Flat Roofs.

Progress, Volume I, Issue 9, 2 July 1906, Page 232

Flat Roofs.

With the march of modern improvements the important question of roofing construction and roofing materials comes in for its share of attention The fine building recently completed in Wellington for the D.I.C. has a fiat roof constructed on the P & B method, one of the well-known products of the Paraffine Paint Company, of San Francisco. The illustration on page 233 shows very clearly a portion of the roof, while the figures in the picture serve to convey an idea of the great ar ?he°foundation of P & B roofing is a strong canvas thoroughly saturated with P & B compound a pure mineral backed by saturated felt and heavily coated on the surface with the same pure mineral. The result is a roofing material absolutely water and weather proof, and secure against the attack of the corroding influences which injure iron and other metallic roofings. Owing to its insulating dualities this roofing has the advantage of keeping the space underneath warm in winter and cool After The roofing is laid it is treated with a coat of Floatine, also a pure mineral substance produced bv the Paraffine Paint Company, put on hot ; and while in that condition fine gravel is spread over the surface, thus forming a fire-proof concrete r °Where space is valuable, as in Wellington and other New Zealand cities, fiat roofs (the space on which can be used for various purposes) are a desirable innovation-another point m favour of this method of roof-construction. If a fire ; should originate in the interior of the building the flat roof can be immediately flooded, and if the fire should burn through the supports of the roof a laree body of water is immediately released on to the flames, and should a fire break out m premises in the vicinity the P & B flat roof admits of the firemen working their hoses from this elevated position, thereby commanding an influence over the flames which would be otherwise impossible, and enabling them to protect the building from the roof on which they are operating. We also illustrate a P & B flat roof on Mr H. P. Rawson's residence situated at the corner of, Wellington terrace and Woodward street ; this roof commands a very extensive view over the entire harbour and appeals to us as quite a necessary adjunct to residences situated in our elevated suburbs.