Termite/Fungus Damage to Roof Sheathing
I am new here, so this is my first post, and I would like to thank you for this forum. I am a DIYer working on fixing up a 40 year old 1400 sq ft ranch on the CA central coast. I seem to run into one thing after another where I find that I don’t know what I’m doing, so I’ve come to appreciate expert advice. A termite inspection revealed extensive drywood termite damage and fungus damage to roof sheathing at the eaves; damage to rafter tails, and to fascia and barge rafters. I am planning on doing the repairs myself. The roof deck appears to be 1 x 6 boards, maybe pine. I am wondering what would be the best replacement material? I understand that these repairs are normally made by prying up the roofing at the eave and replacing the sections of sheathing as necessary. I’m wondering if plywood or other type of sheathing, cut to width, would be superior to the solid wood sheathing? I plan new asphalt shingles and tear down in a year or two, but I feel that I should do the termite and fungus repair work now. The house was fumigated following the inspection.
Replies
If you are tearing the house down in a year or two, do nothing.
Otherwise, this sounds like a can of worms so any advice with no clear pictures would be general only and of limited value fopr specifics.
Can you do digital pictures?
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Thanks for responding. I meant to say that I plan on having the existing asphalt shingles ( two or three layers) removed and new roofing installed--not tear the house down. I do not even plan on replacing the roof deck. I understand that these types of repairs are pretty routine and are typically done by contractors that specialize in termite repair. The house is a very simple wood frame stucco one story thing, and I have lived in this type of house most of my life. In California, they are everywhere. This is a gable truss roof with 2x4 rafters. There is no soffit, so the rafter tails are exposed under the eave. The directions I have been given on replacing the tails was to cut the bad stuff off at a 45 and nail or screw on a new piece. (There is no plumb cut at the end either--this is a really plain house.) Regarding the sheathing, I was told that you try to pry up the roofing as much as necessary to get the old piece out and the new stuff in, which would be a six inch wide board or other sheathing material, and running the length of the eaves. In this case, my first run is 45'. My question is what is the best sheathing material for the piece that is most exposed at the eave, solid wood or something else? I can't get pictures right away, but if I get into dire straits, I will work on that. Thanks again.
You will be killing yourself to try and pcmeal this job partially now and then re-roofing down the road. Can you not do it ALL now?
At the least, tear off the eave shingles to get at the sheathing and pitch'em. Find something close to attempt to patch in-the thickness of the old finish will pose some problems. Cut back the sheathing enough to "scab on" another rafter tail next to the bogus one. Cut the bogus one off.
Go back in enough on the solid rafter so when you and the next guy go up there you don't end up on the ground.
Good luck.A great place for Information, Comraderie, and a sucker punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Calvin is right. The sheathing reapir and re-roofing go together. I wouldn't dream of ding one alone without the other.As for the rafter tail repairs, I doubt what you desribe will help much. For a rafter tail exxtended out to have strength, it needs to cantilever bak up into the roof structure. It can get difficult and in some instances can mean a total replacement.For sheathing material - 1x6 T&G V-groove is your best looking choice
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
Thank you for mentioning the viewabilty sheathing that he'll see from below.
I suppose suggesting proper roofing nail length would be appropriate here too.
When I read that it was a stucco on wood frame I wondered why there was no mention of damage b/4 the roof.A great place for Information, Comraderie, and a sucker punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Thanks Piffin and Calvin. You are right, I need to do the roof now. As for the rafter repairs, it is probably just a few inches of the tail that needs replacement, but if I have to break the stucco and go deeper to get adequate strength, how would you do it? Splice and reinforce with plywood or a steel strap? It seems to me that replacing an entire rafter would be a real headache, at least if you had to do several of them. Also, one question regarding rafter strength: for a one story house, would these 2x4 rafters (roof span is 25') pass muster in new construction today? Again, thanks for your help. You have helped me sort this out, and that is very helpful.
The stucco goes around the rafter ?
You would have to go up into the roof and cut it off there. Put in the extension and then band-aid the side(s) to hold it in place and give it some rigidity (up under the unseen sheathing. A short scab on the end of a rafter-you could used a structural screw from GRK and counterbore to make a secure connection.
