Can't stop my nearly flat garage roof from leaking. Thinking about slapping on a metal roof. Tips?

[thedarkwolf]

A not so usefull pic

Can't really tell much from that but there isn't much of a slop. Rightnow it has two layers of roll roofing on it that were there when I bought it. I've went over all the seams with tar three three or four times and poured about half of bucket of tar on the back right corner that has a low spot in it and collects water but all it really does is slow the leaks down for awhile. It seems like everytime I do get one fixed another one shows up and I am just tired of screwing with it. I think I would be better off if I just cover the whole damn thing with that aluminum/tin roofing. My parents house had one room with a completely flat roof with metal roofing that never leaked so it should work here. I just don't know how to install it. Do you use regular roofing nails? How much overlap considering the flatness of the roof? What size sheets does it come in? Hoping I can fit them in my minivan . Should I coat it or just the seams/nails with anything like tar? Do I have to rip off all the old stuff first? I probably should but I really don't want to .

Anything else or other roofing materials I should consider.

 

[Supertastic Fool]

how are you at construction?

 

[thedarkwolf]

Originally posted by: Kmackalopogus
how are you at construction?

mediocre but unless your going to say build a whole new roof I think I can handle it .

 

[IGBT]

Home Depot has a product called Snow Roof...it comes in 5 gallon buckets and is rolled on your roof with a fluffy paint roller...sweep off al the loose debri and make spot repairs with black jack..then roll on the snow roof..it's bright white/silver and also reflects heat..figure out how many square feet ya got and buy what ya need. The fluffy roller works best cause it gets into all the nooks and cranies...

 

[thedarkwolf]

I found a review of Snow Roof over on epinions.com and it does sound like pretty good stuff. I just don't know if I went to spend the cash on it and have it leak just like the tar does. Only found one place on the net that list it sofar and its $22 a gallon yikes .

 

[RaiderJ]

Since its unheated (I assume), you don't have to worry about condensation. With that much material up there, you could have water sitting and seeping for a long time before you'd notice any kind of leaking.... which means your roof could be rotting more than you'd think.

If it was me, I'd probably just do a tear off and reroof. Simply going over seems can trap existing water deposits inside and cause them to expand in the heat, thereby causing more cracks & needing more material.

With some simple carpentry you can increase your slope. For overlap, 3-6 inches should be sufficient. Make sure if your using tar, to go over vertical seams with mastic & tape. Lay down mastic on the seams, then the reinforced fabric tape, then another coat of mastic. Cover with granuales of whatever color you like (protects from UV deteorioration).

Something else to consider would be to use Ice & Water Shield (the stuff by Grace, NOT a cheaper imitation brand), and then cover with some shingles. The I&WS will make a waterproof barrier, seal around nail holes from the shingles, but be a pain to install with one person.

I've had around 8 years experience with roofing (parents/grandparents owned a contracting company). Be glad to help out, but better pictures would be useful!

 

[thedarkwolf]

I took a few more pics

Side shot
There is some slope to it just not alot and the awning off my front porch that I ripped off last weekend .

top left
top right
bottom right
bottom left
and bottom right again

The bottom right is my main trouble spot as you can probably tell from all the tar. I did replace the 3rd from the bottom strip right after moving in 2 years ago which is why it doesn't match. Wind had ripped the old one up. I do have a few boards rotting under that corner so I really should rip it all off and replace those. Its just a huge hassle and mess but I have next week off so if its decent I could get it all done. I just don't know if I would be better off going with roll roofing again or just using metal.

 

[Spencer278]

If I was you i would ripe up everything on the roof except for the the rafters and then throw down some strapping and on top off that put down channel drain roofing. Channel drain is a really simple kind of roof that is metal to lay it down you need the strapping ( a thin strip of wood you nail into ) and you over lap the last channel. Nail with nails with a rubber washer on the high parts of the channel and be done with your roof for the next 25 years.

 

[RaiderJ]

From the pictures I'd definitely say you need to tear the old stuff off. The low spot looks suspiciously like rot... I bet you could tear that part off with a spoon. You'd be surprised at how much rot even just a cup of water trapped in your roof could cause. If that water never gets out, it will just constantly rot away your roof (hence low spots).

I don't think a metal roof is a bad way to go, it just might be more expensive. You can't get much cheaper than roll roofing & some tar. If you lay down some roll roofing, you could go over the edges with some 90 degree edge metal - make it look nicer from the ground & be fairly cheap.

 

[Lvis]

That pro panel 2 stuff they sell at home depot is pretty easy to use. http://www.metalsales.us.com/TechSheets/ProPanel.pdf


It screws on, with a capped gasketed screw thats self tapping. I wouldn't put the stuff on a high end house, but for what you are doing, it should work ok.

 

[DrPizza]

The metal roofing with the channels is for sloped roofs. There's a minimum slope required for it. From the picture, I can't see how much of a slope you have. Furthermore, the correct way to install it isn't to put the screws in the high spots, but rather in the low spots where it's against the roof. (especially where two sheets overlap - it affects the seal between the two) If you do decide to go with a metal roof, wear good leather gloves while you're working with it. That stuff'll slice you to the bone before you can react. (emergency room visit for me)

Personally, for that roof, I'd recommend a rubber roof. Either tear down the existing roof to the rafters and slap up some OSB or just put the OSB over the existing roof if you're lazy. You'd be able to get a single piece of rubber the size of that roof, so there'd be no seams. Relatively simple to put it down - it just glues in place. (and put a drip edge on all the way around the roof.)

