As an Altoona TPO roofing contractor, we install white thermoplastic membrane with hot-air welded seams over new insulation on flat commercial roofs.
Altoona TPO roofing is one of three single-ply choices for a flat roof. The building, its equipment, and its exhaust point to the right one.
Heat-welded white single-ply
Thermoplastic with plasticizers
Synthetic rubber sheet
Grease exhaust, heavy roof traffic, and the condition of the existing layers all change the answer, so we confirm it on the roof.
These are the conditions that usually lead an owner from repairs to a new TPO roof.
Old membrane seams that reopen after each repair show a sheet that no longer holds a bond. A new welded field ends the cycle of patching the same lines.
Soaked board under the membrane adds weight and loses insulating value. Wet areas get cut out to the deck before any TPO goes down.
Water that sits after a thaw freezes and works at the sheet. New tapered board around each drain lowers the water line to the bowl.
Curbs set too low for the new insulation leave little room for proper flashing height. We raise or rebuild them as part of the TPO scope.
Service traffic wears membrane along the same route. Walkway pads welded to the new TPO protect that path from tool drops and boots.
Each proposal lists these parts so you can compare bids on the same scope.
Core results decide whether the old roof comes off or stays under a cover board, and the proposal says which and why.
Polyiso board sized to the energy code, tapered at drains, then a cover board that gives the membrane a firm, even base.
Mechanical plates in the seams or fully adhered sheets, picked from the deck type, the wind zone, and the building height.
Prefabricated corners and welded base flashing at every unit, stack, wall, and level change, carried to the correct height.
New drip edge, gravel stop, or coping fastened along the perimeter so wind has no loose edge to lift.
Roof size, tear-off layers, curb count, and access all move the price. A roof walk turns them into a written number.
Schedule Your Free InspectionThe steps below follow one roof section from tear-off to final probe.
Cores at drains, curbs, and low spots show how many layers exist and where the insulation holds water.
Old roofing comes off in the day's section, and rusted or soft deck gets replaced at the agreed unit price.
Flat and tapered board goes down, fastened or adhered, with crickets that move water toward each drain.
Sheets are rolled out, attached, and joined with a hot-air welder, then probed so a weak spot shows before the crew leaves.
Curbs, walls, and edges get flashed and trimmed, and a final walk with photos closes the job.
How the roof reads on the next inspection after the new membrane goes on.
Some Altoona roofs suit a different system. These three cover the rest.
Black rubber sheets for low-slope roofs that see hard cold and building movement, glued or attached and sealed with seam tape and primer.
Read about EPDM
Phased reroofing for plants and railcar shops where equipment, exhaust, and production below shape every day of the work.
Read about industrial roofing
Standing-seam roofs, panel replacement, and retrofit framing for metal warehouses and equipment buildings with tired fasteners.
Read about metal roofingSix answers on what TPO is, what it costs, and how the welds are checked.
TPO is a thermoplastic single-ply membrane, usually white, joined at the laps with hot air so the seams fuse into one sheet. It sits on insulation and cover board and is held by plates or adhesive. The membrane is one part of an assembly that also includes flashing and edge metal.
A welded, reflective covering over the insulation, with seams that resist water once fused. We design the board, attachment, and curb flashing around it, and we check drains and equipment access, because those parts decide how well the whole roof performs over a cold-storage or dock area.
Each curb adds cutting, corners, and welded flashing, so a roof crowded with units costs more per square foot than an open field. Price also follows area, membrane thickness, insulation, tear-off layers, deck repair, edge metal, access, staging, and season, all set after the inspection.
Sometimes. A recover needs one existing layer, dry insulation, and solid attachment, which cores and moisture readings confirm. Curbs, edges, and drains also have to work at the raised height. A dry-looking top surface is too little evidence on its own to skip tear-off.
Corners and transitions are tight spaces where the welder is hard to steer, and the lower roof often takes water from above. We lay out sheets and flashing there before installing, then probe every weld so a gap gets fixed while the crew is still on site.
A probe drawn along each lap finds spots where the sheets did not fuse. Test welds at the start of each day set the welder speed and heat for that day's temperature, and any repairs get rewelded and probed again before the section is called finished.
Send the roof size if you know it and any curbs or drains that leak. We will core the roof and write a TPO scope you can compare line by line.