PVC Roofing in Arlington, VA: Condo Towers, Garden Apartments and Roofs With Exhaust

Three Kinds of Arlington Building, and Whether PVC Fits

Mid-rise and high-rise condominiums in Crystal City, Pentagon City, Clarendon and Ballston

Metro opened in Clarendon and Ballston on December 1, 1979, and in Clarendon it triggered redevelopment. A roof on one of these buildings can be crowded with plumbing vents, curbs and service equipment, and details are where flat roofs tend to leak. Prefabricated boots and accessories are one reason PVC is considered. Access is its own problem: hoisting, staging and delivery off a busy street like Wilson Boulevard or Clarendon Boulevard all have to be planned before a roll arrives.

Garden apartments in Westover, Fairlington and the three historic complexes

Westover has garden-style apartment complexes, mostly from 1939 to 1948, and Fairlington's garden apartments and townhouses went up between 1942 and 1945, later becoming condominiums. Colonial Village (1934), Buckingham Villages (1937 to 1953) and Cambridge Courts (1943) are on the county's Local Historic District list, each with its own design guidelines. On buildings like these, PVC would only apply to a flat or low-slope section such as an entry roof or roof deck, and in the historic complexes the county's review comes first.

Shops and mixed-use buildings in Shirlington Village and Ballston Quarter

Shirlington is an urban village whose first store opened in 1944, with the Village at Shirlington on Campbell Avenue, and Ballston Quarter's shopping complex reopened in 2019. Which tenants vent onto which roofs differs building by building. If a restaurant or other kitchen exhausts onto the roof, grease exposure becomes the deciding question, and that is the classic reason to look at PVC.

Permit Arlington, Commercial Rules and a Phone Call First

Arlington County Government handles building permits for the whole county through Permit Arlington, and the Permit Arlington Center is in the Bozman Government Center at 2100 Clarendon Blvd. The county's residential permit page says apartment buildings with three or more dwelling units are treated as commercial and need Commercial Building Permits. That means the residential roof table, with its 256 square foot decking line, does not describe a condominium or apartment roof.

Ask the Inspection Services Division which commercial requirements apply to a re-roof and confirm before work starts. Check hours and location before visiting the center in person. If a truck or dumpster has to sit on a public street, the county's Environmental Services staff handle right-of-way questions, so ask them too.

Two PVC Roofs We Would Scope

A 1970s mid-rise condominium near Wilson Boulevard. The roof carries plumbing vents, several curbs and an older rubberized flashing around some of them, and leaks cluster there. We would map every penetration, identify the old compound and isolate it from the PVC with metal or a compatible sealant. We would replace the membrane in sections, so the building stays dry, with prefabricated boots at the curbs. Because the building has more than two units, we would begin with the county. The board receives a written scope, a section-by-section plan and a contact for the work days.

A three-story mixed-use building off Columbia Pike with a restaurant tenant. The membrane near the kitchen fan has softened, and the insulation beneath it is damp. We would check the chemical chart against the exhaust, test the insulation for moisture and replace the affected wing, then weld PVC with fabricated corners and boots. The owner receives a moisture map of the roof and photos of what came out.

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