A great place for Information, Comraderie, and a sucker punch.
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
http://www.quittintime.com/
Edited 8/13/2007 10:23 pm ET by calvin
I started tearing off the old roofing today. The roof was reroofed once. I measured the whole roof, and it came out to almost 20 squares exactly. So that means I am removing 40 squares of old asphalt shingles. My question for today is, what size dumpster would you recommend to hold the waste? Interesting to me is that there is no felt under the shingles. This house was built in 1966. Just curious, how long have roofers been laying felt under asphalt shingles? I feel that I am getting a little old for this kind of work, especially since it involves moving so much weight. So I have a Home Depot guy coming out later this week for an estimate. My plan right now is to work on tear off and repairs everyday, and see how it goes. I have no idea how much it costs to get a roof done, but if I don't have the cash, I probably will do it all myself. Thanks for your help. All of you who have responded have been right on so far.
I just did some major roof repairs to my 1960 SoCal ranch. Termites and mold - horay.
If you need to go down to the stucco, then try this:
Snap a chalkline where the bottom of the rafters go into the stucco. Using a 7" or 9" angle grinder with a dry blade, cut through the stucco horizontally so you remove entirely that chunk between the rafters. The stucco is on mesh, so you need to cut deep enough to sever that. Replace what you need to replace.
When you are done, cut a piece of blocking the same thicknes as your rafters to plug that space - paint to match the rafters.
It will look like you ment to do it that way!
Personally, I think you should be ready to fully replace a bunch of rafters. If the bugs start boring in one end, they are likely to go all the way through following the grain. I had some deeply compromised rafters in my garage where they was a longtime leak.
I also think you should put a layer of rigid insulation, then a layer of new sheathing over that on top of your old sheathing. This will dramaticly lower the heat from the sun your house will absorb. It's easier to insulate the outide of the roof than the inside.Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
Oh, good Lord, no. But I can give him two dollars and an assault rifle.
Very interesting and sounds practical. Thanks. Technically I am not located in SoCal--I am just above the bite, and the climate is quite temperate. It does get hot here once in a while, but I notice the cold more than the hot. What about the strength of 2x4 rafters? Are they affected by loading up with the extra layers of sheathing and insulation? These rafters look kind of scrawny to me. I have assumed that if I were to build up, I would have to strengthen the rafters.
You said that it was trusses -- in which case it would have been engineered to be doable with 2x4's. But that makes it harder to replace bad pieces, since you can't install things the way they were originally done by the truss plant.
Given that the bugs are dead, the next question is, does it leak? If not, you might be able to get a couple more years out of it and do the complete re-roof when you originally planned to.
Drywood termites spread by flying, so they can turn up anywhere. Look around in the attic, as it's quite easy for them to get in thru vents. Look at the top plates and ceiling joists.
-- J.S.
Thanks for your input. I have already torn off the shingles on the north side of the house (about 728 sq'). The northeast corner is the area with the most damage. It looks like just one rafter has to be replaced. Unfortunately, as you say, it is a truss roof. Also, it has lookout notches. I am going to attempt to get it out in one piece so I can use it as a template. I could cut it between the notches, so I would only have to remove half of it. But the hardest part is going to be at the wall; once you get into the attic, it is much easier to access. I plan on talking to the City Building folks tomorrow about adding insulation and sheathing to get their reaction. I don't think it will be a problem, I just wonder if it will be beneficial in terms of the bang for the buck.
This becomes a Boss Hog question now -- The OP needs to repair termite damage to trusses.
-- J.S.
In comparison to other roofing options, like concrete or clay shingles, asphalt shingles are pretty light. 2" of foam and 7/16 of OSB weigh next to nothing, in comparison.
If you're feeling cold more though, then insulating somewhere else might give more bang for the buck.Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
Oh, good Lord, no. But I can give him two dollars and an assault rifle.
Are California termites significantly different from eastern termites? Here, if you had termite damage in the roof, the rest of the house is a teardown. They eat their way up from the ground.
These are dry wood termites, and they are not nearly as damaging as subterranean termites. We have both kinds in California, but I don't think we have as severe a problem with subterranean termites as the southeast.