Roof Recover Systems

Installing a new membrane system over an existing Atlanta commercial roof - when insulation is dry, deck is sound, and the recover path produces a warranted system at half the cost of tear-off.

Roof recover is the right scope when the economics and building conditions support it: dry insulation confirmed by core pull, structurally sound deck, existing substrate compatible with the new system's adhesion requirements, and recover-ready parapet and roof curb heights. When those conditions are met, recover delivers a new warranted membrane system at roughly half the installed cost of full tear-off and replacement, without the debris logistics of tearing off a complete BUR or single-ply system over an occupied building.

Atlanta's building stock creates specific recover opportunities. The large inventory of 1990s modified bitumen systems in the Perimeter Center and Sandy Springs office corridor - now at 25 to 30 years of age - frequently has dry insulation and sound substrate that supports a TPO recover. The older BUR inventory in the Marietta industrial corridor and the College Park logistics ring includes many buildings where coal-tar or smooth BUR surfaces are recoverable under single-ply if the insulation check passes. And the mid-life 45-mil TPO inventory from the 2005 to 2012 installation period - common across Buckhead commercial buildings and Sandy Springs retail - is a strong candidate for silicone coating recovery if seam integrity is maintained.

We treat recover as a data-driven decision, not a sales convenience. The same core pull protocol we use for replacement scoping applies here - if the cores come back wet, we do not proceed to recover. The same structural assessment applies - if the deck shows corrosion, deflection, or fastener pullout, the recover option is off the table. And the parapet height check is non-negotiable: a recover that brings the membrane within two inches of the top of parapet eliminates the drip edge and creates a water infiltration path that negates the whole scope.

Modified bitumen over BUR: The most common recover scenario in Atlanta's older commercial building stock. New SBS or APP modified bitumen is applied over a cleaned, gravel-free BUR surface. The gravel must be embedded in new bitumen, swept to bare surface, or the recover system must be mechanically attached with standoff over the gravel - application method depends on the substrate condition and the new system's attachment design. Modified bitumen recover over BUR produces a system suitable for another 15 to 20 years of service and carries manufacturer warranty terms in the 10 to 15-year range.

TPO single-ply over existing single-ply: New 60-mil or 80-mil TPO mechanically attached or fully adhered over existing TPO, EPDM, or modified bitumen. The critical qualification is substrate compatibility - fully adhered TPO over existing EPDM requires EPDM-compatible adhesive and substrate preparation. Mechanically attached TPO over existing single-ply requires confirmation that the deck can receive the new fastener pattern without the existing fasteners creating interference. Manufacturer warranty availability for single-ply-over-single-ply recover systems is narrower than for new-to-deck applications - we verify warranty availability before the recover scope is finalized.

Single-ply over BUR: TPO or EPDM mechanically attached over existing gravel-surface BUR, typically installed on a separator board over the gravel. This approach avoids gravel removal but adds a separator board cost. It also adds height at roof curbs and parapets - the added assembly thickness must be checked against existing curb heights before the scope is confirmed. Manufacturer warranty programs for single-ply over BUR are available but have more restrictive substrate preparation requirements than new-to-deck applications.