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 at the hotel by contractor, Allweather Roofing & Construction, part of the Allweather Group, 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 removing the screeded raised walkway which was on the existing asphalt. They then jet washed the substrate and carried out patch repairs by cutting out areas of the surface that had blistered, and replaced 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 reconnected in their original location.
For each section of the roof, Allweather Roofing applied Sika Liquid Plastics’ Quick Cure 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. Allweather Roofing lifted the existing lead flashings and took the Decothane Omega 15 system up the wall and then redressed it, replacing the original lead over the newly waterproofed area as it was in good condition.
The roofing contractor also removed the old screeded walkway and 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 to expose the asphalt covering the surface before replacing it with the same Decothane Omega 15 system used for the flat roof surface.
Michael Owens, managing director of the Allweather Group, said: “We have been using Sika Liquid Plastics roofing systems for ten years on various contracts in London and around the South of England. As a Quality Assured Sika installer, we had the confidence to recommend Decothane Omega 15 system as we knew it 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.”
