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How to Install Firestone Rubber Roofing

Insulation, Membranes & Felts
how to
How to Install Firestone Rubber Roofing

When it comes to roof materials, some of the most popular currently on the market today are rubber roofs and their accessories. Perfect for a wide array of flat roofs both physically and aesthetically, they create a reliable protective layer that can be installed and maintained with minimal work, time, money, and resources.

In this guide, we’ll take look at Firestone, one of the most popular brands around, and the key points behind their rubber roofing installation. We will advise on how to prepare the roof, the products and accessories required for the complete installation process, and of course the procedures themselves. We will also look at other commonly asked questions, including whether or not you may need professional assistance.

Contents

What are the Benefits of a Firestone Roof?

Firestone is a fantastic brand that creates rubber roof products with a whole host of benefits. This industry leader has been crafting rubber products for many years and have now, among their many products, a complete rubber roofing system along with an array of accessories to aid you in the installation of each component.

Firestone boasts superior longevity, with many of its products outlasting competitor brands. Lengthy lifespans of half a century or more are common, with only basic care and attention required. With a quick and simple inspection carried out a couple of times a year, little else is needed from you to ensure the roof’s reliability once its installation is complete.

In addition to this, whilst rubber roofs are not considered particularly aesthetically appealing, Firestone excels in bringing an extra level of charm and character to your flat roof. The high-quality materials offer exceptional visual appeal, the likes of which simply cannot be achieved with many other brands.

Can I Install a Firestone Roof Myself?

EPDM rubber roofing (of which Firestone is an example) is, compared to many other roofing types, actually quite easy to apply to your roof. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s something for everyone.

The size of the project you are undertaking is an important thing to consider. Typically, domestic flat roofs don’t tend to be particularly large, and thus shouldn’t need more than two or three pairs of hands working on them at a time. Someone with more experience could even complete a full installation of a Firestone system by themselves.

Speaking of experience, this is another key factor that you’ll need to consider – have you worked on flat roofs before? What is your overall experience history with DIY, particularly on roofs? If this is your first time working on a flat roof, you might want to think about at least consulting a professional for advice on how best to approach the situation.

There are plenty of professional builders and tradesmen who specialise in the application of flat roof materials. However, it is always important to do your research. Use reputable trade sites, compare reviews and prices, and always talk the project through before any work begins. In simple terms, only undertake this work if you are 100% comfortable, otherwise do your appropriate due diligence when branching out for help.

What Will I Need to Do Before Installation?

The steps beyond this point will be based on the assumption that your structure has already been built – the roof included – and all that is needed is to install the roofing material itself – in this case, Firestone membranes and the various accompanying components and accessories.

If you are working on a new build, you will need to make sure that the project has reached this stage before continuing. If your project is a renovation, then you will need to remove all of the previous roofing material from the workspace, right down to the accessories – this includes products like bitumen, which will need to be taken away in their entirety.

What Items Do I Need to Install a Firestone Roof?

To install a Firestone membrane, you will need the following items:

However, you will need many additional products for each of the different components on your roof. For trims you will need the following:

For wall trims and external corners, you will also need:

For upstand internal and external corners:

  • Firestone Corner Piece
  • Pen, Marker, or Crayon
  • Flashing Tape

To install a Pipeseal and water outlets:

Finally, to join seams, you will need:

  • Quickseam Tape

How Do I Install Firestone on My Roof?

This step-by-step guide will be broken up into multiple parts to make the process easier to follow. We will start with the most crucial component – the membrane itself. After that, we will move onto the various accessory pieces designed to accompany this product, including trims, fixings and more.

Part 1: Firestone Membrane

  1. Ensure that your roof deck is dry and clean. Sweep with a broom or dustpan and brush if necessary. On larger builds, a broom is preferable, but for small buildings, the latter two tools may suffice.
  2. Lay out your Firestone EPDM membrane across the roof area, taking care to ensure it is flat. You will want to leave it for 30 – 45 minutes in order to allow it to slowly loosen up and take the shape of your roof.
  3. Fold back one half of the rubber sheet. Then, apply a coating of water-based adhesive to the deck of the roof using a Take care to thoroughly cover the area.
  4. Fold the sheet back over. Without delay, use your broom to brush out any air bubbles and help to ensure the Firestone membrane bonds to the deck of your roof effectively.
  5. Repeat with the other half of the sheet. Pull it over, exposing the roof deck, before covering said deck in the adhesive. Fold the sheet back over and sweep with the broom to remove bubbles and flatten.
  6. Continue to sweep the entirety of the roof to get the entire sheet good and flat. Try to move around as little as possible as the weight and movement of your feet may disturb the bonding membrane.

Part 2: Edge and Gutter Trims

  1. Push down the Firestone Edge Trim onto one of the edges of your roof once the membrane has been applied.
  2. Fix the trim into place using a hammer to nail in the These should come supplied with your edge trim piece.
  3. Once the trim is secure, check for any rubber that may be emerging from underneath it. You’ll need to cut this away with a pair of suitable scissors or similar tool.
  4. When you install another trim, ensure there is a 5mm gap, as they tend to expand and contract throughout the year with changing weather and temperature conditions. Repeat the process above for all other non-gutter trims.
  5. For your gutter trim, install the base plate on the lowest edge of your roof (despite their name, all flat roofs should have a low edge). Use nails to fix into place.
  6. Fix the top plate into place using a hammer to nail in the
  7. Once the trim is secure, check for any rubber that may be emerging from underneath it. You’ll need to cut this away with a pair of scissors, blade, or similar tool.
  8. When you install another trim, ensure there is a 5mm gap, as they tend to expand and contract throughout the year. Repeat the process above as required.

