TPO vs fiberglass PVC roof?

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Author Message Margaret G. Chewning FCSI CCS Senior Member Username: presbspec Post Number: 132 Registered: 01-2003 Posted on Monday, July 09, 2007 - 08:43 pm:    Does anyone have any comparison data for a TPO (thermoplastic polyolefin) roof vs. a fiberglass reinforced pvc membrane? Fully adhered application. We are stripping off the existing modified bitumen membrane on a renovation project. In particular is one system better than the other for a replacement roof? Anonymous   Posted on Tuesday, July 10, 2007 - 12:10 pm:    Your very best option is to go with a fleeceback membrane hot mopped directly over the existing mod bit membrane. Fibertite does this routinely. Saves the Owner lots of money, and lasts for decades. Sarnafil offers a similar system, I believe. Stay away from TPOs, they are proving to be not such a great deal - unless you are a developer interested in flipping the building within 5 years (this is something that a well known TPO manufacturer's rep actually told me recently. That's the closest thing yet I have to an admission that TPOs just do not perform very well. Yikes.) Anonymous   Posted on Wednesday, July 11, 2007 - 08:36 am:    I was talking to a tech with Seamans/Fibertite recently about single plys. He referred to TPO membrane as a "Taurus" vs KEE membrane being a "Corvette". Jerome J. Lazar, RA, CCS, CSI, SCIP Senior Member Username: lazarcitec Post Number: 393 Registered: 05-2003 Posted on Wednesday, July 11, 2007 - 03:15 pm:    Margaret Here are two articles written by Dick Fricklas, the Guru of Roofing on TPO's from the Roofing News Newsletter (Buildings.com web site): http://www.buildings.com/Articles/detailBuildings.asp?ArticleID=2298 http://www.buildings.com/Articles/detailBuildings.asp?ArticleID=3498 Dick's articles are always worth reading, referencing, and keeping. If you ever get an opportunity to attend one of his seminars (if he still does them) they are worth the time & $$$. BTW - I concur with Anonymous, Seaman's Fibertite and Sarnafil are my two TPO's of choice esp. in South Florida work. Lately we have been leaning more toward the Fibertite product, Sarnafil's warranty has some unusual requirements and Fibertite's pricing seems to be more competitive of late. Kenneth C. Crocco Senior Member Username: kcrocco Post Number: 99 Registered: 04-2003 Posted on Wednesday, July 11, 2007 - 03:43 pm:    Anon: Taurus: Ford's mainstay vehicle, the Taurus was for years America's best-selling car, and america's safest car. Corvette: America's sports car; very powerful engine, (understand overdone) and not too refined. So what are you saying about roof membranes? James M. Sandoz, RA, CSI, CDT, LEED AP Senior Member Username: jsandoz Post Number: 19 Registered: 06-2005 Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 09:24 am:    I take the automobile analogy to mean that the TPO product is a capable but not outstanding performer while the KEE membrane is a "high-performance" product. That is just my take on the comment made by Anonymous. Kenneth, as a long-time car nut, I can assure you that the newer Corvettes are extremely refined examples of their genre. I've had the pleasure of driving both the current iteration of the marque and a 1969 convertible with a 427 V8 and four speed transmission. The character of each was very different (the latter was like a buckboard with a couple of JATO bottles strapped to it) but both were a blast! Anonymous   Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 09:37 am:    Upon request, the Seamans Tech was forthcoming with a clarification: Years ago we used to use the Cadillac and Volkswagen to distinguish product comparisons. John Regener, AIA, CCS, CCCA, CSI, SCIP Senior Member Username: john_regener Post Number: 318 Registered: 04-2002 Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 02:50 pm:    And I've used the anology of a Ford Pinto with Firestone 500 tires, with the radio playing "Chariots of Fire." (It's time for an update of that anology; thankfully, there are no current examples.) Technical sophistication is no measure to anticipate satisfactory performance, having had the misfortune of owning a technically-advanced Chrysler product that had failures of two air conditioning compressors and three automatic transmissions, plus leaking fuel rails and miscellaneous glitches like a broken seat back hinge, prematurely worn out steering tie rods and an engine computer that caused the engine to go into "limp" mode without warning at 65 mph. I think the character of the manufacturer is important to consider and the inherent risk of innovation is also a factor. It will be interesting to see how longterm performance works out with new, sustainable and unproven Green products. George A. Everding, AIA, CSI, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: geverding Post Number: 333 Registered: 11-2004 Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 03:27 pm:    John...it was probably "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" on an 8-track player, if you are looking for obsolete culture and technology. To further the music and cars analogy, consider the Beach Boys "No Go Showboat". Some cars are for performance, some cars are strictly for show. The real question is are you trying to impress the boys at the garage or the girls at the mall? But the real topic is roofs. As a contractor friend of mine asked me recently, "How OLD are you now anyway? Why do you CARE if a roof is going to last 30 more years?" Anne Whitacre, FCSI CCS Senior Member Username: awhitacre Post Number: 590 Registered: 07-2002 Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 03:29 pm:    or you can use what I always say: "that's for the next owner of my house to decide." Ralph Liebing, RA, CSI Senior Member Username: rliebing Post Number: 654 Registered: 02-2003 Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 03:57 pm:    Why no mentions of the Huttmobile; the Terraplane; the Graham; the Nash; the '49 Studebaker;the Studebaker Lark; the Crosley-- and of course, the Edsel? John Bunzick, CCS, CCCA Senior Member Username: bunzick Post Number: 750 Registered: 03-2002 Posted on Thursday, July 12, 2007 - 05:27 pm:    Or how about the Dymaxion?