to see the opportunity. We already knew that tile could be installed over Duradek's Ultra membrane with great success, as it turns out they had been doing it in Florida for about 12 years. Living in Utah the big deal is the harsh climate and freeze thaw concerns. What would happen if snow built up on and exterior tile surface and sat there, thawing out a little during the day and freezing again at night, over and over and over? Then in summer when we are in the 90's what will happen under the tile with all that heat build up?

There was never any concern about the surface being waterproof. Duradek really is the expert in this field. Achieving a bond strong enough to reduce concern over a cracked or popped tile was what we were interested in. Having installed this all over the Salt Lake City area from the Benches, Avenues and as high as 10,000 ft it was time to learn more from the tile industry. I wanted to know just how they would waterproof over living space, or not and did that make any difference to the products used.

What I have learned was simple. There really are no standards an the most common practice was to do everything at least twice. Redundancy seemed to be a confidence builder. In reality all it would do is delay the inevitable failure. The owner was very often the person faced with the expensive repairs and there was a lot of finger pointing between contractors and trades.

Duradek' Tiledek brings roofing standards and approvals to the tile industry. Our system has been tested to the tile industries standards (TCNA), achieving a "heavy" and "residential" rating during the Robinson testing. So what does that really mean to you? Our trained installers will waterproof the surface including up the walls and all details. Tile is then installed to our system. What you get in addition to a beautiful entertainment area is Peace of Mind

If there is ever a problem with a tile it is a simple repair. No water damages, no high cost of replacement, just a new tile being installed.

For more information take a look at these websites.

http://www.dekmax.com/tiledek.cfm

http://www.duradek.com/OutdoorTileRoofingApplications.html?

Save money by doing it right the first time.

When you enjoy the outdoors and our wonderful views there is nothing like an outdoor entertainment area to relax in. The choices you make while designing your outdoor living area will determine the amount of effort to maintain and repair in the coming year(s). Since this is a very common question we field let break it down again for you -
Lowest initial cost (Good)- Wood. It doesn't matter if your using Redwood, Cedar or even treated lumber, they begin to deteriorate as soon as they are installed. The average home owner spends money on these designs every 3 - 5 years and normally about 7 - 10 years there is significant repair or replacement.
Medium range initial cost (Better) - Composites and Coatings

Composites - These are the manufactured, wood looking materials that will last longer than wood. They are subject to the effects of the elements and although they are often mentioned as waterproof they do not waterproof the area, the implied comment it that the composite itself is not effected by water. The colors can fade, they can splinter but more significant the supports are the same old building materials (wood) and they will deteriorate and need repair or replacement.
Coatings - There are a wide range of coatings available on the market and can range from a DYI project to one that is installed by a contractor. The bottom line with coatings are they require ongoing maintenance from every 1 - 3 years. they are difficult to repair and if you do not keep up on the required re coatings and maintenance then you are risking failure. When you add up the initial cost and then the re coatings these can quickly become the most costly and inconvenient products.

Realistic initial cost (Best) -

Roofing membrane. Duradek has the widest options of colors and designs as well as the highest ratings for testing and approvals. Here is where you have a choice to make - do you want a waterproof, very long lasting, minimal easy maintenance, with lots of choices OR do you want the seemingly never ending hassle's and frustrations that have always been associated with decks and outdoors?

Perfect solution for harsh climates

This wonderful home is located in Timber Lakes, just east of Heber. The unique design has several portions of the roof draining onto the deck surface. The home owners wanted to make use of the patio below without the hassle of the water and debris falling through the slots of the previous wooden slat deck. Initially their concern was simply to "dry in" the lower patio without much concern for the looks of the deck surface.

It's a good thing the pros at Decking Solutions were on the job. They far exceeded the owners desires by using Duradek's Ultra Cork on this waterproofing job. It's not only providing the dry space below but looks awesome too. You can shovel snow off or simply use some salt or ice melting compound, it is all save and approved.

These guys don't play around, there is only one way to do a job. No short cuts, do it right the first time and your done. Here you can see where they have taken the time to go over every seam in the plywood with some filler, making sure they are level. Taking the time to do this makes the surface completely smooth like a floor. Duradek is often thought of as outdoor flooring and when installed by professionals the results are wonderful.

Since the drip edge is coated and of a thick gauge recessing it like you see here makes for a smooth transition and no bumps or lines showing through. This also prevents any standing water at the edge. There were two bedrooms on the upper floor, each leading out onto the deck area. With log construction it can be challenging to make everything fit exactly right. Here Shane and Tyler were able to come up with a design that was not just waterproof but also enhanced the finished look of the deck, again exceeding the owners expectations. What you see here is a "filler" being used to smooth out and fill in any gaps where the plywood transitions to the log, allowing for proper installation of the Duradek membrane.

The membrane is also used as the flashing along the wall so once fastened to the plywood they continued up the log and under the original door threshold. Then to make it safer and more attractive they added a small step, this was a great touch and turned out fantastic!