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FAQS
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Glossary
Do hot air welded seams deteriorate over time?
No. Properly welded seams are stronger than the membrane itself and do not deteriorate over time. When comparing heat-welded seams to other thermoset seams, thermoplastic seams tend to last for the duration of the membrane's service life, whereas in a thermoset membrane application, the seams are usually the reason why the roofing installation fails.
Can vinyl roofs be made in different colors?
Vinyl membranes can be made in a wide array of colors to meet the design needs of the building.
Can vinyl membranes be used for waterproofing applications?
Vinyl membranes have been used successfully in waterproofing applications for more than 30 years. Many of the same benefits that vinyl offers for roofing, including heat-welded seams, apply to waterproofing.
Are there any restrictions to disposing of vinyl in landfills?
No. In fact, landfills are often lined or capped with vinyl membranes to protect groundwater. This is because the vinyl sheets are long lasting and virtually inert. And because they consist of a single ply and are lightweight, vinyl roof membranes, if disposed of in landfills, will take up far less space compared to multi-layered built-up roofs.
Can vinyl roofing membranes be recycled?
Vinyl can be reprocessed and recycled repeatedly. During manufacturing of vinyl roofing, scraps are routinely recycled directly back into the process or into accessory products such as roof walkway pads, making it a material-efficient operation. This can result in nearly zero waste from manufacturing. Because vinyl roofing membranes have a long service life, many are not available for post-consumer recycling. Nevertheless, there are several specific building refurbishment projects in the U.S. where post-consumer vinyl roofs have been recovered and recycled into useful products such as speed bumps and asphalt road patching material.
As with any building product, the key to effective post-consumer recycling is to find a cost-effective way to collect, separate, and transport clean material for recycling at the end of its useful life.
Members of the European Single-ply Waterproofing Association (ESWA) joined forces in 1994 to collectively organize the recycling of vinyl roofing membranes. Arbeitsgemeinschaft für PVC-Dachbahnenrecycling (AfDR) GmbH created a company for the promotion and recycling of used vinyl roofing membranes. AfDR also established the required logistical systems and recycling plant. ESWA company members commit to recycle at least 50 percent of the collectable available quantity of vinyl roofing membrane waste by 2005. Transportation from construction site to the recycling plant is fully organized in Germany, and the system is to be extended to the rest of Europe.
Has vinyl roofing environmental performance been endorsed by any national or international environmental, scientific or government organizations?
When vinyl is evaluated according to unbiased scientific principles, it is often endorsed as an environmentally safe and beneficial material.
The U.S. EPA recognizes all vinyl roofing manufacturers of the Chemical Fabrics and Film Association as ENERGY STAR® Partners for their commitment to continue to produce specific products that exceed aggressive energy-efficiency criteria and to further the market's acceptance of these products. The program's product list includes vinyl roof membranes with aged reflectivity from 77 percent to as high as 86 percent. Vinyl membrane emissivity can measure as high as 95 percent. For low-slope roofs, a roof product qualifying for the ENERGY STAR label must have an initial solar reflectivity of at least 0.65, meaning that only 35 percent of solar heat is absorbed, and after three years of use, it must maintain a solar reflectivity of 0.50 or greater in accordance with EPA testing procedures.
The British Board of Agrément, which provides authoritative and independent information on the performance of building products via its certificate system, found that some vinyl roofing membranes can last "in excess of 30 years," based on site inspections and laboratory tests of the material as it naturally ages. This kind of performance translates to waste minimization.
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