How do you do roof work?

[SmallChange]

In another forum people were talking about people who work on roofs professionally as if they all wear roped harnesses and helmets and keep a minimum of 3 body parts in contact with the roof at all times. But I don't think I have EVER seen that. The roofers and repair people that I've watched on my roof don't have any safety equipment.

I just blew leaves off my roof and out of my gutters. My roof is a simple rectangle with a single ridge, and its slope is more gradual than most. My gutters are 8' to maybe 15' from the ground (because the ground slopes). I wear rubber soled shoes and get the various loose bits of clothing zipped and tied into place, and I move carefully and don't get my feet within about 18" of the edge. But what should I be doing? Is this too risky?

How do YOU do it?

 

[scootr]

When I was a young carpenter we didn't have no stinking safety gear. We walked walls and climbed timbers with nothing but our strength and balance to keep us safe. lol

 

[oosik]

When I built the house here in 1982 - I did almost everything - including the roof. It's not really that steep and that was some 40 years ago. I had the roof "reroofed" with 100 year shingles - eleven years ago. I had the pros do it.

BTW - the ONLY thing I didn't do when building this house - install the carpet in the living room. I did all the electrical, all the plumbing and all the unglazed quarry tile floors, etc, etc.

Back in 1982 I fell off the roof once. I learned to be more careful. That's why the pros did the reroofing.

 

[newbury]

If you are scared of doing roof work try using plastic or paper. Most roofers will accept a credit card or check.
Remember -
Gravity is a law.
Falling on soft body parts from 8 foot may be fine. 15 feet is worse.

 

[old and tired]

Younger and dumber....

 

[ray66v]

Cougar paws roof shoes, make it pretty easy to walk on even fairly steep pitches.

I can walk comfortably on roofs when I have them on, even though my ankles don't really appreciate it.

They have gone up tremendously in price in the last year, so they are a bit costly to buy new, but you can usually find them used for a decent price.

 

[SmallChange]

Cougar paws roof shoes

I see the photos on their web site show people working without any safety gear. Unless you count their product, which appears to be nice grippy rubber soled work boots. No harnesses or ropes, though.

 

[fatjay]

I stay low and keep at least one point of contact with the roof at most times. I naturally have a low center of gravity so generally it isn't an issue, I've only fallen once.

 

[big bubba]

i observe at ground level while the roofing crew completes the job

 

[grsthegreat]

Contractors have to satisfy OSHA rules. Homeowners dont. Me, i have a 2 story house with a 5:12 pitch. Not too steep, but as i got older i didnt like getting too close to edge when cleaning gutters. I broke down and got an extendable wand for pressure washer to clean gutters. Some areas i can do from ground, others i do from roof, but i can stand 5+ feet from edge.

 

[newbury]

i observe at ground level while the roofing crew completes the job

Wish they would legalize flying a drone close over your own property. Excellent way to check out your roof.
/edit - and if the leaves are not too wet you may be able to blow out the gutters

 

[ning]

Working on a steeper roof in my last house, I tied an old climbing rope (good enough for top-roping) to a tree on one side, threw the rope over the roof, and wore a harness that it was tied off to. Still stressful but workable.

These days I'll be on my 4:12 roof in rubbery shoes but it's an old-getting-older comp roof and you can just feel the sand coming off the shingles... not good. I avoid as much as I can but probably in the next couple weeks I'll be blowing all the pine needles off of the roof; we put in gutter guards but there's still spots where they get stuck a bit.

If I had significant work to do on the roof... roofing crew, I have other things I have to spend time on anyways so I figure if I'm paying for one or the other it may as well be pay for the roof, pay to cut that big tree down near the house, I can mow and build things on the ground, install or fix fences, and fix a myriad of things around the place.

 

[grsthegreat]

Wish they would legalize flying a drone close over your own property. Excellent way to check out your roof.
/edit - and if the leaves are not too wet you may be able to blow out the gutters

Since when is that illegal. I check my chimney and gutters every year with my drone.

 

[grsthegreat]

Working on a steeper roof in my last house, I tied an old climbing rope (good enough for top-roping) to a tree on one side, threw the rope over the roof, and wore a harness that it was tied off to. Still stressful but workable.

These days I'll be on my 4:12 roof in rubbery shoes but it's an old-getting-older comp roof and you can just feel the sand coming off the shingles... not good. I avoid as much as I can but probably in the next couple weeks I'll be blowing all the pine needles off of the roof; we put in gutter guards but there's still spots where they get stuck a bit.

If I had significant work to do on the roof... roofing crew, I have other things I have to spend time on anyways so I figure if I'm paying for one or the other it may as well be pay for the roof, pay to cut that big tree down near the house, I can mow and build things on the ground, install or fix fences, and fix a myriad of things around the place

I paid a roofing crew to strip and reroof my house 4 years ago. Cheaper than the hospital bill would have been for me.

 

[paulsharvey]

I just climb up and do what needs done. Yeah, yeah, be careful, but you can't do anything when your scared.

 

[dodge man]

I asses the situation and then very carefully get my cell phone out and call someone. I do get up on my roof once in a while for something like cleaning out my fireplace chimney but my roof is pretty easy to walk on, a 4-12 I think. I have a long tube made but Stihl I use to blow out my gutters from the ground.

 

[jjeff]

I can say you get used to it and pretty good at it as long as your smart about it try sheeting an obnoxiously large hip valley 8 pitch 2+ stories up in the frosty winter months. Lol The crews I worked with didn't wear harnesses did occasionally use roof jacks or 2x cleats, when I was a union wood butcher for a number of years. However I'm pretty sure times have changed and due to my chronic vertigo I won't work off a ladder or get on anything over a 4 pitch anymore.

 

[not2old]

I installed my own roof on my shop a couple of years ago and installed scaffold within a few inches of the edge for the full length of the building. I used platforms, two feet wide against the building and then lashed ladders for the next two feet to make a four foot wide safety platform. I got satisfaction from a well done job and saved a few thousand in after tax income to really make it worth while. At well past 70, I don't think I bounce as well as I used to.

 

[paulsharvey]

So, early spring of 2022, got a letter from insurance. 'Your roof is over 15 years old, replace or pay for a contractor to inspect and certify its good, or get canceled'. I did the entire roof for around $1800, including tools, ect, where it would have been around $7k to hire it out. It's like a 3.5 in 12; and fairly simple. I've been on 8/12s in the rain, 3 story building and that's sketchy. Never used safety lines. Not saying you should use them; but I havent.

 

[Streetcar]

Early in my career I worked on steel bridges with no safety equipment. I even managed to climb new river gorge bridge. 100 percent tied off now for bridge work