Torch Down Roofing – Parapet walls and Caps – my method that worked for 35 years

Torch Down Roofing. How to seal rubber roof membrane to Terracotta clay caps on top of the parapet wall. I have used this method for 35 years and have had great success. It is an unconventional method but the alternative is to replace the clay caps with metal which becomes very costly.

One of the main issues on a commercial flat roof is the parapet walls. In most cases, you will find that people have used a bunch of tar steering it under the lip of the terracotta clay tile causing more problems later on. The tar will dry up and crack and leave big cracks for water to seep in behind the membrane.

Instead of trying to clean the mess up, which will take forever, I have come up with a method to bypass the tar and lip, and cover everything up. The issue was how to attach the membrane to the top of the Terracotta cap.

By accident my son, one day chopped the seam ridge off with a hammer and we had a smooth surface on the top to make the transition. Watch the video to see how it is done.

0:00 Torch Down Rubber to the Parapet wall
0:20 Pointing the problem about tar
1:20 Using angle grinder to cut ribs
2:09 Installing membrane over the cap
4:17 Torching membrane to clay cap
7:16 Showing results
7:38 Showing results of rest of roof
8:45 End
9:00 Encouraging to DIY

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.