Roll roofing is the perfect material for the novice roofer who wishes to finish a shed or porch roof with a slight slope or flat roof. Produced in large rolls that are cut and nailed into place, installation is incredibly simple and can be completed quickly.
Never install roll roofing unless it is at least 50 degrees to prevent cracking.
The heat will make the roll roofing easy to work with, so leave it on the roof for a few hours to warm up.
While you are waiting, install a drip edge all around the perimeter of the roof to prevent the water from working underneath the edge of the roofing. Normally made of plastic, a drip edge will further protect your roof and give it a finished edge.
10 Easy Steps for Do It Yourself Roll Roofing Installation
- Spend some time cleaning the roof before beginning.
- Like any other roofing project, you should start this one by addressing the valleys.
- Use a roll of 18" wide roofing and use it to cover the length of the valley. Attach it to the valley with roofing nails spaced 6 inches apart, about 3/4" from the edge.
- Next, place a roll of 36" roofing directly over the 18" roofing and secure it in the same manner.
- With the valleys covered, apply the rest of the roll roofing parallel with the roofing edge. Use a chalk line to make sure you are creating even rows, overlapping by about three inches.
- Nail into the side that is furthest from the edge of the roof, spacing nails every 3 inches apart.
- Apply the next piece of roll roofing so the overlap covers the nail heads, using roofing cement to secure the two pieces of roofing together.
- When you encounter a roof valley, trim the roll roofing so it ends 1/2" from the valley's center.
- Then use roofing cement to secure the edges of the roll.
- Then use a 12" roll of roofing applied with roofing cement to run over the valley seam and cover all of the edges.
Pro Tip
This (#3) may seem like overkill, but in my experience leaks tend to occur near valleys and on the edges of the roof. Spend some time taking care of these areas and you'll greatly diminish the chance you'll be up on the roof making repairs after the next rainstorm.
Best Uses for Roll Roofing
Roll roofing is a great material for small projects, but I don't recommend using roll roofing to put a roof on a home. Instead, you are better off choosing a more traditional material, such as asphalt shingles, which lends itself to an installation method that is better at withstanding leaks.
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I saw an installation or asphalt roll roofing applied to a school but instead of running the rolls horizontally, they ran them vertically. Has anyone else seen this type of application and if so, was there anything special about the process to install it?
Could you better define what a "valley" is? You talk about them an awful lot but, what are they exactly? Do you start from the roof edge and work your way up, or from the top down? Do you cover the entire area to be roofed with the cement that they "strongly recommend" at the hardware store, or only where the sheets over-lap?
Where can I order the insulation for electrical outlets?