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Toyman01
Toyman01 GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
8/2/18 3:33 p.m.

In reply to Pete Gossett :

Oh the joys of home ownership. 

My heat pump is 14 years old. I'm waiting on that bomb to drop now. 

Antihero
Antihero GRM+ Memberand HalfDork
8/2/18 3:47 p.m.
Pete Gossett said:

In reply to Antihero :

Thanks for the tip on “Through The Roof”. With rain forecast every day this week it seemed like the (hopefully) perfect stop-gap measure. 

 

As as usual I bought too much material - I used one tube and one tub - but this is the end result. 

 

From the smell and behavior of this stuff I’m pretty sure it’s basically Shoe Goo/contact cement. 

I climbed up in the attic today & confirmed there is no access into the attic in the addition, so I went above/below/around the leak area & looked of anything questionable at all.

Of course our a/c went out last night, so that cost $350 to fix today. One of the lines had a pinhole & we’d lost all the Freon overnight. 

No problem, i hope it works. You are probably right about the Shoe Goo, shoe goo is also awesome so that makes sense too

Pete Gossett
Pete Gossett GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
8/18/18 12:33 p.m.

Update: As posted above I covered any questionable areas with Through The Roof. We’ve had a couple heavy rains, including one overnight last night from the SSW that left an inch of water in my recycling bin - with the lid closed! So far no leaks though!

Hopefully it’ll keep working while we save up for a steel roof like we’d hoped, even if I have to reapply or touch it up periodically. 

David S. Wallens
David S. Wallens Editorial Director
8/20/18 12:26 p.m.

Awesome news. 

dean1484
dean1484 GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
8/19/19 12:06 p.m.

Excelent!!!!

 

 

Pete Gossett
Pete Gossett GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
8/20/19 7:20 p.m.

Well since this got bumped up I might as well update it.

The roof leak got worse, so back in February we had a new arichectural shingle roof put on the main part of the house & front/master suite addition. The plan was to have them back this fall to do the rear addition/breezeway/garage, then do the shed & gazebo next spring, but we just had to pay $1800 last week to take down a tree that we were originally told the city would take care of...

sleepyhead the buffalo
sleepyhead the buffalo GRM+ Memberand Mod Squad
6/1/21 11:51 a.m.

why, yes, I am curious if roofing supplies can be used in building a canoe!  thanks!

tremm
tremm Reader
5/4/23 11:19 a.m.

I know it's an old canoe, but looking into replacing asphalt shingles on a 2-3 bedroom house seemed overwhelming for 1 person.

Even just trying to learn how to do the various valleys, vents, flashing, etc. .. not to mention ice shield, varying pitches/materials/overhangs, code/permit, etc. ... it's a lot to manage, even before material choice & climbing the ladder.

I like the idea of looking for a crew, like someone else said. And I could see working with an experienced friend. doing a simple garage or something seems possible.

Seems like one of those things where there's a thousand ways to fail without knowing it until you've finished. Unfortunately there seem to be a lot of bad professional roofers too 

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/4/23 12:33 p.m.

In reply to tremm :

Ice shield??  In Biloxi MI??

Hahahahaha!

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/4/23 12:36 p.m.

Roofing is the only construction trade that comes with a full set of instructions for all details  on every bundle.  Bad roofing and bad reading comprehension are synonymous. 
 

But the physical aspect is monumentally daunting.  Heavy, dirty, hot, dangerous.  I've done roofs alone, but that was a lot of years ago. There is no way I would do it again. 

Antihero
Antihero GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
5/4/23 3:08 p.m.
SV reX said:

Roofing is the only construction trade that comes with a full set of instructions for all details  on every bundle.  Bad roofing and bad reading comprehension are synonymous. 
 

But the physical aspect is monumentally daunting.  Heavy, dirty, hot, dangerous.  I've done roofs alone, but that was a lot of years ago. There is no way I would do it again. 

Currently trying to fix up an old 18/12 A frame.

 

Usually don't do roofs, I'm remembering why very vividly......

tremm
tremm Reader
5/4/23 4:41 p.m.

Really? I watched some of this guy's videos- https://youtu.be/mN_WBOBqRoE 

It doesn't look like rocket science, it just seems like there's a lot of variation, and a big learning curve. A trade where experience is a real value.

Something like this? Sure, I could see giving it a go with just yt videos as a teacher.

But add stuff like remodels, varying pitches, vents, skylights, flat roofs, lots of ridges/valleys/dormers, fixing past bad designs.. how many hours of education and research is worth the potential cost savings (assuming you nail it on try 1)? And then trying to figure out which professional opinion to listen to regarding best practices.

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/5/23 6:07 p.m.

In reply to tremm :

A bundle of shingles weighs between 50 and 80 lbs.  Try climbing a ladder with that on your shoulder.  Now do it 50 times without loosing your footing on the roof.  In 110* heat.

Even a simple roof takes an extreme amount of physical exertion. 

