Flood Testing Flat Roofs

Water weighs 1000 kg m3 62 4 lb ft.

Flood testing flat roofs.

A membrane integrity test conducted by temporarily plugging or otherwise closing any drains and erecting temporary dams where required to retain water on the surface of a waterproofing membrane and then flooding the surface to a maximum depth of 2 inches at the. Flood testing is the oldest simplest and basic method of testing a roofs integrity. Leak detection using flood testing. However most roofs when properly constructed are positively sloped to drains.

This testing method eliminates the dangers and potential damage that can be caused by traditional flood testing and even pinhole leaks that aren t visible to the naked eye can be pinpointed. When the area to be tested has a slope greater than 1 4 per foot the depth of the water needed to test that area increases dramatically. This has largely been superseded by electronic testing as a means of establishing the waterproofing integrity of a roof or other installation. Astm d5957 standard guide for flood testing horizontal waterproofing installations is a guide for conducting flood testing of horizontal surfaces with slopes no greater than 1 4 in.

The principle to follow in doing a water test is to always start from the bottom and. Flood testing works on is a diverse testing method and can be used on practically all roofing membranes and build ups providing you with solid visual representation. The roofing contractor will then if needed plug any drains in the area to make sure that water does not drain off the roof during this test. Flood testing exposes roof drains to hydrostatic pressure and roof drains are not designed to be leak free under such unrealistic imposed conditions.

Flood testing to detect leaks and verify the quality of newly installed assemblies has a long history in the roofing industry. Once that is complete the roofing contractor always should start off with test the field flat part of the roof area. Per foot i e. Difficulties with flood testing are the time required to fill test and then drain the sometimes tens of thousands of gallons of water required to properly test an area.

There is a significant breach in a roof system during a flood test. If a flood test calls for a depth of 50 mm 2 in it would add 50 kg m 10 lb ft to the dead load. It can still be useful however where finishes are in place and electronic testing is impractical. Electronic leak detection is also widely used to provide the client with peace of mind that the installed flat roof is fit for purpose and has a.

Flood testing can cause irreparable damage to the roofing system or even the supporting structure.