Felt is still the covering found on a great many older garage roofs across Kingswood, and as these roofs age and begin to show their years, replacing felt with EPDM rubber membrane has become one of the most popular upgrades homeowners choose. The short answer is yes, EPDM is well suited to replacing felt on a garage roof, and it is a switch we carry out regularly.
Felt roofing, particularly on garages that may not have been re-covered in some time, tends to show its age through cracking, blistering and lifting at the seams as the material becomes brittle with prolonged UV exposure and temperature changes. EPDM, by contrast, is a single flexible rubber membrane that resists UV degradation and remains supple across a wide range of temperatures, which is why it generally performs and lasts significantly longer than traditional felt roofing over the life of the roof.
The process of replacing a felt garage roof with EPDM begins with stripping back the old felt entirely, rather than simply overlaying new material on top of it. This is an important step, because it allows a proper inspection of the timber decking underneath, which is something that cannot be done reliably while old felt is still in place. On many Kingswood garages, felt that has failed at the seams has allowed water to reach the deck over time, so checking its condition before installing anything new is essential.
Where the deck is found to be sound, it generally provides a good, stable base for the new EPDM membrane. Where sections have deteriorated, replacing that timber before installation is necessary, since bonding a new membrane over compromised decking would undermine the whole point of the upgrade.
One of the practical advantages of EPDM over felt on a garage roof is the reduced number of seams and joints. Felt roofs are typically built up in overlapping layers with multiple seams, each one a potential point of weakness over time. EPDM is generally supplied in large sheets, meaning a garage roof can often be covered with very few, if any, joints, which reduces the number of potential failure points compared with a traditional felt system.
Edges, upstands and any junctions where the garage roof meets a house wall or fence also need careful detailing during the switch, since these are common areas for water ingress on older felt roofs and deserve proper attention when the covering is replaced rather than simply being repeated in the new installation.
If you have a felt garage roof in Kingswood that is showing its age, or has needed repeated patching, replacing it with EPDM is generally a sound long-term investment. Brunel Roofing Bristol can assess the existing felt and the deck beneath it, and advise honestly on the best approach for your particular garage.
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