Case Study: 2nd Street Plaza — 24,000 SF Retail Center Silicone Recoating, Prescott AZ
An aging built-up roof (BUR) on a busy Prescott retail center, a property owner who couldn't afford to shut down tenants for a tear-off, and a northern Arizona climate that punishes flat commercial roofs. We restored all 24,000 square feet with tan TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 Super Silicone over the existing BUR — reinforced every seam and penetration, laid down two cross-directional coats, and had the crew off site in five working days without ever blocking a storefront. It's covered by our 10-Year No Leak Warranty.
Project SnapshotThe 2nd Street Plaza silicone recoating at a glance
2nd Street Plaza is a multi-tenant retail center in Prescott, Arizona, in the state's high country north of the Phoenix metro. When the owner called Vanguard Roofing AZ, the roof was an aging built-up roof that was starting to show its age — but the substrate was still sound, which made it a textbook candidate for silicone recoating rather than a full replacement. Here are the project facts at a glance.
2nd Street Plaza — Prescott, AZ
| Property | 2nd Street Plaza — Retail Center |
| Location | Prescott, Arizona |
| Roof Size | 24,000 sq ft |
| Original Substrate | Built-Up Roof (BUR) |
| System Installed | TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 Super Silicone, tan |
| Timeline | 5 days on site |
| Investment | $3.00–$4.00 per sq ft |
| Warranty | 10-Year No-Leak + Workmanship + Manufacturer |
| Completed | July 2026 |
The ChallengeAn aging BUR roof on a retail center that couldn't afford downtime
The existing roof at 2nd Street Plaza was a built-up roof — layers of asphalt and reinforcing felts, the workhorse flat-roof system of an earlier generation of commercial construction. Like most aging BUR roofs in northern Arizona, it was showing the classic end-of-service-life signals: seam separation where the plies had begun to pull apart, alligator cracking across sun-baked sections, ponding water sitting in the low spots after every storm, and granule loss that left the top ply exposed to UV. Individually, none of these is catastrophic. Together, they are a roof that is one hard monsoon away from leaking into occupied retail space.
The owner faced the same decision every commercial property owner faces at this stage: tear off and replace, or restore. A full BUR tear-off and replacement in Arizona typically runs $8–$14 per square foot — on a 24,000 sq ft roof, that's a six-figure capital project with weeks of dumpsters, crane time, exposed deck, and disruption to every tenant below. For a multi-tenant retail center where lease agreements protect storefront access and tenants can't simply close for a week, that disruption is often more painful than the price tag. The owner needed a cost-effective alternative that would restore waterproofing, extend the roof's life, and keep every store open the entire time. That's exactly what silicone recoating over a sound BUR delivers.
The SolutionWhy silicone recoating over BUR was the right call
When a built-up roof's structure is still sound and the field is dry, silicone recoating is almost always the smarter economic and operational choice than replacement. Silicone is a fluid-applied membrane: after proper cleaning and priming where needed, it bonds directly to the aged BUR and re-establishes a seamless, monolithic waterproof surface across the entire roof. Here's why it was the right system for a Prescott retail center specifically:
- Direct bond to aged BUR — after a thorough power wash and spot priming, silicone adheres to the existing built-up roof and seals the seams, cracks, and micro-splits that were the sources of active and pending leaks.
- No added weight, no tear-off — recoating restores waterproofing without piling on structural load, and with no tear-off there's no exposed deck, no landfill waste, and no tenant disruption during the work.
- 90% solar reflectivity — with a CRRC reflectivity of 0.90, the recoated roof reflects the overwhelming majority of solar radiation, which matters enormously under Arizona's intense high-desert sun and directly reduces the cooling load below.
- 10–20 years of added life — a properly applied silicone system extends a commercial roof's service life by a full decade or two, and can be renewed silicone-over-silicone at year 10. See Vanguard's silicone roof coating service for the full breakdown.
For a deeper look at where silicone recoating makes economic sense — and where it doesn't — our team wrote a full guide on silicone roof coating in Arizona. The short version: silicone only makes sense when the existing roof has real remaining life in it, which is exactly what our free inspection confirmed at 2nd Street Plaza.
Our ApproachThe 5-day install, day by day
Restoration is only as good as the prep and the sequence. On a live retail center, it also has to be choreographed so tenants and their customers never notice the crew overhead. Here's exactly how the five days ran:
Project sequence — 5 days on site
- Day 1 — Inspect, wash, repair, prime. Full roof inspection followed by a complete power wash to strip chalk, dirt, algae, and loose granules — silicone only bonds to a clean substrate. We repaired the identified seam and flashing issues and primed any bare or porous spots.
- Day 2 — Reinforce the details. Every seam, HVAC curb, penetration, and parapet wall termination was reinforced with silicone-embedded polyester fabric. Detail work is where flat roofs actually leak, so this is where the warranty is really earned.
- Day 3 — First full-surface base coat. The first full-surface coat of TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 (tan) went down across all 24,000 square feet.
- Day 4 — Cure, inspect, second coat. After an overnight cure and inspection, the second coat was applied cross-direction to the first to guarantee complete coverage and full mil thickness.
- Day 5 — Verify and hand off. Final walk-through, punch list, and mil-thickness verification with a wet gauge, followed by property manager sign-off and warranty handoff.
Throughout all five days, the crew never blocked tenant access. All material deliveries were staged before store hours, equipment stayed off the storefronts, and the retail center operated normally from open to close every single day of the project.
The ProductTRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 Super Silicone — in tan
Not all silicone coatings are created equal, and the product spec is what separates a 10-year roof from a 3-year disappointment. We specified TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 Super Silicone — a premium, single-component, moisture-cure silicone engineered for exactly this kind of Arizona commercial recoat.
TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 — verified specs
- 98% solids — among the highest solids content in the silicone coating category, meaning more protective film per gallon and less shrinkage as it cures.
- Pond-Proof™ Technology — a moisture-cure formulation that cures even under standing water, which is critical on retail rooftops with slow drainage and ponding low spots.
- 0.90 reflectivity + 0.90 emissivity → SRI 115 — a Solar Reflectance Index of 115, well above the ENERGY STAR cool-roof minimum, reflecting roughly 90% of incoming solar radiation.
- Solvent-free, single-component — a moisture-cure silicone with no solvents to flash off and no on-roof mixing.
Why tan, not white
Here's the detail most contractors get wrong in northern Arizona: they default to white. We specified tan silicone on 2nd Street Plaza on purpose. In the high desert, a bright white roof shows every speck of blown dust within weeks and can throw glare complaints at adjacent tenants and neighboring buildings. Tan silicone hides accumulated dust between annual cleanings and cuts the glare — so the roof stays looking clean twelve months a year. And because the reflectivity numbers are effectively identical, you give up none of the cool-roof performance: you still get the full 0.90 CRRC reflectivity and SRI 115, just in a finish that looks right on an Arizona retail center. It's a small choice that reflects how we think about every commercial roof, and it's why founder Robert Wilson corrected the spec to tan before the first coat ever went down.
The Results24,000 sq ft restored, zero tenant disruption
The numbers tell the story of why silicone recoating over a sound BUR is one of the best values in commercial roofing:
At $3.00–$4.00 per square foot, the recoating came in at roughly 60–70% below the $8–$14 per square foot a tear-off and replacement would have cost on this roof — and it delivered a seamless, reflective, watertight surface backed by a full triple-layer warranty. Because silicone can be renewed on top of itself, the owner also has a clear, low-cost path to another full decade of protection at year 10 without ever tearing off the roof.
The WarrantyTriple-layer coverage — one number to call
This restoration is backed by three layers of coverage, which is rare in commercial roofing — many contractors offer only workmanship coverage, or simply pass along the manufacturer's paperwork and disappear. On 2nd Street Plaza, the owner gets all three:
- 10-Year No-Leak Warranty — waterproofing performance is guaranteed for a full decade; if the warranted system leaks, we come fix it.
- 10-Year Workmanship Warranty — Vanguard stands behind the installation labor itself.
- Manufacturer Warranty — TRI-BUILT's material warranty covers the Roof X-Tender 985 coating.
The practical benefit is simple: one contact, one number to call. There's no finger-pointing between the installer and the manufacturer, and no third-party claims maze to navigate. As a family-owned Arizona contractor serving property owners since 1957, standing behind our own work is the whole point.
Photo GalleryThe finished tan silicone roof, from the air and on the deck
Aerial views
Rooftop close-ups
FAQSilicone recoating over BUR — common questions
Can silicone really be applied over an old BUR roof?
Yes. Silicone recoating over a built-up roof is one of the most common and cost-effective commercial roof restorations in Arizona, provided the existing BUR is structurally sound and dry. After a thorough power wash to remove chalk, dirt, and loose granules, and priming of any bare or porous spots, TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 Super Silicone bonds directly to the aged BUR and restores full waterproofing without a tear-off. If the substrate is saturated or more than about 25% of the field is failing, replacement is the honest answer — which is exactly what our free inspection determines before we quote.
How long does a silicone roof coating last in Arizona?
A properly applied silicone roof coating extends commercial roof life 10 to 20 years in Arizona. Silicone doesn't chalk, soften, or break down under sustained UV and 160°F-plus surface temperatures the way acrylic and urethane coatings do. At year 10, a silicone roof can be recoated silicone-over-silicone for another full warranty cycle — no tear-off, no landfill waste — which is why silicone is the lowest lifetime-cost system for most sound commercial roofs in northern and central Arizona.
What's the difference between tan and white silicone coating?
Both tan and white TRI-BUILT Roof X-Tender 985 deliver 0.90 CRRC reflectivity and SRI 115, so the energy performance is effectively the same. The difference is appearance and maintenance. In Arizona's dusty climate, tan silicone hides accumulated dust between annual cleanings and cuts glare complaints from adjacent tenants and neighboring properties, so the roof stays looking clean 12 months a year. On the 2nd Street Plaza retail center in Prescott, the owner chose tan for exactly these reasons while still getting the full 90% reflectivity of a cool roof.
How much does silicone recoating cost per square foot in Arizona?
Silicone recoating in Arizona typically runs $3.00 to $4.00 per square foot installed for a straightforward restoration over a sound BUR, as it did on the 2nd Street Plaza project. That's a fraction of the $8 to $14 per square foot a full BUR tear-off and replacement usually costs in Arizona. Final price depends on existing roof condition, the amount of seam and flashing repair required, coating mil thickness, and warranty tier. See our commercial roof coating overview for more.
Do you service commercial roofs outside the Phoenix metro?
Yes. Vanguard Roofing AZ has served Arizona property owners since 1957 and works commercial projects across the Phoenix metro and northern Arizona, including Prescott, Prescott Valley, and the surrounding high country. We're a family-owned, AZ ROC-licensed contractor (CR-42 #289663, R-62 #283025) and a GAF, Versico, and ARMORCOAT certified, manufacturer-approved installer, so the same crews, warranties, and documentation standards apply whether your building is in central Phoenix or on the Prescott hillside.