Concrete Slabs Sealed Properly
Ponding slabs, shrinkage cracks and failing screed — corrected, stress-controlled and sealed with bonded membrane systems specified against your concrete.
Concrete Does Not Leak The Way Metal Does
Concrete fails slowly, at predictable weak points, and usually long after anyone still remembers where the waterproofing was.
A bare concrete roof in Dubai — office buildings in Deira, factory annexes in Al Qusais, podiums in Business Bay — deteriorates through three mechanisms: (1) screed and tile movement, (2) failed details around penetrations, pedestals and parapets, (3) ponding water on trapped falls. The slab itself is usually still structurally sound. That is why the scope for stopping leaks "from the roof" usually starts with a screed and detail audit rather than a full rebuild.
Our concrete roof process is therefore detail-heavy: crack map with metrics, screed repairs to real falls, EPDM at every parapet turn-up and pedestal, and a bonded field system for the traffic level the roof actually gets. See the parent service page for the metal side: metal roof waterproofing differs in daily movement mechanism.
Treatment Map — What Goes Where
| Roof element | Typical failure | Our treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Screed field | Hairline cracks, hollow tiles | Crack filling with flexible bonding agents; tiles re-set or removed where screed fails |
| Parapet / wall junction | Vertical cracking at the turn-up | Cured EPDM turn-up bonded to correct height; movement-joint detailing |
| AC pedestals | Cast-base perimeters never sealed | Bonded EPDM collars per unit |
| Pipes / RV cables | Rigid sleeves separated years ago | EPDM boots with flexible clamps |
| Expansion joints | Rigid fillers cracked | Reinforced EPDM spans, stretch-bonded both sides |
| Outlets / drains | Sand-blocked, tilting pans | Re-sealing + cowl protection (gutter scope) |
What Concrete Waterproofing Costs Depend On
Concrete roofs are priced on three things owners can check at survey: (1) total area; (2) detail count (parapet metres, pedestals, pipes); (3) screed condition discovered under the tiles. A later screed discovery should be a re-quoted line item, not a surprise at handover — insist every bidder separates screed scope in the quote.
Concrete Roof FAQs
Because original roof systems in UAE construction usually failed at the details: the turn-up at parapets was too low, pedestals were cast without collars, pipe sleeves were rigid, and screed movement opened hairline joints. Concrete itself is rarely the problem; the membrane that was supposed to protect it is.
Membrane can bond over clean, sound tiles, but if screed is cracked or tiles sound hollow, they are removed so the system bonds to structural screed/concrete. Covering a failed substrate just hides the cracking beneath the new membrane — the leak returns through it.
Structural movement and expansion joints are treated with reinforced EPDM strips spanning the joint, bonded on both faces with room to stretch. Rigid fillers are prohibited; that is normally exactly why the joint failed before.
Custom EPDM collars shaped and bonded to each pedestal and pipe base, turning up onto equipment bases where feasible. Cast-pedestal water paths are the most common concealed leak we find during surveys of bare concrete roofs in Al Qusais and Sharjah industrial buildings.
Generally no — treated areas are coned off while cure completes, but building operation continues in most cases. Only full re-screed works (rare) require more planning on occupied buildings.
Flood test: bays are ponded for 24–48 hours after membrane cure and the underside is monitored. The record sits in the warranty file together with material datasheets and as-built photos.
Concrete Roof Problems?
Detail-first treatment with a documented warranty — serving Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi.
