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I have been invited, when I next visit my daughter, to “help” with some house projects. In particular, she needs to replace the wood shingles on the gable ends of her house which is a small 1920’s bungalow (?) in St. Paul, Minn.
inn.house is basically a story and a half, so the gable ends are about 12′ to 15′ high at the peak and perhaps 25′ wide. (I have not seen the house yet). There is a break at the top of the first story. In front there is a porch roof; in the rear there is a little roof (ornamental ?). In any case, the bottom of the shingled area is at the top of the first story. There is a pair of double hung windows in each gable.
I searched the Archives and found a lot of stuff. Also visited the Cedar Bureau website. web site.what I think I know from the Archives and what I still have questions about. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
1. Use the best grade cedar shingle you can afford. Cheap shingles don’t last.
2. Back prime everything, including edges. (The plan is to finish with either opaque stain or paint.)
3. Install Z flashingIabove the windows. Don’t know what is there now, but am pessimistic. Is aluminum ok for flao.ing?
4. I doubt that the windows have any side flashing and I don’t see any way to add any now. The best I can think is to prime and paint the window edges that will be hidden by shingles, and maybe caulk before installing the new shingles. Anything better?
5. Add new flashing at bottom above the lower roofs. Don’t know exactly what is involved until I see it up close.
6. Use hot dip galvanized or better stainless nails. Probably ring shank or spiral shank. Seems like 1 1/2 inch would be about right to go thru shingthound well into sheathing which I assume is 1 x boards. IAlso saw recommendation to use 7/16 x 2 SS staIlesAS Would that be better?
7. Question: where in the length of the shingle do you nail?
8. Gap between shingle edges 1/8″ or less.
9. Use 30# felt under the shingles.
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4. Try and use Ice and Water Shield or bituthane strips maybe 6" wide to "flash" the sides of the windows. Go over the under window flashing and then do the top 'o window flashing. Spend some time on the window detail. Sorry, don't know much else re. shingles. Our house, we used the shingles on a ply. base. Easy install but still need to pay attention to water entry details. Once you get the installation details think modifying a little fancy "stuff" in her. Nice of you to help that little girl. Best of luck
*rmwoods - I nail them on with 3 or 4 penny shingle nails. Use two nails in about 1/4" from the edge, high enough that the nails will be covered by the next course but low enough that they also penetrate the course below. #2 "red labels" are cheaper and will stand up fine for sidewall application, but #1 "blue labels" are a lot better looking and I think they have tighter grain too. Either way, you're lookin' at over 100.00/square and the labor will astound you. VERY labor intensive. BUT, they are very satisfying to install and look great if you do a good job. I use a straight board tacked to the wall to set the shingles on with a string across the top to hold them upright so I can nail off a bunch at once. Invest in a good block plane and find a radio station you like, you're gonna be there awhile. Don't even think about workin' off a ladder. You will need scaffolding of some type. Exterior trim is my favorite part of our profession and sidewall shingles are one of the real treats, I love those jobs.