Part 3: Wall Trims and External Corners

  1. Remove the tabs from your external corners using pliers or similar tool.
  2. Ensure your trims are abutted in preparation for the corner piece. If it is a case of two edge trims meeting, you will need to remove both tabs with pliers. If it is an edge trim meeting a gutter trim, you will only need to remove one of the tabs.
  3. Apply the external corner and fix with either polynails or corner adhesive.
  4. You should attempt your wall flashing before adding any internal corners on upstands and similar. With a broom, thoroughly clean your wall, chase, and rubber sheeting.
  5. Apply a thin coat of contact adhesive to both the wall and the sheet.
  6. Once the adhesive is dry to the touch, you will need to apply the sheeting to the wall. Start at the bottom and work your way up. Use a silicone roller or your hands.
  7. Trim any membrane that is left over with scissors, blade, or similar tool.
  8. Position a piece of Quickseam Formflash to your wall, marking the perimeter around it. Then, apply some Quick Prime Plus to this designated area and allow to dry.
  9. Peel back the backing paper and, working downwards, secure it onto the Quick Prime Plus. You may want to utilise a heat source of some kind to speed up this process, especially in colder weather.
  10. Use a silicone roller to massage the piece into place. Then, insert a wall trim into the chase and secure with the supplied fixings. Finish by sealing with wall mastic.

Part 4: Upstand Corners (Internal and External)

  1. On the upstand where you wish to place an external corner, position the corner piece and mark with a pen, crayon, or something similar (a pencil will be too faint to make out on EPDM).
  2. Use Primer on both the exposed corner brickwork and the surrounding rubber. Allow to become dry to the touch.
  3. Fold up the bottom 6cm of your Flashing Tape before removing the backing paper of this fold. Working your way downwards, place the flashing piece into its intended position and ensure that the 6cm fold ends at the bottom of the wall. Then, remove the rest of the flashing paper.
  4. Massage and stretch the flashing tape into place, taking care to make it as flat and neat as possible. Using rollers to mate the surfaces is sure to give you the best possible results.
  5. Apply additional tape and Primer to any gaps in the flashing, then roller into place.
  6. For an internal corner, adhere a section of upstand and apply contact adhesive to both the wall and the rubber of the upstand. Draw a 45° line outwards from the corner.
  7. Mate the EPDM folds together within the corner. Fold the remaining rubber to create a neat triangular flap. Then, apply primer to this area and allow to dry.
  8. Finally, mate all surfaces together securely using a roller to ensure everything is flat and neat.

Part 5: Pipeseals and Rainwater Outlets

  1. Place your pipeseal over the chosen drain or pipe area. Use a knife, blade or similar to get a snug fit.
  2. Using the boot of the pipeseal, stretch over the chosen drain or pipe area until the flanges are touching all surrounding surfaces. Mark an extra 2cm on all sides with a crayon or marker.
  3. Remove the boot or fold up to apply your primer and allow too dry. Then, reapply the pipeseal and slowly remove the backing paper, smoothing as you go.
  4. Apply a small amount of sealant on top of the pipeseal and secure with a jubilee
  5. For rainwater outlets, make pre-cut which your outlet piece can fit into. Mark around the outlet with a crayon or marker to get an idea of the shape and size.
  6. Prime both the underside of the outlet and the surrounding area, with 1cm of extra primed surrounding space.
  7. Bond the surfaces by pressing together and rolling out with a silicone roller.
  8. Use a section of Formflash and round the corners of it with scissors. Then, neatly place over the outlet and mark it out.
  9. Prime the surrounding rubber as well as the outlet. Then, place the Formflash on top and position it properly into place before using a blade to cut out the hole leading down the outlet. Roll firmly once again and finish with a drain guard once all is dry and secure.
  10. For an alternative horizontal outlet, place the horizontal outlet piece through the intended section of wall. Mark around the edge, again adding around 1cm of extra area on all sides.
  11. Apply the primer to the underside of the outlet piece as well as the area you marked out. Allow both to dry before once again adding the outlet piece and bonding with rollers.
  12. Use a section of Formflash and round the corners of it with scissors. Then, neatly place over the outlet and mark it out.
  13. Prime the surrounding rubber as well as the outlet. Then, place the Formflash on top and position it properly into place before using a blade to cut out the hole leading down the outlet. Roll firmly once again and finish with a drain guard once all is dry and secure.

Part 6: Seams and Joins

  1. Make sure that your rubber is both straight and overlapping by at least 10cm. Mark this with a crayon or marker 2cm away from the join.
  2. Apply primer to this marked out area as well as to the underside of your folded-out rubber.
  3. Apply some Quickseam Tape at one end and roll it out across the underlapping area, using a roller to ensure it is smooth as you go. Do not yet remove the backing paper.
  4. Start to fold the piece of EPDM back over. At a low angle, start to remove the backing paper.
  5. Finish by once again using a roller to flatten out the space as neatly as possible.

Have More Questions About Firestone Roof Installations?

By now you should have a clearer idea of how to install a Firestone roof. You’ll find it now capable of thriving for 50 years, with only a little maintenance required throughout. Inspect every few months for any puddling or pooling on your roof, and ensure trims and gutters are in good working condition with no cracks or other such damage.

If you have any more questions about Firestone roofs, whether related to installation, maintenance or simply just the products on offer from this leading industry specialist, don’t hesitate to contact our award-winning customer service team. We are here to help answer all your DIY questions, whether you are working on a small renovation or tackling a brand-new build. Simply call us on 01295 565 565 or drop us a message below using our outline chat.

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