Superdome Roof Coating
The main objective for designing the new roof for the Superdome has been to produce a system that is highly weather resistant. The rains, hurricane-force winds, and possible debris present a challenge to all roofs there.
There has been little information provided about whether hail damage is an issue in New Orleans. Apparently, it is. In any event, we have specified a polyurethane coating for the Superdome roof. This material presents several advantages in this application. First, it comes with a proven performance history. In the case of sprayed polyurethane foam and coatings, it seems that the performance history has not been well documented and published. Here is an article that does a fine recap of spray foam roof systems.
A quote from the article: “Hail and wind-driven missiles rarely cause leaks and damage can typically be repaired at a later date without compromising long-term performance. One of the most famous examples is the New Orleans Superdome. A severe hailstorm damaged areas of the SPF roof in 1978, and the city debated for the next 10 years on how best to execute repairs. Finally, in 1992, the roof was repaired and re-coated. Despite such a long time before repairs were finally carried out, the roof never leaked from the hail damage.”
The second advantage with a polyurethane coating is its very high tensile strength. This tensile strength over a spray foam with high compressive strength provides a highly hail-resistant system. Although the Superdome roof does not have much foot traffic, it does have potential for impact.
The third advantage of a polyurethane coating is that it is moisture-cured. That is, the chemical reaction takes place with a reaction with water molecules in the air. In New Orleans, LA there is more than enough water molecules in the air. The heat and humidity are notorious!
Superdome Roof
There has been little information provided about whether hail damage is an issue in New Orleans. Apparently, it is. In any event, we have specified a polyurethane coating for the Superdome roof. This material presents several advantages in this application. First, it comes with a proven performance history. In the case of sprayed polyurethane foam and coatings, it seems that the performance history has not been well documented and published. Here is an article that does a fine recap of spray foam roof systems.
A quote from the article: “Hail and wind-driven missiles rarely cause leaks and damage can typically be repaired at a later date without compromising long-term performance. One of the most famous examples is the New Orleans Superdome. A severe hailstorm damaged areas of the SPF roof in 1978, and the city debated for the next 10 years on how best to execute repairs. Finally, in 1992, the roof was repaired and re-coated. Despite such a long time before repairs were finally carried out, the roof never leaked from the hail damage.”
The second advantage with a polyurethane coating is its very high tensile strength. This tensile strength over a spray foam with high compressive strength provides a highly hail-resistant system. Although the Superdome roof does not have much foot traffic, it does have potential for impact.
The third advantage of a polyurethane coating is that it is moisture-cured. That is, the chemical reaction takes place with a reaction with water molecules in the air. In New Orleans, LA there is more than enough water molecules in the air. The heat and humidity are notorious!
Superdome Roof
posted by Robert Dye at 4:33 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home