A World of Concrete Can Use a Little Duradek

Las Vegas had barely recovered from Design & Construction week in January, and now it is taken over by concrete industry pros for the World of Concrete (#WOC2016) taking place right now. The show runs from February 2nd to February 5th, 2016 and has drawn construction professionals from any and all angles of the ‘world of concrete’ in commercial concrete and masonry industries.

By the way, while Duradek is not participating at the World of Concrete Las Vegas show, you will find us at Buildex Vancouver which hosts the World of Concrete pavilion from February 24th & 25th, 2016.

You might be wondering why a vinyl deck membrane blog has any interest in discussing concrete, but we have two very important reasons.

1 – Duradek vinyl membranes can be applied on top of concrete. ( See our Techtalk #140 – Duradek Application to Concrete)
2 – Concrete pavers or stamped concrete used on decks over living space absolutely must use a waterproofing product underneath.

Back in September, we posted an article that discussed a homeowner writing to home improvement expert, Shell Busey about leaks at the stucco side of the deck that is covered in stamped concrete.

See the details of the original post below and take an expert’s advise to always use Duradek under stamped concrete for reliable waterproofing.

Home Improvement expert Shell Busey has been advising BC homeowners for decades on how to best maintain and improve their homes. A question on a stamped concrete roof deck was raised this summer and was featured in the Vancouver Province Newspaper Q&A Feature ‘Ask Shell’.

Shell, who is very familiar with roof deck waterproofing solutions from a long relationship with Duradek as one of his House Smart Referral Certified products summed it up succinctly with “…always use Duradek Tiledek.”

Province--Shell---Duradek
Clipping from Vancouver Province – June 2015

The Q&A article in Ask Shell “Remedying a leak on stucco”, was as follows:

Q: I have an above-ground deck half over my garage and half over the driveway. The deck has a torch down covering with stamped concrete on top.

The problem is that the deck leaks at the seam where it meets the stucco side of the house.

It is a slow leak, but I do not want to end up having damage to the stucco.

I have put caulking along the seam; it sticks well to the stucco, but not the concrete. Is there a better product I can use?
A: It sounds as though the contractor did not install a metal counter flashing when the deck was built.

A 90-degree metal counter flashing could have been cut into the stucco and placed under the concrete decking to give the best water seal.

You might still be able to have a flashing installed by a professional service trade.

In the meantime, you may want to try a polyurethane caulking, which will stick to both types of surfaces. LePage Quad-max would be a good choice.

(Note: Do not use torch down roofing membrane under concrete; always use Duradek Tiledek.)

Duradek Case History #122 - after
Tildek membranes protect the area below exterior tile from leaks

Reliable Waterproofing of Tiledek Membranes for Roof Decks Using Pavers

It is a very common scenario that roof decks surfaced with tiles or pavers result in leaks into the home below, but fortunately it is a problem that Tiledek can remedy.

Only a couple of years after Tiledek’s introduction, TileLetter Magazine featured an article “Waterproofing Makes All The Difference In Dual Level Decks” to show how effectively Tiledek solves leak problems under exterior tile decks.

Like all Duradek membranes, Tiledek is only installed by trained and authorized contractors who are familiar with Duradek’s superior methods of reliable waterproofing. Critical areas like where the deck meets the house are addressed with Detailed Drawings for installers to reference to ensure the building envelope is protected.

In Duradek’s installation best practices, the membrane runs up the vertical wall about 6 inches and is overlapped by the moisture barrier for 2 inches to ensure that the inside perimeter, or “seam” between deck and side of the house, cannot allow any moisture to infiltrate.

Tiledek Detail Drawing IS-1T
Tiledek Detail Drawing IS-1T

For more information on how Tiledek can ensure you avoid leaks under tile or pavers on your rood deck projects, check out the Tiledek section our website or contact us to be referred to an authorized installer in your area.

Check out these Tiledek Case Histories for more examples!

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