Waterproofing Florida’s Frost Museum of Science

Phillip and Patricia Frost Museum offers guests to learn about the Florida environment that include habitats and plants, the Gulf Stream and more. The 250,000-square-foot museum includes a “green roof” that is a natural learning environment designed. This project used several different types of roofing systems. Installed by Best Roofing, the green roof poses a special waterproofing challenge because they are not visible. Typically, they include penetrations, pipes or support anchors for utilities such as railings.  The reinforced membrane system is pre-applied around drains and penetrations before applying to the field, so the areas that might be a prime source of leaks are doubly protected. There is a concrete structural deck, then the insulation, then the waterproofing membrane system. “With the open-air design, there are outdoor terraces on every level, and those are spilt slab, topping slab, with the waterproofing in between. So, you have a concrete slab, and then the waterproofing, which is sloped with a drainage mat, and a topping slab on top”. “Above the exterior exhibit space with the various open-air aquaria there is a concrete canopy, a thin concrete slab protected by a liquid-applied waterproofing traffic deck. The planetarium is also a pre-cast concrete with exterior waterproofing.” Frost Science is pursuing others involved in creating a better future f or the planet.