A recent $60,000 “patch job” roof repair at the Haines School looks mostly successful but uncovered other issues, school maintenance manager Gary Stigen reported this week.
Stigen said Juneau’s Silver Bow Construction replaced faulty drains, resealed seams and flashing and put down new sections of rubberized roofing and underlayment in work that included roofs above both gymnasiums, the high school’s second floor penthouse, and the Voc Ed building.
But the contractor also discovered wet surfaces on the Karl Ward Gymnasium roof, beneath two layers of roofing.
“Most of the cover board on the gym roof… is wet. In addition, many of the areas where (rubberized roofing) is raised on the gym roof is due to bubbles in the asphalt roof left in place underneath the (rubberized roofing). This roof should be replaced sometime in the not-too-distant future,” said Silver Bow’s Jeremy Adam.
Stigen said the finding was not particularly surprising. “Anytime they start digging into something up there, they find something else that needs repair. They were just putting on a Band-Aid.”
Stigen said the gym roof is 20 years old and still in relatively good shape. “It will last a number of years, but it’s going to be problematic. I’m crossing my fingers.”
Silver Bow also installed a new drain above the second-story penthouse on the high school that has reduced the depth of standing water there from two inches to less than a half inch, he said. They also sealed areas on the eight-year-old roof above the elementary school gym. “We’re hoping that took care of the leaks there, but it’s too early to tell.”
Silver Bow also did extra work on the Voc Ed building, including resealing apparent holes and sealing flashing.
An apparent problem is that in the area of the new drain above the penthouse, a new leak has opened, dripping water into the school art room. Silver Bow will return to look at that leak, he said.
Silver Bow also recommended work to drains that were installed to fit inside existing drains when a second roofing material was put down. Because the pipe below the drain doesn’t fit snug inside the original drain pipe, there’s potential for backwash when the drain becomes plugged, Stigen said.