I had an unusual experience with my roof this week. About a year ago the roof started leaking and I could not determine the source of the leak.
I looked several times and had a buddy look at it and we couldn’t figure it out. The roof looked okay.
The house is 1950’s ranch with 2 1/2 X 12 pitch roof with two layers of asphalt three tab shingles. The top layer is about 12 years old.
The original roof was gravel.
I decided to remove a few shingles around the furnace flue pipe which is about 2 feet from the top of the roof.
To my surprise the shingles lifted right off the roof easily. Nothing was really holding them down.
I didn’t need a prybar, hammer, or shovel to remove the shingles as the nails had completely rusted and turned to dust!
What had happened was the water entered around the flue pipe and it stayed in between the two layers of shingles as it ran downward at an angle. Over the years the nails had completed rusted and deteriorated.
When I removed the top layer I could see the brown stained roof (bottom layer) where the water had been coming in probably for many years.
I ended up replacing approx 1 and 1/2 square of shingles. The problem area was in the section of the roof facing the back yard.
.
^^^^^^
“and that’s all I’ve got to say about that”
Replies
Do you realize that asphalt roofing shingles are intended for slopes 4/12 and better?
Beat it to fit / Paint it to match
I was not aware of that when I bought the house 2 and a half years ago. Also, my home inspector did not mention this to me.As a side note there are a lot of these homes in my area with the 2 1/2 X 12 pitch roof. Most have the asphalt shingles.Roofing contractors replace these roofs every day and they go back with the same asphalt shingles.Roll roofing matierials are suitable for these low pitched roofs but it would look terrible.Are there any other alternatives? What should be done with these roofs? Maybe go to a metal roof? Thanks!.^^^^^^"and that's all I've got to say about that"
"Roll roofing matierials are suitable for these low pitched roofs but it would look terrible."It would look terrible. But, in my opinion, it is NOT suitable.Roll roofing does not hold up very well. Think about how tightly it is rolled up when you get it. If you rolled up a shingle that tightly it would be ruined. There's just not that much meat in roll roofing.Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
What do you recommend for low slope applications, Rich?
"Citius, Altius, Fortius"
Something kind of odd about this roof is it's a gravel roof with tar paper on top of the gravel, then two layers of asphalt shingles.The asphalt shingles lay very flat ! You would never know there is a gravel roof underneath !The roof looks fine - it's not lumpy or wavy at all !.^^^^^^"and that's all I've got to say about that"
They never even scraped the gravel back!?!?!?!?!?!?What a case of hackinosis! Cure it quick, before it spreads
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"What do you recommend for low slope applications, Rich?"Once it is under 3 in 12, I like EPDM. Durable and easy to repair. The only drawback to EPDM is the appearance of the term bar around the edge.3 in 12, the ice and water shield under the shingles seems to work.Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
EPDM.
45 0r 60 mil?
Fully adhered or mechanically fastened?
Around here roll roofing is $22 a square, comparable pricing for EPDM product?
"Citius, Altius, Fortius"
"45 0r 60 mil?"Obviously, the thicker is better, but I don't see any problem with the 45 mil."Fully adhered or mechanically fastened?"Fully adhered."Around here roll roofing is $22 a square, comparable pricing for EPDM product?"I'll install a straightforward EPDM for $30 a square. I have heard of bids at $50 a square for large jobs. I might get that high (or higher) when the job gets small enough.Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
Thanks, Rich.I still have a question on the pricing: I meant that I have to pay $22 a roll for roll roofing. Doesn't count any adheseve or fasteners.
Do you mean you furnish and install EPDM, with adhesive, etc., for $30 ?
"Citius, Altius, Fortius"
Copper works really well.
Must be that "Noble element" attitude.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Do you mean you furnish and install EPDM, with adhesive, etc., for $30 ?"Sorry. A brain freeze.Add a zero to those numbers.This is why I avoid giving customers numbers off the top of my head.Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
Ahh...the dratted decimal point debacle!
LOL
"Citius, Altius, Fortius"
>>"I'll install a straightforward EPDM for $30 a square. I have heard of bids at $50 a square for large jobs. I might get that high (or higher) when the job gets small enough."
You're talking install labor only, yes (include remove old roof? disposal? materials for new roof?). If you get $30 to $50 a square for the full boat, I have six roofs in Phila. and you can start tomorrow (or whenever convenient for you). Following that, I'll get you all the flat roof work you can handle until you retire. ;-)
"A job well done is its own reward. Now would you prefer to make the final payment by cash, check or Master Card?"
There's nothing wrong with a BUR grael roof either. That is what the F'in house was designed for! Right?
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"There's nothing wrong with a BUR grael roof either. That is what the F'in house was designed for! Right?"Well, obviously a properly installed BUR is fine. But I don't do BUR.In other threads, the "peel and stick" roofing has been mentioned favorably, but I have no experience with it.Rich BeckmanAnother day, another tool.
Depending on how large the <4:12 roof is, you could ice & water shield the entire surface, and then shingle. With flashings and detail areas done correctly, this roof will NEVER leak!
I think some shingle manufacturers provide instructions down to a 2" slope, but they spec an extra barrier (more than a single layer of felt) below the shingles if slope is less than 4".
If ignorance is bliss why aren't more people
happy?
>>>>>>>>>>With flashings and detail areas done correctly, this roof will NEVER leak!Never? How 'bout in 45 years? Them's pretty strong words.Birth, school, work, death.....................
http://grantlogan.net/
but never is only one werd
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OK, you got me there. Will not leak for as long as the shingles have service life in them.
There was loose gravel underneath the two layers of shingles. These homes were built with the gravel roofs and only a few have remained gravel.The rest now have asphalt shingles. Maybe when the gravel roof went bad years ago it was cheaper to just shingle over the top (rather than redoing the tar and gravel).I do see where some in the neighborhood have gone to the Heritage? shingles - (the asphalt shingles that look like shakes).I bought the cheapest shingles I could find. They are asphalt three tabl shingles and they sell for $10 per bundle. There are about 25 shingles per bundle.I go the cheapest route possible. Sometimes it comes back to haunt me though..^^^^^^"and that's all I've got to say about that"
for 4/12 just shingle as per the norm.
for 3/12 shrink up the exposure.
for 2.5/12 shrink the exposure and ice guard the whole deck and increase to continuous soffit/ridge vents. A full deck of rubber needs all the breathing it can get.
for 2/12 ... stop using tab shingles.
Jeff
Buck Construction
Artistry In Carpentry
Pittsburgh Pa
his roof is down in Florida or someplace where it never snows. He could do 4"exposure over I&W and be OK for 12-15 years
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