A silicone roof coating system usually costs $3 – $7 per square foot. Many factors influence price, such as:
- How much are manufacturers selling the coating for?
- How long of a warranty is desired? 10, 15, or 20-years?
- How much roof prep is needed before the installation?
We’ll dive into these points (and others) below.
And just so you’re aware, West Roofing Systems has been in commercial roofing since 1979. We quote roof coating projects daily, so all of this info is from real roofing projects.
NOTE: This article has been read, edited, and approved for publishing by one of our owners, who has 30+ years of commercial roofing experience.
Let’s get started!
Here’s a list of things that influence the cost of a silicone roof coating system
- The amount of roof preparation
- The length of warranty
- The amount of “extras”
- The amount of primer needed
- The distance from the contractor
- The manufacturer’s cost of coating
- Is there a service or maintenance contract included
- Complexity of the job
The amount of roof preparation
You can’t just slap coatings onto a roof and leave it at that. Sometimes, there’s bad decking that needs to be removed and replaced.
You shouldn’t install any roofing system over wet insulation. These areas need to be identified, removed, and replaced.
Some roofs have improper slope, which result in “ponding” or “standing” water. Maybe a new drain is installed? Or sometimes, the roof is “brought up” with insulation board or spray foam to make the sloping right.
Sometimes, the existing membrane doesn’t have great adhesion to what’s below. Sometimes roof grip screws are needed to increase that adhesion.
If a roof has seams, sometimes these get striped with coating and mesh to reduce the risk of a seam “blowing up.”
On a metal roof, all the fasteners receive coating before the field of the roof is installed.
The length of warranty
The length of warranty for a silicone roof coating system is always determined by the amount of coating installed.
For example:
- For a 10-year warranty, a total thickness of 20 mils of coating is installed
- For a 15-year warranty, a total thickness of 25 mils of coating is installed
- For a 20-year warranty, a total thickness of 30 mils of coating is installed
More coating = higher cost.
The amount of “extras”
A roof coating installation is sometimes much more than “just” the coating part.
Some roofs need new drains, one-way breather vents, flashings, downspouts, and/or gutters.
The amount of primer needed
All coating manufacturers require the contractor to perform an adhesion test before applying coating onto a roof.
If the test fails, an adhesion primer might be needed to ensure the coating will adhere with enough strength to the membrane.
Sometimes, when adding a white coating over a darker roof, the contaminants of the darker roof will make the white coating a “yellowish” color.
This isn’t a performance issue; it’s more of an aesthetics problem, but in this case, a bleed blocker primer can be used.
The distance from the contractor
The further away you are from the contractor, the more gas and labor hours go into a project.
If you’re really far away, hotel stays and flights can be included in the cost.
A HUGE mistake is to hire a company based on where they are. Sure, the cost can be lower than someone further away, but it’s not worth it.
The most important aspect of any roofing project (regardless of the system) is the quality of the install.
You don’t want the roof to leak 2 years after you spent thousands on a job. And you don’t want to call a contractor and realize they aren’t in business anymore, and you’re stuck.
Choose quality over cost.
The manufacturer’s cost of coating
Pricing for coating goes up and down. When getting a quote from a contractor, you might notice that the quote is only good for a short time.
That’s because the pricing for coating is volatile.
Is there a service or maintenance contract included?
Having your commercial roof looked at every Spring and Fall is recommended. Sometimes, you need a maintenance contract to keep your warranty active.
Complexity of the job
Is your roof low, flat, and easy to access…or is it high-up and pitched?
Some roofs require extensive safety measures, such as using man lifts to install a coating system safely.
Renting equipment will add to the project’s cost.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are many variables that influence the cost of a silicone roof coating project. Hopefully, after seeing these points, you’ll have a better grasp of what your project is likely to cost.
Here’s some other content related to roof coating systems:
- How is a coating system installed? Here’s a short video of coating being sprayed onto a spray foam roof:
