StealthBond® Adhesive Metal Roofing Installation System Earns Miami-Dade NOA Approval

The “no screws” metal roofing installation system proved its performance following rigorous testing.

By Karen L. Edward, RCS Editor.

At RoofersCoffeeShop.com we strive to keep you informed about what’s happening in the roofing industry and that includes telling you about new and innovative products. In roofing we tend to be skeptical of new technologies until they have proven themselves.

We’ve kept our eye on the StealthBond® Roofing System over the last couple of years and with the recent Miami-Dade approval, we think it’s proven itself to be a smart choice. The StealthBond® roofing system brings a unique installation method to the 5V Crimp exposed fastener panel by using a structural adhesive that eliminates the need for screws.

We had the chance to talk with Jim Horton, Product Development Manager and inventor of the StealthBond® Adhesive attachment system for metal roofing about what the approval means for the system and what it takes to earn the approval. Jim told us that there was a rigorous process of testing the system including, accelerated testing of corrosion protective coatings and their reaction to the adhesive, salt spray testing, Fire resistance, HVHZ (High Velocity Hurricane Zone) wind uplift, wind-driven rain, and accelerated adhesive physical properties testing.

Because the system was attached using an adhesive method, Jim said that the adhesive had to be tested extensively as well in order to receive the Miami-Dade approval. “We put the adhesive through more than 3,000 hours of cycling between hot and cold temperatures to simulate accelerated weathering exceeding well over a 50-year life cycle,” he explained. “It met the requirement of durability from 20-degrees below zero to 220-degrees Fahrenheit 3000 times, but we wanted to see what it could do and kept testing. Tests validated that the adhesive continues to perform in temperature as low as 70 below zero to as high as 350 degrees above.”

A unique feature of the adhesive is that it is permanently flexible. This means that as the metal panels can expand and contract in thermal movement, the adhesive moves with the panels, without losing adhesion. In the case of systems that are fastened with screws, the expansion and contraction results in wallowing slots or screws backing out over time.

“The average metal roof may have as many as 2,500 exposed screws. By using the StealthBond® system, you eliminate 2,500 opportunities for leaks to occur,” Jim said. “In a traditional screwed down system, you are at the mercy of the installer. If they overtighten the screw, the rubber washer gets compressed and is at risk of leaking; if they don’t screw it in tight enough, the system is vulnerable to leaks.”

He says the system is going to be more securely attached using adhesive because the panel is continuously bonded across the entire width of the panel as opposed to just being attached at pinning points on the sides.

The adhesive in the StealthBond® system begins to bond in about three minutes and allows about 15 minutes of work time to square up the panels and position them where they need to be. Within five hours, the bond is permanent.

It is important to mention that the StealthBond® System is just that, a system. Its key component is the StealthBond® Adhesive itself but the system in its entirety includes the Metal Roofing Panel, StealthConnector and the StealthBond® Adhesive. The StealthBond system is sold through Authorized Installing Dealers. If you are interested in becoming a dealer click here

In addition to the Miami-Dade approval, the StealthBond® system also recently achieved ICC International Building Code approval which qualifies it for installation throughout the continental United States.

Don’t let this innovative technology pass you by, inquire about becoming a StealthBond® dealer.