Tar Pitch Roof

Construction definition coal tar pitch roofing.

Tar pitch roof.

It is used as a base for coatings and paint in roofing and paving and as a binder in asphalt products. Application tools such as melting kettles mops and mop carts needed to be dedicated to either pitch or asphalt. Coal tar pitch was a by product of processing coal to make coke which in turn was used in making carbon steel and electrodes for the aluminum industry. Coal tar pitch is produced by distilling or heat treating coal tar which is a by product of the production of coke or coal gas.

Coal tar pitch is a thick black liquid that remains after the distillation of coal tar. Roofing tar is often used for tar and gravel roofs or to fix leaks on a roof. Built up roofing in which coal tar pitch forms the waterproofing component of the roof membrane. Both coal tar and coal tar pitch contain many chemical compounds including carcinogens such as benzene.

These cracks will now open up your roof to the same leak you had originally only now you have an additional problem. The code allows its use on roofs with slopes as low as 1 8 in 12. History of coal tar roof systems. New coal tar pitch roof installations however are extremely rare.

Because of the different properties of asphalt and coal tar pitch roofers were careful not to mix the two materials on the same project. It is typically limited to applications on dead level or flat roofs with slopes of 1 4 in 12 or less. Historically coal tar pitch was used as a component on the first sealed roads has served as a heating element and was used to manufacture paints synthetic dyes and photographic materials. Built up roofs or burs also called a tar and gravel roof is a well established and popular style of flat roof that is made up of alternating layers of roofing felt or fiberglass and asphalt that is applied with heat which combine to make a long lasting sturdy roofing system.

Roofing tar will also protect your roof from wind and from snow and water which can collect on a flat roof. It is the only roofing material permitted by the international building code to be applied to slopes below 1 4 in 12. Over a fairly short period of time the tar on your roof is going to begin to dry and crack. Bituminous roofing hits the market back in the pre world war ii years there were two bituminous substances bitumens that dominated the roofing industry.

Pros and cons of roofing tar.