Peel and stick underlayment plays a crucial role in many roofing systems—and for a variety of reasons. It’s durable, great for waterproofing when you need watertight areas and much more.
But is it the right choice for your next roofing project? Most of the time, you’ll need to balance cost with features—and peel-and-stick underlayment is typically the most expensive type of underlayment, which means you may want to use a non-stick synthetic underlayment instead.
So when should you choose peel-and-stick? We’ll show you the top five features to look for when you’re considering this type of underlayment.
1. Extreme Durability
One of the best parts of most peel-and-stick underlayment products is the extreme durability. For example, Plystik Plus features very high tear strength and puncture resistance due to its 48-mil thickness and 5-ply design, three of which are cross-woven polypropylene layers.
This kind of durability offers several advantages. Not only is it easier to install without accidental tears or punctures, but it will last longer than any other type of underlayment. With that, this underlayment is also incredibly wind resistant, which gives the roof deck an extra layer of protection should the underlayment become exposed during a high wind event.
2. Waterproofing
Whether you plan to do an entire roof in peel-and-stick, or just the edges and valleys, the main reason why is to protect the roofing system against water infiltration. This means:
- The adhesive should seal tight to the roof deck to prevent water from seeping beneath it.
- It should also seal well around nails and fasteners.
- It needs to be flexible enough to conform to valleys and other areas where you may need to bend the underlayment.
Plystik offers each of these advantages and then some. It features a strong adhesive and excellent nail sealability to prevent water infiltration in valleys or anywhere that you need to use fasteners. It also offers Ice Dam Protection. Ice dams often form along the edges of a roof, and they tend to trap meltwater along the edges of the roof, giving it time to seep beneath shingles and underlayment that isn’t waterproof. With Ice Dam Protection, Plystik has the moisture resistance needed to protect rooftops against this kind of moisture damage.
3. UV Stability
It’s unfortunate, but supply chain problems are ongoing—and storms are becoming both more frequent and more severe. For homeowners and roofers, this can mean delays either because you’re waiting for supply chain shortages to resolve, or because there aren’t enough roofers in the wake of a storm to repair dozens or hundreds of damaged roofs at once.
Those are just a couple of instances in which UV stability comes in handy. With a peel-and-stick product like Plystik, which offers 180 days of UV resistance, you can cover an exposed roof with a protective layer that will give you some breathing room.
4. Safety
Safety is another crucial consideration in roofing projects—and underlayments like asphalt felt tend to create a hazard. That’s because they’re black, which absorbs heat. Roofing is already a hot job. The extra heat from black underlayment raises the chances of heat stroke and heat exhaustion quite a lot.
These days, most peel-and-stick and synthetic underlayments in general feature a light-colored surface designed to help you stay cooler while you’re working. Plystik takes things a step further with its GripWalk surface, which is a non-slippery surface that helps you maintain footing even when the underlayment has dew or moisture on it.
5. Versatility
When you’re a roofer working across multiple contracts, ordering supplies in bulk, it helps when products like underlayment can be used with a variety of different roofing materials. Whereas asphalt felt is mostly recommended for shingles, and some thinner synthetics aren’t suitable for heavy materials like slate, a peel-and-stick product with Plystik’s strength will stand up to almost any roofing material. It works well not only for shingles, but for shakes, metal, concrete tile, slate, and more.
Choose Epilay for a Durable, Versatile Peel-and-Stick
The features listed above are some of the most essential that you should be looking for in a peel-and-stick underlayment—and they’re also features that you’ll get with Epilay’s Plystik Plus. That’s why, when roofers want a reliable provider of a quality peel-and-stick product, they choose Epilay. Contact us to learn more.
Recent Comments