I've always preferred a silicone roller myself—hand pressure alone never felt consistent enough, especially across long seams. But honestly, I've seen guys swear by just hand pressure and nail it every time. As for temps, 750°F sounds about right, but I've noticed ambient conditions—like wind or humidity—can make a huge difference. Ever notice seams behaving differently on cloudy versus sunny days? Seems like there's more to it than just dialing in the right temp...
Yeah, silicone rollers are definitely the way to go for consistency. Hand pressure can work, but it takes a lot of practice to get right every time. And you're spot on about ambient conditions—I swear seams weld differently even from morning to afternoon. I've noticed cooler mornings make the material stiffer, so I usually bump up the temp slightly. By afternoon, especially on sunny days, I dial it back down or risk scorching the membrane... learned that one the hard way.
Great points about adjusting temps throughout the day. I've found the same thing with my DIY roof project—morning welds were always trickier until I bumped the heat slightly. Silicone rollers definitely helped me achieve more consistent seams, but even then, I had to keep an eye on the membrane closely. It seems there's a fine line between a solid weld and overheating, especially when you're working on a tight budget and can't afford mistakes... Glad I'm not the only one who's noticed this.
"It seems there's a fine line between a solid weld and overheating, especially when you're working on a tight budget and can't afford mistakes..."
Yeah, totally agree with this. I've noticed ambient temperature and even direct sunlight can really throw off my weld consistency. Curious if anyone's experimented with shading their work area or using reflective tarps to manage surface temps? Wondering if that might help keep things more predictable without constantly tweaking the heat gun settings...
Wondering if that might help keep things more predictable without constantly tweaking the heat gun settings...
I've wondered about shading too, but wouldn't reflective tarps just bounce heat back onto you and make working conditions worse? Also, how much does surface color affect weld temps—anyone notice if lighter TPO stays cooler than darker shades?
