Shed roof - felt or rubber

[Waitforme]

I need to fix my leaking shed roof , it’s a sloped roof , not like an upturned V.
I’m wondering whether to felt it or use a rubber membrane on it ?
Any opinions ?

[TimmyMallett]

Felt it and torch it.


And no one post that thread......

[jonathan_roberts]

I would use a product that we sell called Restec Flexitec. We sell a 10m2 roofing kit in it that has everything you need included.

[Rough101]

I’ve had two stage torched on felt on the shed for 15 years with no issues.

Albeit I got it from a pal who thought it was for my garage and thought it hilarious that I still used the underneath layer on a shed as apparently like this it has a 25 year warranty.

[Ian Geary]

I used IKO cold lay felt - came in 2 parts

You paint the wood with undercoat (bitumen)
Peel off the backing film and lay the undercoat.
Then peel and lay the top coat (which is finished with chipings)

It's tough, looks smart and doesn't need specialist equipment like big torches.

Do it on a sunny day. Quite cheap off eBay. Way better than a roll of papery felt from Wickes

[Tim Cognito]

I did rubber last summer and it was a breeze, managed to get it in a large single piece so no joins, easy to cut and handle. Should last longer, can't see myself using felt again.

[RizzoTheRat]

Ian Geary said:

I used IKO cold lay felt - came in 2 parts

You paint the wood with undercoat (bitumen)
Peel off the backing film and lay the undercoat.
Then peel and lay the top coat (which is finished with chipings)

It's tough, looks smart and doesn't need specialist equipment like big torches.

Do it on a sunny day. Quite cheap off eBay. Way better than a roll of papery felt from Wickes

I did my garage roof with the Wickes cold lay stuff about 10 years ago and it's still in great condition. Very easy to lay.

I used normal felt for the woodshed several years later and it's ripped in a few place already

[dhutch]

Ian Geary said:

I used IKO cold lay felt - came in 2 parts

You paint the wood with undercoat (bitumen)
Peel off the backing film and lay the undercoat.
Then peel and lay the top coat (which is finished with chipings)

This sort of thing?
https://www.wickes.co.uk/IKO-Green-Easyseal-Self-A...
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/233098351000?

[cml24]

Tim Cognito said:

I did rubber last summer and it was a breeze, managed to get it in a large single piece so no joins, easy to cut and handle. Should last longer, can't see myself using felt again.

I agree with this.

What are the advantages of felt over rubber?Is it a great deal cheaper?

I used rubber on my garage roof. A single sheet with no joins feels inherently less leaky.

[C n C]

I did the shed roof in a single sheet of EPDM (rubber) a few months ago. I got the adhesive from the same place. It was easy to do on my own and should last many years, so I don't plan on ever doing it again.

I've previously used felt - even garage stuff rather than the super cheap shed stuff, and it hasn't lasted more than a few years.

[dhutch]

C n C said:

I've previously used felt - even garage stuff rather than the super cheap shed stuff, and it hasn't lasted more than a few years.

Seems odd to me.

Our garage roof is a flat roof with touched on felt, presumably intended to layer of gravel over it as only the raised edges have bonded chippings, but in the 6 years we have been in the house its gone from 'looking a bit tired, but not leaking yet' to 'looking a bit tired but not leaking yet'. I dont know when it went down, the garage is around 1970s I think so its cant be the original but either way its got to be at least 15-20yo.

[OutInTheShed]

C n C said:

I did the shed roof in a single sheet of EPDM (rubber) a few months ago. I got the adhesive from the same place. It was easy to do on my own and should last many years, so I don't plan on ever doing it again.

I've previously used felt - even garage stuff rather than the super cheap shed stuff, and it hasn't lasted more than a few years.

Thank you for that, under a tenner a sqm is very interesting.

I will say that having a skylight in a shed is a huge bonus, so I quite like some sort of 'corrugated' with a few translucent bits.

Properly done felt should last 20 years, but like rubber, it's the detailing which often mucks it up.

[Waitforme]

Thanks for the replies.
If I’m going to have to re cover it I’m swaying towards the rubber as it goes on in one sheet.

But …. The felt that is on isn’t torn it’s just the 2 seams that are leaking as I never used any bitumen or sealant when I refelted it a few years ago, so I’m wondering whether to just lift the felt, put down some kind of sealant and re lay the felt that is on it.

[bangerhoarder]

I got a sheet of roofing steel cut to size by a local specialist. Tek screwed on, no faff and cheap enough.

I hate using felt.

[OutInTheShed]

Waitforme said:

Thanks for the replies.
If I’m going to have to re cover it I’m swaying towards the rubber as it goes on in one sheet.

But …. The felt that is on isn’t torn it’s just the 2 seams that are leaking as I never used any bitumen or sealant when I refelted it a few years ago, so I’m wondering whether to just lift the felt, put down some kind of sealant and re lay the felt that is on it.

You can glue it back down with 'tarry black st' of some sort, job done.
It's not rocket surgery.

[The Gauge]

Are there any rubber roofing products that can be ended to felt?
My shed had a felt roof that is stuck on with bitumen making it a pig to remove, so would like to use EPDM over the felt but I think that needs to be bonded to the timber?

[Joe M]

Yes, classicbond pro is fleece backed and can go over felt. Costs as much as my shed though.

[TSS]

Definitely EPDM. I just did two small roofs myself with it and it seems way better than felt. Easy to handle, easy to cut, easy to apply. Feels super durable.
I bought it from a company called Rubber For Roofs who sell complete kits with everything you need. There are plenty of videos online showing you how to lay it.

[dhutch]

The Gauge said:

Are there any rubber roofing products that can be ended to felt?
My shed had a felt roof that is stuck on with bitumen making it a pig to remove, so would like to use EPDM over the felt but I think that needs to be bonded to the timber?

Knock the whole roof of, sheet it out in OSB, and stick the EPMD down to that?

[dhutch]

bangerhoarder said:

I got a sheet of roofing steel cut to size by a local specialist. Tek screwed on, no faff and cheap enough.

Yeah, I have thought of doing this to our shed, which currently has 90's mini-corrugated clear blue plastic on it which is falling to bits, bu I have to say I was astonished at the cost. And unless you get the flocked stuff I would be worried about condensation formation too?

That said, if you can get a could of GRP sheets in the mix to have a sky light, thats worth a lot too as per the other poster.