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ROOF COATINGS NOV 2016

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20 ROOF COATINGS 2016 COATINGSPROMAG.COM Photos Courtesy of CJ Spray, Inc. By Chris Br yntesen, President and CEO of CJ Spray, Inc. How to Build a Rig for Commercial Roofing S pray polyurethane foam (SPF) systems were first applied in roofing applications in the mid-1960s. While SPF in commercial roofing is not new, it continues to gain market share and is widely accepted as a durable roof system with real measurable return on investment (ROI) to the building owner. As a roof coating contractor, you may not be intimately familiar with SPF, also referred to as spray foam, but it may be something that you're looking into to broaden what you can offer to your clients. On roofs, for example, SPF systems should be coated to protect the foam from various elements, such as ultraviolet (UV) rays. If you are considering adding SPF to the portfolio of products your roof coatings company provides to customers, you should take some time to consider the necessary spray equipment. Background SPF is a spray-applied, two-component liquid material consisting of an isocyanate (part A) and a resin (part B) mixed at a 1:1 volumetric ratio. Once mixed, the materials instantly begin to expand and harden. Spraying SPF does require train- ing for proper installation; however, it is not difficult to apply, as the spray equipment does most of the hard work. SPF equipment takes the material from two separate containers — most commonly 55-gallon (208.2 L) drums — heats the two liquids to approximately 125° F (51.7° C), pumps them to high pressure of approximately 1,400 psi (9,652.7 kPa), and them pumps them down two separate heated hoses to maintain temperatures. e equipment mixes the materials right at the spray gun and atomizes the combined material into a fan pattern. e more advanced equipment does all of this while monitoring the measure- ments and ensuring you're on ratio to make "good foam." Anatomy of a Mobile SPF Rig ere are four major costs associated with building a mobile SPF rig: 1. spray equipment 2. generator 3. compressed air 4. container you're installing the equipment in, such as a box truck, trailer, shipping container, etc. e main factor is the spray equipment, because all the other costs are derived from the proportioner you choose. e size of the proportioner you choose is all dependent on flow rate, which is really based on the size of cavities you will be commonly spraying. Typical commercial roofing applica- tions might be 100,000-square-foot (9,290.3 m²) warehouses or larger. at is a big cavity, which allows you to pull the trigger and start walking backward. You might not release the trigger for 300 feet (91.4 m) until you reach the far end of the roof. Having larger flow rates than your competition might shave days off a jobsite. With a crew of four, that is a major labor savings and can make the difference in getting jobs. Higher flow, though, requires bigger pumps with more horsepower and larger heaters, which drive up costs not only of the proportioner but also requires a larger and more costly generator and air compressor to operate. A ll of these compo- nents are now larger and heavier, requiring a larger trailer or Roof Coatings Choosing the right mobile rig can be crucial. For coated spray polyurethane foam (SPF) systems, the biggest cost concerns could be the spray equipment, generator, compressed air, and container, such as a truck. A s a roof coating contrac tor, you may not be intimately familiar with SPF, also referred to as spray foam, but it may be something that you're looking into to broaden what you can of fer to your clients.

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