Toyman!
Toyman! GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
5/5/23 8:07 p.m.

In reply to SV reX :

I still have a bad knee from hauling shingles when I was a teen. Roofing is miserable work if your name isn't on the trucks.

I watched a crew roofing a house once. The smallest guy on the crew was the hauler. The eve of the house was only about 7' off the ground and they had set up a ladder at a 45 degree angle. That kid would run to the trailer, grab 2 bundles and hit the bottom of the ladder at a run. Up the ladder without slowing down, drop the bundles at the layers, run to the edge of the roof and jump off and do it again. There were 5 guys nailing on that roof and they never had to wait on him. He maintained that pace for as long as I could stand to watch him make me feel lazy. 

tremm
tremm Reader
5/6/23 2:26 p.m.

Yeah, I was more skeptical that someone could learn enough to roof a house by reading the package. I agree that roofing is hard work. Some of that can probably be worked around, like with a lift, or having materials delivered to the roof, for DIY. I don't think I'd want to do something like move/fit 4x8 sheets with a lack of hands.

Antihero
Antihero GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
5/6/23 4:44 p.m.
tremm said:

Yeah, I was more skeptical that someone could learn enough to roof a house by reading the package. I agree that roofing is hard work. Some of that can probably be worked around, like with a lift, or having materials delivered to the roof, for DIY. I don't think I'd want to do something like move/fit 4x8 sheets with a lack of hands.

Moving plywood is one of the easiest parts of roofing, you are always moving it with one set of hands so bluntly if that's the part that you are skeptical of id probably not give it a try.

 

Roofing just basically sucks, it's easier than concrete but it's always up in the air(obviously)

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/6/23 5:41 p.m.

In reply to tremm :

Feel free to read one of the packages and see.  It tells you how to layout, lap, nailing pattern, base sheets, wall flashings, valleys, ridges, eaves, roof edges,  step flashings, chimney flashings, ice shield, everything.

Its all there, and it existed long before YouTube ever did.  
 

It's not rocket science, but there are extremely few people who EVER read the packages.

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/6/23 5:43 p.m.

I don't think I've ever seen anyone handling plywood on a roof with more than 1 person (except when it's windy).  I've decked quite a few roofs entirely by myself.  The plywood is MUCH easier than the shingles.

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/6/23 6:00 p.m.

In reply to tremm :

I'm not impressed with that video.  He's not even standing on a roof.  He's standing on a flat concrete floor with no risk of falling.  He never once lifts a bundle of shingles, does no tear off, doesn't show how to do the base sheet, and most importantly doesn't cover roof safety.  He doesn't have to- he has no risk.  
 

Every single thing that is difficult about roofing is removed from that video.  And yes, every thing he teaches is printed on the packages.  He even references it several times ("this manufacturer recommends... "  that's not special knowledge he learned from years of experience. He read it on the package.)

Im glad YouTube is useful to you.  

bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter)
bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand UberDork
2/19/24 10:15 p.m.
SV reX said:

In reply to tremm :

I'm not impressed with that video.  He's not even standing on a roof.  He's standing on a flat concrete floor with no risk of falling.  He never once lifts a bundle of shingles, does no tear off, doesn't show how to do the base sheet, and most importantly doesn't cover roof safety.  He doesn't have to- he has no risk.  
 

Every single thing that is difficult about roofing is removed from that video.  And yes, every thing he teaches is printed on the packages.  He even references it several times ("this manufacturer recommends... "  that's not special knowledge he learned from years of experience. He read it on the package.)

Im glad YouTube is useful to you.  

Since you are a roofer, what do you think about steel? I have to do my roof this summer and my plan is just to strap the old shingles and redo it with steel. We have a 2000 ft Rancher with only six valleys total and not a very steep pitch at all. I have a machine to get the sheets most of the way to the roof and I thought I could pick away at it for three or four hours a day after work until I was done. The extra money I pay for the steel will offset what I do not need to pay a crew to pull the old roof off and redo it in asphalt shingles.

Antihero
Antihero GRM+ Memberand PowerDork
2/19/24 10:21 p.m.

In reply to bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter) :

Not a roofer( thank God) but steel is awesome in snow country at least

Kendall Frederick
Kendall Frederick GRM+ Memberand Reader
2/19/24 10:38 p.m.

In reply to bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter) :

I used to be a roofer, and my brother and several friends still are in the trade.  I'd say you absolutely can do a metal roof by yourself if it's a reasonable pitch.  I did 5V metal on my last two houses by myself.

A couple of caveats: if you are getting a permit, some areas may require you to strip the old shingles. 

I'd measure your main roof sections and order panels cut to length.  You can cut the valley panels with a power shear.  

There are complications if you do fancy stuff like the standing seam roof we just put on my new house.  I had a crew who work for my brother come and do this one, largely because it's 10/12 and 12/12 pitch.  I stop at 6/12...

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