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Posted on April 1, 2006 by Alphonso Sirtle | Posted under Home Improvement
The Ultimate Guide To Roof Flashing
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Roof flashing comes in two flavors: folding and overlapping is the simple one and soldering is the more complex one. Each of these has its purposes and uses. Folding and overlapping are used where the slope is high enough to allow the gravity to easily get down from the roof. This is not very hard and virtually any DYI fan with some skill can do this rather easily. Solding on the other is used for more complicated cases, because it involves water proofing. This technique is used on low slopes and is more complicated as it involves some additional cautions. With the first technique the thermal expansion and contraction were not much of a hazard. With solding though this factor cannot be ignored any longer. It is easy to imagine those bolts popping up like champagne corks every winter or summer when temperature goes to extremes. This is why cleats and expansion joints should always be installed along side. When it comes to chimneys both of the techniques above can be used, but you should be aware. Most of the flashing problems occur at this point. When using folding and overlapping always remember that the only protection is given by gravity, so try to imagine droplets of water going down on it. From this point on make sure that all the corners are carefully protected and that the overlapping is done in such a fashion that the water will rather follow the path you want. Common sense and an acute sense of observation is all that you need. Unfortunately not all the contractors seem to have these two basic assets and this is where the hell breaks loose. If you intend to go for the DYI approach you should carefully the materials that you will work with. As a rule of thumb never mix metals. Steel sheets with copper rivets simply won't do. Of course there are many choices available, but among them I found aluminium to be the best to work with. It folds easily and it doesn't corrode very much in time, also it is rust proof. The professionals though prefer steel as it is much sturdier. Whatever you choose it is important to be consistent and install that flashing in a proper manner. Of course most of the flashing that you will do will be repairs anyway as you will most likely have bought the house or inherited it. This is a rather easy task for any DYI type of guy. First of all check to see if the drainage system isn't clogged. By getting this sort of regular maintenance you can avoid fixing flashing altogether. If a more serious problem does occur than you should fix the loose nails (if there are any) and use some roofing cement to seal back the holes. If the hole is bigger than use a patch of the same material and fix it with roofing cement, as a side note the patch should be bigger than the hole itself. You should basically find every hole and cover it. If the damage is too extensive you may need to call a professional to install some brand new flashing, or install new flashing on your own. Now where is flashing needed anyway? Valleys are those places where two planes meet. Here the water tends to gather in streams and thus a leak here can lead to disasters. Valley flashing is one of the most difficult parts to replace, but can be rather easily fixed. Vent pipe flashing is a small flashing job and can be easily fixed. The drip edges prevent the water from getting to walls. They are rather easy to repair as you will only need a ladder to get the in the first place. What makes them important is the fact that they can clog and determine water to build up on the roof. Maintenance rather than fixing is needed here. Now of course once new flashing is installed you will get a very odd roof, with some shiny spots. The trick is to spray paint the flashing so it will merge harmoniously with the rest of the roof. Now this is the part where you can protect flashing from corrosion by adding a few ingredients that protect the metal from rust and corrosion. Even galvanized metal can corrode in time, so any extra protection is greatly welcomed. A word on aluminium flashing. Although it is lightweight and easy to use you should be aware that this is not a renewable source and it is rather scarce. If you intend to build your house environmentally friendly you can safely use alternatives such as plastics or recycled rubber. Indeed they have a shorter life span but will do the job and are not subjected to rust. If you install correctly any of these alternative flashings your house won't know the difference. With these issues in mind I hope that you will solve all the roof flashing problems that you will ever encounter. Common sense, some knowledge and a little bit of skill is all that you need. Trust me on this one. About The Author: Alphonso has been working in the home remodeling industry for last 5 years. Take advantage of his experience and written material on roofing ideas at his website at http://www.improve-home.com |
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