Actually, though, in my situtation, I didn't have much of a slope to the roof, but I used the metal roofing anyway. You don't even need to remove the existing roof. Just get some firring strips, lay them across the existing roof and slap the metal roofing over the top.

F

 

[RaiderJ]

Originally posted by: DrPizza
The metal roofing with the channels is for sloped roofs. There's a minimum slope required for it. From the picture, I can't see how much of a slope you have. Furthermore, the correct way to install it isn't to put the screws in the high spots, but rather in the low spots where it's against the roof. (especially where two sheets overlap - it affects the seal between the two) If you do decide to go with a metal roof, wear good leather gloves while you're working with it. That stuff'll slice you to the bone before you can react. (emergency room visit for me)

Personally, for that roof, I'd recommend a rubber roof. Either tear down the existing roof to the rafters and slap up some OSB or just put the OSB over the existing roof if you're lazy. You'd be able to get a single piece of rubber the size of that roof, so there'd be no seams. Relatively simple to put it down - it just glues in place. (and put a drip edge on all the way around the roof.)

Actually, though, in my situtation, I didn't have much of a slope to the roof, but I used the metal roofing anyway. You don't even need to remove the existing roof. Just get some firring strips, lay them across the existing roof and slap the metal roofing over the top.

F

Just make sure if you use rubber or bitchethane (plasticized rubber) that you have a UV coating. The sun can eat away the rubber over a period of years

 

[ZOXXO]

I would torch down modified bitumen roll roofing onto it.

You can get by without tearing off the old roofing unless you think weight might be a problem. Personally, I would tear off the old roofing and cover the old 1x? decking with OSB regardless.

Installation is pretty much self explanatory and only requires a propane torch.

It's less expensive than EPDM(rubber) or metal and far more durable than traditional roll roofing.

For $200 per square I would haul a few rolls up to Huntington and torch it down for you.

 

[thedarkwolf]

I am pretty sure its 1x6 decking but it might be 1x8, I've never measured it. Why would I need to cover the decking with OSB aren't the 1x6s good enough?

The stuff L vis linked to is the kind of thing I was thinking off. Don't think I meet the minimum slop though. How tall is a normal cinderblock 8 inches? Looks like I have around 2 1/2 cinderblocks worth of drop front to back and the garage is roughly 25 feet long. I just need to make a trip to Lowes and Homedepot and look around over the weekend.

 

[Supertastic Fool]

Originally posted by: thedarkwolf

Originally posted by: Kmackalopogus
how are you at construction?

mediocre but unless your going to say build a whole new roof I think I can handle it .

I actually was going to say that. You could put a slope on it and new decking. I could even draw you up some plans if youw wanted. Not sure on how much it would cost but if you want to do it right I can tell ya how.

keith

 

[ThisIsMatt]

Is that your front door to the right?

 

[thedarkwolf]

Originally posted by: Kmackalopogus

Originally posted by: thedarkwolf

Originally posted by: Kmackalopogus
how are you at construction?

mediocre but unless your going to say build a whole new roof I think I can handle it .

I actually was going to say that. You could put a slope on it and new decking. I could even draw you up some plans if youw wanted. Not sure on how much it would cost but if you want to do it right I can tell ya how.

keith

Well I don't really want to do it right . Its really not worth that much hassle and there are other things around the house I would do before that.

Is that your front door to the right?

You mean to the right of the garage door? No my house is a little bigger then that .
Thats the front
Still need to do something with my living room awning. Haven't decided if I just want to paint it or rip it down like I did the porch one.

 

[RaiderJ]

Originally posted by: ZOXXO
I would torch down modified bitumen roll roofing onto it.

You can <EM>get by</EM> without tearing off the old roofing unless you think weight might be a problem. Personally, I would tear off the old roofing and cover the old 1x? decking with OSB regardless.

Installation is pretty much self explanatory and only requires a propane torch.

It's less expensive than EPDM(rubber) or metal and far more durable than traditional roll roofing.

For $200 per square I would haul a few rolls up to Huntington and torch it down for you.

Another good option - might definitely be easier than using hot tar. Make sure you don't wear nice boots!

 

[ZOXXO]

Originally posted by: thedarkwolf
I am pretty sure its 1x6 decking but it might be 1x8, I've never measured it. Why would I need to cover the decking with OSB aren't the 1x6s good enough? The stuff L vis linked to is the kind of thing I was thinking off. Don't think I meet the minimum slop though. How tall is a normal cinderblock 8 inches? Looks like I have around 2 1/2 cinderblocks worth of drop front to back and the garage is roughly 25 feet long. I just need to make a trip to Lowes and Homedepot and look around over the weekend.

The OSB wouldn't be absolutely necessary if the 1x isn't curled or of non-uniform thickness. Often times 1x decking on older structures, particularly unfinished outbuildings, is made out of rough cut lumber. A layer of OSB would give you a nice even surface to adhere to, eliminate the possibility of wind getting underneath the roofing and melted bitumen dripping into the garage during installation.

 

[DrPizza]

That slope you described above is about the same as the slope on my garage roof. It's only been a few months, but it sat there with a LOT of snow on it for a good month. No problems as far as leaking goes. You can special order the metal roofing for the length of your roof. (I'll bet our roofs are almost the exact same size/slope). However, consider how you'll get the roofing to your house. Hauling it might be a pita.

Oddly though, the special order metal roofing is cheaper at my local home depot than the stuff they stock. (weird??) But, then again, they're morons and idiots who work there. They stocked my special order roofing, carelessly, scratching it in the process. And causing me to get pissed and cancel the order.