3 Reasons you may need EPDM roofing system

What is an EPDM roofing membrane?
EPDM (ethylene propylene diene terpolymer) is a synthetic rubber black membrane commonly used in commercial and medical facilities. But like I said earlier, even though it’s used mostly in commercial, EPDM roofing has its place in residential roofing.

1. The reason you need EPDM roofing
The first thing you need to know about EPDM roofing is what situation calls for it.

Because the roof pitch is flat or close to flat, water won’t run off like it would on a higher pitch.

If your entire roof or parts of your roof are flat or low slope, they need a waterproof material. This rules out most roofing materials, including the most commonly used asphalt shingles.

There are installation instructions and building codes that state asphalt shingles can’t be installed on anything below a 2:12 roof pitch. This is why EPDM roofing (or another flat roof system) must be installed on low slope or flat roofs.

2. EPDM roofing is extremely durable and is kind of like having a bulletproof rubber roof system.

As long as it’s installed properly, you can expect to get around 25 to 30 years out of a fully adhered 0.060 thickness EPDM roof. Just know, putting a lifespan of 25 or 30 years on an EPDM roof is great, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get this many years out of it.

As long as EPDM roofing is installed correctly, you should get pretty close to the lifespan range above.

3. The cost of EPDM roofing
Finally, the most important thing you need to know about EPDM roofing is how much it’ll cost. Know that it’s impossible to give you an exact price due to various cost factors.

The first one is the type of insulation used under the actual EPDM roofing membrane.

It costs more to use insulation thick enough to insulate the entire structure than using fabric insulation and gluing the membrane to it. The second factor is the size of the roof getting EPDM roofing installed on it.