Replacing your roof yourself can be a challenge, but it can save money.
One maintenance step that most homeowners must undertake at some point is repairing or replacing the roof on a home. An old, worn-out roof can make your home less energy-efficient and allow water to leak in. A leaky roof is an easy path to more issues, such as water damage to walls, rot, and growth of mold and mildew. Hiring someone to replace a roof can cost thousands of dollars. If you're an avid do-it-yourselfer, you can replace the roof yourself and minimize the hit to your wallet. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
1. Remove the old shingles by prying them up with a pitchfork.
2. Remove the flashing from the edges of the roof, chimney and any other locations where if has been installed. Flashing is metal installed around the edges of the roof and objects embedded in the roof, such as the chimney, to help prevent leaks.
3. Inspect the plywood sheathing under the shingles for signs of damage, such as water stains, holes or mold. Replace damaged panels with new sheathing. Nail down any boards you may have loosened when you were removing the shingles.
4. Cover the sheathing with 30-pound roofing felt. Place the felt flat against the surface of the roof, lay it horizontally across the roof surface, and staple it to the sheathing every 6 to 8 inches with a hammer stapler. Start at the lowest part of the roof, and overlap edges by about an inch.
5. Place the flashing along the bottom edge of the roof and the chimney, and nail it into place.
6. Count how many shingles you will need to run across the bottom edge of the roof, and cut the tabs off the ones you will use for the first row.
7. Lay the shingles with the cut tabs across the bottom edge of the roof, hanging them over the edge by about 1/4 inch. Drive three roofing nails into middle of each shingle, one in the middle and one 4 inches in from each end. This row is called the starter course.
8. Lay the first row of uncut shingles across the bottom of the roof so they hang about 1/4-inch over the bottom edge of the starter course. Drive four evenly spaced nails into the shingles, about an inch above the tabs.
9. Install the second row of shingles by lining them up so that the bottoms of the shingles meet the top of the tabs on the first row, and drive two nails into the shingles about an inch above the tabs and 4 inches in from each side. Stagger the shingles so they don't match the shingles in the first row, similar to how bricks are laid.
10. Continue installing shingles row by row until you reach the top of the roof.
11. Repeat the steps on the other side of the roof.
12. Install the ridge caps along the peak of the roof. To make ridge caps, cut the tabs off of shingles, then fold the shingles over the peak. Drive a nail into each side of the shingle.
Tags: about inch, bottom edge, across bottom, bottom edge roof, edge roof, nails into, about inch above
