Allweather provides grand solution in Brighton

The Grand Hotel in Brighton is ready to welcome guests to its iconic seafront accommodation whatever the weather thanks to a roof overlay system installed by Allweather and applied with Sika Liquid Plastics’ Decothane Omega 15 solution.

Opened in 1864, the hotel made global headlines following the IRA bombing of the Conservative party conference in 1984 and underwent a major refurbishment and the addition of a spa in 2013.

The latest roofing project is the third to be delivered by contractor, Allweather Roofing, at the hotel and forms part of a wider refurbishment scheme by main contractor, J. Davies Building Limited.

The 130m2 roof area of existing asphalt roof had been leaking in several areas and Allweather Roofing recommended the Decothane Omega 15 cold liquid-applied system as the ideal solution for overlaying the roof, taking into account the exposed seafront location.

The installation team began by jet washing the substrate and carrying out patch repairs by cutting out areas of the surface that had blistered and replacing the asphalt in these areas to create a level surface. Various items of plant are located of the roof, which is surrounded by a parapet wall with box gutters at each end. Allweather Roofing carried out the overlay in two phases, moving all the plant to one side of the roof while the first section was refurbished to allow the hotel to remain fully operational throughout the programme.

Following refurbishment of the first roof section, the plant was then moved across to the newly resurfaced area while the project was completed and all items of plant were then repositioned in their original location. For each section of the roof, Allweather Roofing applied Sika Liquid Plastics’ primer and, once this had cured, the Decothane base coat was applied, followed by Sika’s Reemat glass fibre mat reinforcement. The base layer was then allowed to cure before a top coat of Decothane Omega 15 was applied.

The new waterproofing membrane was dressed up the parapet wall that surrounds the roof area, with Allweather Roofing removing the existing lead flashing, taking the Decothane Omega 15 system up the wall and then replacing the original lead flashing over the newly waterproofed area.

The roofing contractor also created a new non-slip walkway on the roof between the fire escapes at each side of the building.

Re-waterproofing of the box gutters was an important element of the project and Allweather Roofing removed the existing felt surface before replacing it with the same Decothane Omega 15 system used for the flat roof surface.

Michael Owens, managing director of Allweather Roofing, said: “We have been using Sika Liquid Plastics roofing systems for around eight years and, as a Quality Assured Sika installer, we knew that the Decothane Omega 15 system would provide the ideal membrane for overlaying the roof, with a 15 year guarantee and excellent UV resistance. The system avoids the need for hot works and strip out, curing to provide a durable, flexible and seamless membrane that will protect the prestigious hotel, its contents and its guests for years to come.”