Re-roofing a summer house/shed

[burnie]

I had some corrugated roofing sheets delivered yesterday and have fitted them to our summerhouse.


So I thought I'd share a few things with you, in case anyone else has the same job on their list of things to do.
This roof is quite large and cannot be accessed from the edges so I had to climb on it, this involves the use of ladders(obviously) so there are Health and Safety concerns to address.
Ideally a second person helps in so many ways, my wife is not the strongest person but by standing at the base of the ladder, or on the bottom rung, this will reduce any likelihood of the ladder moving. Wear some suitable footwear, my old steel toe capped work boots are ideal, fitted with a non slip sole.
Finally don't over do it, tiredness can cause you to make a mistake, take your time doing the job. Oh and I believe it is traditional to celebrate "topping out" of a new roof, I had a couple of nice glasses of Bo Jolly (Beaujolais to those who speak posh) that did the trick, though I did wait till I was back on terrafirma before quaffing said drink lol.

[Stan79]

I was thinking of doing the same to one of my sheds... i've got 4 sheds so seem to constantly be re-felting one of them! What's the life span of corrugate sheets compared with felt?

[1Bee]

*tackle hugs Burnie* Thank you for doing it carefully, and sharing information to keep other people safe, too.

[nickdub]

I was thinking of doing the same to one of my sheds... i've got 4 sheds so seem to constantly be re-felting one of them! What's the life span of corrugate sheets compared with felt?

Not all corrugated sheets are equal, but as a rough guide I'd expect to get at least 20 years out of the plastic ones, 30+ for the metal ones and someone-else will possibly chime in about the composite types.

One thing to consider when re-roofing is how windy your location is and therefore how many fixing points you need - I'm a belt and braces type for these things, so not averse to drilling right through sheets and sub-roof and fixing down with nut, bolt and rubber washer (Obviously always fix through the top of the ridges on the corrugated roofing)

[Jay-ell]

Nice one burnie.

You can also secure them by hammering a couple of posts into the ground either side of the rails and securely lashing them them.





Yes - I am talking about Stakes and Ladders.

[toomanytommytoes]

I was thinking of doing the same to one of my sheds... i've got 4 sheds so seem to constantly be re-felting one of them! What's the life span of corrugate sheets compared with felt?

Have you tried using the heavier duty, torch-on felt? It's much thicker compared to the bog standard stuff which ends up tearing like paper after a few years. You don't necessarily need to torch it on, longer clout nails should do.

[veggiechicken]

I "roof" my sheds with pond liner.
Not the big old corrugated iron roofed one though, just the cheapo, flat roofed ones.
Cheap, waterproof and no joins to worry about.

[Lardman]

*Shudder* looking at the ladder !

I bought a small 4x4 galvanised scaffold tower for jobs like that- I doubt I'd bounce falling from even 8ft nowadays

[burnie]

I used these as they are on offer just now, good price
https://www.travisperkins.co.uk/Arie...950mm/p/893976
The fittings are ok but the nails are only long enough going through a single sheet, when you go through more on the overlaps, I used 3 inch screws with the caps
https://www.travisperkins.co.uk/Arie...ck-20/p/893978
The ridge bits were also fixed using screws rather than nails as it's windy at our coastal location.
https://www.travisperkins.co.uk/Arie...900mm/p/893977
No connection with this supplier and there are plenty more available.