Inside a TOPPS Waterproofing System: What You Are Actually Buying
Two waterproofing quotes for the same roof can differ enormously, and the reason is almost never the price per square meter. It is what the word "waterproofing" is being used to describe.
For some contractors it means a coating applied over the roof as it currently stands. For us it means a defined system: a sequence of products from a single, reputed manufacturer, applied in a systematic manner, over a roof that has been restored first, backed by a written warranty from a company that has been waterproofing roofs in the UAE for over 30 years.
Why a single manufacturer matters
A roof waterproofing system involves several different techniques and methods, each with its own specific purpose: sealants for laps and fasteners, fillers for gaps, reinforcing fabrics, primers, and the coating itself. They sit on top of each other and have to move together.
A common failure in this trade is not applying those products appropriately, in a manner that actually seals the roof while remaining durable. Individually some waterproofing sealants may be good products. Together they can be incompatible: a coating that will not bond to a particular sealant, a primer that reacts with a filler, differing rates of expansion between adjacent layers. When it fails, every supplier can reasonably point at someone else's product, and the client is left holding a roof and no recourse.
TOPPS® Products has specialised in professional metal roof restoration since 1958, and their liquid membrane systems are formulated as complete packages. Repair, reinforcement, surface preparation and coating products are designed to work with each other. One manufacturer, one specification, one point of accountability.
Solaroofing is the authorised distributor and applicator of TOPPS® Products in the UAE. That means we hold the specification, we apply it, and we warrant the result.
Where the system is applied
Every TOPPS® system treats the roof as a set of specific details rather than a single surface, because roofs do not leak through the middle of a sheet. They leak at what we like to call “critical areas”.
The critical areas covered are:
Seams and sidelaps, where two sheets overlap
Peak panels at the ridge
Fasteners, including the washers that have hardened or split
Flashings and counter-flashings at parapets and wall abutments
Skylights, at the perimeter junction and around the fixings
Penetrations for AC units, extract fans, cable entries and pipe stacks
Gutters and their outlets
Each of these is detailed individually before any wider treatment is considered. Not a single roof element is left to chance.
TOPPS® System 500™: sealing the critical areas
The first system seals every one of those areas using TOPPS® elastomeric sealants, and includes the restoration work that has to happen first.
That restoration is the part clients tend not to see on a quotation and the part that determines whether the result lasts. It covers:
Complete removal of old sealants (all of them, rather than just the loose sections)
Deep cleaning of the roof sheets, which in this climate means removing years of accumulated dust, moisture and debris
Treatment and correction of rusted and corroded areas
Reinforcement of weakened sections with new metal sheets, bent to match the existing profile
The result is a roof guaranteed watertight for a minimum of five years.
TOPPS® System 500™ suits a roof where the sheets themselves are in reasonable condition and the failures are concentrated at the critical areas, which describes the vast majority of industrial roofs in the UAE.
TOPPS® System 1000™: the full reflective coating
The second system includes everything in TOPPS® System 500™ and adds a full-roof coating of UV-reflective, super-elastomeric TOPPS® Seal, applied in two coats, across the entire roof surface.
This changes what the system does. Instead of sealing the points where the roof currently fails, it puts a continuous rubberised membrane over the whole roof, and that membrane reflects solar radiation rather than absorbing it.
The practical effect is a cooler roof. A cooler roof moves less through its daily expansion and contraction cycle, and less movement means less stress at every joint, fastener and flashing underneath. The coating that reduces the temperature is, in part, protecting itself and everything below it.
The result is a roof guaranteed watertight for a minimum of ten years.
What the warranty actually means
Warranties in this trade are worth reading carefully, so here is ours in plain terms.
Our warranty periods run from five years for critical-area sealing up to 10+ years for full restoration with the reflective coating. They are always extendable. With periodic maintenance, these systems routinely perform beyond their stated term, and we have been maintaining some UAE roofs for over twenty-five years.
Two things are worth understanding about any roofing warranty, including ours.
It covers the system as applied, to the roof as prepared. This is the reason we will not apply a coating over a roof that has not been restored first. A warranty on work applied to a compromised substrate is not worth the paper, and offering one would be dishonest.
It does not cover problems the system was never designed to solve. Condensation forming on the underside of a roof deck is a ventilation and insulation issue. Drainage that backs up during heavy rain is a capacity issue. Neither is fixed by anything applied to the roof surface, and a contractor who implies otherwise is selling a warranty claim rather than a solution.
How a project runs
Survey. The full roof is inspected and its condition documented. Free, and the report is yours regardless of whether you appoint us.
Specification. We determine which system the roof needs and what restoration work has to precede it.
Restoration. Sealant removal, cleaning, corrosion treatment, sheet reinforcement.
Application. The TOPPS® system, applied in specification order.
Handover. The written warranty.
All works are carried out from the roof exterior. Production, storage and loading continue underneath, with scheduling agreed around your shift patterns.
Who we do this for
Solaroofing has worked exclusively on metal roofs in the UAE since 1994. Our waterproofing clients include the UAE Ministry of Defence, Dubai Police, Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Drydocks World, alongside factories and warehouses across Jebel Ali, Dubai Investments Park, National Industries Park, Dubai Industrial City, Al Quoz Industrial Area, Musaffah, ICAD and numerous other industrial areas within the UAE.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between TOPPS® System 500™ and TOPPS® System 1000™? TOPPS® System 500™ seals every critical area of the roof, including seams, sidelaps, fasteners, flashings, skylights, penetrations and gutters, following full restoration works, and is guaranteed watertight for a minimum of five years. TOPPS® System 1000™ includes all of that and adds a full-roof coating of UV-reflective elastomeric TOPPS® Seal, which lowers roof temperature and reduces thermal movement, thereby greatly extending the roof life as well as guaranteeing a watertight roof for a minimum of ten years.
What is TOPPS® Products? A US-based manufacturer of specialised sealants for professional metal roof restoration since 1958. Its liquid membrane systems combine repair, reinforcement, surface preparation and coating products engineered to work together as a single specification. Solaroofing is the authorised distributor and applicator of TOPPS® Products in the UAE.
Why does it matter that all the products come from one manufacturer? Because the products sit on top of each other and have to remain compatible and move together. Mixing sealants, primers and coatings from different suppliers introduces the risk of poor adhesion between layers, and it removes any single point of accountability if the system fails.
Can you apply the system without doing the restoration work first? No, and we would not warrant it if we did. A membrane bonds to whatever surface it is applied to. Applied over failed sealant, dust or corrosion, it bonds to those and fails when they do. Restoration is not an optional line item, it is what the warranty rests on.
How long does a TOPPS® waterproofing system last? Warranties run from five years for critical-area sealing up to 10+ years for full restoration with the reflective coating, and are always extendable. With periodic maintenance, these systems perform beyond their warranty period. We have been looking after some roofs in the UAE for over twenty-five years.
Can the work be done while our facility is operating? Yes. All works are carried out from the roof exterior, so operations underneath continue as normal. Scheduling is agreed in advance with your facilities team.
