At the dawn of his history, man learned to cover the roof of a dwelling with various soft materials. Today there are many types of them.. The video of installing a soft roof shows how convenient it is to close housing with such flexible and pliable materials. What are the options for arranging a soft roof? What is the production technology for the installation of soft roofing? These questions are asked by everyone who is interested in the opportunity to equip the roof of their house with the help of modern and beautiful roofing materials.

Video of installation of a soft roof: device technology

When installing a soft roof, it is very important to observe all stages of work

Video of installation of a soft roof: advantages and disadvantages

As the name suggests, this type of roofing is flexible and resilient. You can see and feel these qualities with your own eyes only if you touch them with your hands or watch the video. Due to these properties, the installation of a soft roof on complex roofs is often the only possible option. Soft roofing materials have many other advantages.:

  • no difficulties in installation, no bulky equipment and a large number of workers are needed;
  • such a roof itself is a waterproofing material, so additional layers are not needed at all;
Scheme for arranging the roof of a house using a soft bituminous coating

Scheme for arranging the roof of a house using a soft bituminous coating

  • due to the low specific weight, the load on the structural elements of the roof is significantly reduced, which makes it possible to save on other materials;
  • ease of repair. In case of damage, only a small area changes;
  • there is no strong noise during rain, which is important for residential premises located on the attic floor;
  • when installing a soft roof, the laying technology is such that almost no waste remains;
  • corrosion to such materials is not terrible, since there is no metal component in them;
  • the cost of some materials is not great.

This type of roof, like any other, has a number of disadvantages.:

  • the fire resistance of soft materials is poor, since they are often based on bitumen. To a greater extent, this is true for roofing felt and roofing felt. Modern technologies have made it possible to increase the fire resistance to acceptable levels;
The soft roof has a lot of advantages, including low weight and ease of installation

The soft roof has a lot of advantages, including low weight and ease of installation

  • under the soft roof, the installation of a continuous sheathing is required, which increases the total cost of work. The exception is ondulin, which is somewhat stiffer than other materials, so it can be laid on a crate with small gaps;
  • weak thermal insulation properties, which makes it necessary to lay insulation.

All these pros and cons are to varying degrees inherent in one or another material for a soft roof. The styling technology is also different for everyone.

Installation of flexible tiles (video)

Types of materials for soft roofing

Materials for the installation of a soft roof are of the following main types:

  1. Bituminous mastics. They are rarely used in private construction, as they are mainly used to cover horizontal or slightly sloped surfaces.
  2. Polymer membranes. Made from polyvinyl chloride and other polymers. They are glued to the prepared screed with glues.
  3. Roll coverings. They are self-adhesive or require heating.
  4. Soft tiles. The most popular and expensive material. Due to the variety of shapes and colors, it has gained great popularity. It is a piece product.
  5. Ondulin. Slate-like, ribbed sheet material made from cellulose and bitumen. It has the properties of hard and soft roofing materials.

All these materials have a completely different technology for laying soft roofs. Roof construction requires careful selection of the most suitable one.

Installation of flexible shingles Shinglas (video)

Soft roof device: technology for laying roll materials

Roll roofing materials include: roofing felt, roofing felt, glass-roofing material, glass melt, tekloizol and euroruberoid. They all have a similar production technology. A layer of bitumen mastic with polymer components is applied to the base made of cardboard or fiberglass. If ordinary roofing material and roofing felt, belonging to the first generation of materials, are not very popular today due to their short (5 years) service life, the rest are actively used in construction. Modern roll materials have several colors and a 20-year service life. This allows them to cover the roofs of industrial buildings, hangars and outbuildings.

Do-it-yourself installation of a soft roll roof

Do-it-yourself installation of a soft roll roof

Roll materials are not very convenient when installing a soft roof. The laying technology is too complicated and time consuming. It is important to remember that this type of material can only be laid on a roof with a slight (up to 30 degrees) slope. Before starting the main work, leveling of the base, laying of waterproofing and vapor barrier, preparation of mastic and primer are performed.

Gluing starts from the farthest corner from the point of lifting to the roof. The material is glued to the base using mastic, which is heated by a burner. In the case of a self-adhesive coating, this condition is not necessary. Usually several layers are laid, so that the joints overlap with the next layer. Their number depends on the angle of inclination of the roof. If the roof is flat or tilted by no more than 5 degrees, then 4 layers must be done, up to 15 degrees - 3 layers, and over 2 layers are enough. Each layer of the glued material is rolled with a roller.

Fastening sheets of a soft roof to a wooden base

Fastening sheets of a soft roof to a wooden base

Useful advice!If air bubbles are found on the roof surface during operation, they must be cut with a knife. After that, press the place of the cut tightly until the mastic flows.

The use of roll materials is more justified in the construction of large industrial facilities or apartment buildings with flat roofs. For private housing construction, a roof made of soft tiles is better.

Soft roof device (video)

Installation of soft roof: the technology of stacking piece materials

Soft or bituminous shingles are small pieces of material. Its length is 1 m, and width is 33 cm. Thanks to this, all installation work can be done by one person.Each canvas is divided into 4 parts in the form of different geometric shapes and resembles a classic tile.

Before laying soft tiles, prepare the base. The lathing must be solid. It is often made from plywood or similar sheet materials. If necessary, an underlay carpet is laid under the soft tiles over the entire surface or in certain places requiring special attention. It is a special roll material that provides additional waterproofing.

The roof is sheathed with piece bituminous tiles

The roof is sheathed with piece bituminous tiles

Laying of sheets starts from the eaves. The main thing is to put the first row exactly, then it will be easier. The sheets are glued with mastic and pierced with nails at the perforation points. At the final stage, the ridge and wind sheets are installed. A typical representative of bituminous shingles is the shinglas soft roof, the installation video of which shows the simplicity of the work carried out, even on the complex roofs of private mansions.

Useful advice! It is best to install shingles in hot weather. This promotes better adhesion of the material.

Whatever the soft roofing made of piece materials, the use of a lining carpet for soft tiles, insulation and vapor barrier is an indispensable condition for its normal functioning.

DIY installation of shingles (video)