Advantages of Polyurethane Waterproofing

It just makes sense that a liquid paint-on system offers more protection for the protrusions coming out of the roof and at join areas. No more hit & miss and hope that the waterproof system adheres to the surface. If the surface has been prepared properly, the adhesion of polyurethane will complete its task of waterproofing.

No more delamination (peeling off the surface) of the product over time, just pure adhesion.

Try take an apple peel off an apple vs taking the peel off a naartjie. Which is easier?

With time, the naartjie fruit will delaminate from the peel.

Ever seen an apple peel come adrift from the apple?

Nah…us neither.

Polyurethane is like the peel of an apple.

WHAT MAKES A GREAT WATERPROOFING PRODUCT

When looking for a waterproofing product, we look for the following qualities:

    • Ease of application
    • Great adhesion
    • Ideally no joins in the final product
    • It must be UV stable
    • The product must carry a manufacturer’s guarantee 
    • Must have a certified / tested lifespan
    • Ideally the application doesn’t require maintenance within a 10 year period
    • Priced competitively (cheap is expensive as well)

We have found that most conventional waterproofing products suffer from the following drawbacks:

    • Poor application: The torch-on product needs to be heated thoroughly to achieve adhesion. Should the torch-on not be heated correctly, the adhesion will be affected, and delamination will occur, resulting in water ingress. I have witnessed numerous defective torch-on waterproofing systems due to poor application.
    • Protrusions: The Torch-on needs to be cut to shape in order to waterproof protrusions sticking out of a roof. I’ve seen numerous failures where water ingress is at the point of the protrusion. Adhesion is normally the problem.
    • Full-bore Outlets: Its very difficult to shape the torch-on into outlets and heat the torch-on at the same time. A number of outlets leak into the screed due to this. Adhesion is the problem.
    • Joins: Torch-on also needs to have an overlap, hence creating a join. If the overlap is not heated properly, the join will break apart due to expansion and contraction. This will result in water ingress underneath the torch-on.
    • Poor maintenance: Torch-on requires an aluminum covering, every 2-3 years, else it will be affected by UV. If left unprotected, torch-on will become brittle and will start delaminating off the surface resulting in water ingress.
    • Torch-on, if maintained correctly, will have a lifespan of 10 -12 years before needing to be replaced.
    • Replacement patches: Torch-on can be replaced via patches… with joins.

The polyurethane that Waterproof Doctor uses for waterproofing has:

    • Micro adhesion: by its very nature, polyurethane is either paint on or spray-on application.
    • Protrusions & Outlets: the polyurethane is painted into or onto these shapes with ease, with great adhesion.
    • No joins or seams: Polyurethane comes in liquid form. That enables the application of polyurethane to be able to be applied into floor/ wall joins with seams or joins in the polyurethane.
    • Maintenance: Polyurethane does not require any maintenance (calculate the savings just in that statement).
    • Certified Lifespan of Polyurethane: Certified working lifespan of 25 years.
    • Tears in the polyurethane: Should there be any mechanical damage to the polyurethane, the damage is easily repaired by re-coating the area with the polyurethane.

In view of the above, a seamless waterproofing product such as polyurethane ticks all the boxes when it comes to application, adhesion, lifespan, seamless, and maintenance. 

A year ago, we challenged our current supplier to find me a torch-on application that polyurethane could not handle, he is yet to find such an application.