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Discussion Forum

roof techniques and no-bids

junkhound | Posted in General Discussion on May 26, 2007 02:58am

Brother tried 7 places to get bids on tearing off built in gutters/reframe ends, and reroof Mom’s 105 YO house in Spfld, IL.  NO BIDS! Only one guy even went by to look. Neighborhood has gone down in value in last 20 years, probably too much easier/higher paying new construction in the area.  

So, took ropes, safety harness, nailers, etc 2000 mi. for a roof job. Not much DIY savings in that. Brother brought ladders, roof jacks, big stuff.

Only 11 squares, 12/12 pitch.  Tore off the rotted built-in gutters, extended the rafters 11 inches and put a 1×12 over that.  Ice dam plus 30# felt over that, lapped under existing shingles a foot up, then new 3 tab over the entire thing.

I did not try the backwards shingles on the valleys method as shown by seeyou and others in a recent string of posts about roofing on the re-roof at Mom’s house, started too, but could not get shingles with matching colors on both top and bottom in IL (Menards) .

Own preference is the lap up one side and trim the other, the weave was more work. Did weave on the back of the house to see how it worked. Filled in the existing tar valleys with old ripped siding to make an even transition.

4 days, about 7 AM to 1 PM, then 4 PM to 6PM, 90+ degrees and no breeze and no shade does not work well with PNW folks. Just about got heat stroke – grew up there, but not used to heat anymore.  About $700 materials, plus airfare (well , used up ff miles) works out to $100 square equivalent DIY, about an all time high for me for a roofing job.

Son came from Portland to help in the afternoons, they came back primarily to show Mom’s new Great-grandson around.

Deceided to be lazy and not do a tear-off. Needed 2″ nails for the ridge though.

Kind of a semi-hack job, but it’ll keep the rain off Mom for at least another 15 years, she’s 85.


Edited 5/25/2007 7:59 pm ET by junkhound

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  1. seeyou | May 26, 2007 03:11am | #1

    >>>>>Tore off the rotted built-in gutters, extended the rafters 11 inches and put a 1x12 over that

    Since I'm in the built-in gutter biz, I probably wouldn't submit or even look at this job when you explained what you wanted. Around here, most neighborhoods that have houses with built-in gutters are in an historic overlay and you can't do what you did, legally. Your historic climate may be different.

    >>>>I did not try the backwards shingles on the valleys method as shown by seeyou and others

    That method doesn't work (very well - I've seen it done) with 3 tabs - only dimensionals. And you don't lay them backwards. You show the part of the shingle that would show anyway.

    Let's see some finished pics.

    http://grantlogan.net/

    1. junkhound | May 26, 2007 04:34am | #2

      Upper right pix is a finished pix - the uneveness is why I call it a semi-hack job. Really should have done a tear off also if the location had any high property value. 1-1/2" nails went only about 1/2" into the old 1x8 roof sheathing.

      Not an historic zone, although the house is just 11 blocks south of Lincoln's home on 8th street.

      Some of the roof damage was from a tornado that took out a few buildings 2 blocks south last summer.  Roof condition mostly just from old age and Pop didn't do much repair in his last few years as Mom didn't want him on the roof - her dad died falling off a ladder in 1927.

      Which is why I took the safety harness, rope, etc. cetera  back with me, would have killed my Mom if I've fallen or even gotten hurt.

      Thanks for the update on the valley method, it looked from the previous thread that they were laid backwards.

      Here is another finished pix of the back roof with weave - been so long that I've had to work in hot weather I did not anticipate my rubber cleated shoes would would gouge the shingles and need to cover with roofing cement - black spots. .. hack job? .

      edit, whoops, wrong pix, here is the back on next post.

      Edited 5/25/2007 9:36 pm ET by junkhound

      1. junkhound | May 26, 2007 04:40am | #3

        dang, posted the wrong pix again, one more try.

        1. User avater
          Sphere | May 26, 2007 03:14pm | #5

          Great you could help out Mom, shoulda called me or Grant, coulda got ya some chimney flashings made up.

          We hate tar.Parolee # 40835

          1. seeyou | May 26, 2007 04:06pm | #6

            I wasn't gonna go there. This was a stop the leak in Mom's roof/non-museum quality job and junkman and his bro pulled off what they were trying to do. I suspect that the reason they got no bids was they described what they wanted and and there was a fear of "no good deed goes unpunished."http://grantlogan.net/

          2. User avater
            Sphere | May 26, 2007 06:18pm | #8

            I understand completely.  For being able to pull it off in such a short time and all the travel and whatnot, they did OK.

            I still hate Black Mammy tho'.Parolee # 40835

          3. junkhound | May 29, 2007 01:20am | #10

            I still hate Black Mammy tho'

            Better never take a pix of some of the shed roofs - got a 1/2 pallet of the black stuff when Home Base closed up, $3 per 5 gal can.  Have used it everyplace.

            Only used about 3 gal on Mom's house, most around the chimney as you noticed.

          4. User avater
            Sphere | May 29, 2007 01:26am | #11

            Thats Ok...I  know ya gave it all from your heart. S'ok in my book.Parolee # 40835

        2. karp | May 28, 2007 10:09pm | #9

          You, Sir, are a Hero.

          I salute you.

           

           

           

          As for a semi-hack job? I disagree, A professionally executed job, based on the given parameters.

  2. User avater
    EricPaulson | May 26, 2007 05:07am | #4

    Thanks for taking care of Mom.

    That's priceless.

    [email protected]

     

     

     

     

  3. GHR | May 26, 2007 05:00pm | #7

    If you are in business, you would have gotten a very fine millage deduction. (I drive 2000 miles just to turn the water on in the spring and off in the fall ($1000 deduction; $350 tax savings). I often visit friends at the same time.)

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