Removing a Cedar Shingle Roof

[PILOON]

I once pulled a galvanized roof that was laid directly on plywood.
The underside that made contact with the wood was totally rusted after 6-7 years of being installed and 'pin hole' perforated in many places.
Metal condenses underside whenever there is humidity present and worst in colder climates or more humid ones.
A metal roof need some air circulation to dry off the underside.

As to beating down nails ( IMO) simply adding a second furring strip on top (if going metal) would be a simple and cost effective route to go and it would provide additional air space for ventilation.

 

[ultrarunner]

I've got 4500 square feet of 40 year old shake to take down... never did this much and decided to have roofers bid the total job.

Did one up the street and it was almost like starting on one end and rolling up a course... paper and all... they made it look easy... still had to go over the skip sheathing to pound any remaining nails down...

 

[Aquamoose]

One thing I don't get. They always say that the icicles are a sign of a problem. But can't the snow just melt on account of warm weather or the sun? I mean, the eaves troughs are full and frozen. Where else is the melted snow going to go?

An improperly prepared cold roof in below 32° temperatures would be warmed from below, causing melting of the snow on the roof which would then freezes once it reaches the ends of the roof that remains cold. Typically it's the roofline that extends past the walls where it's cold in both sides. A continuation of this would find you with icicles and damaging ice dams, which collects more runoff, allowing it to seep under the roof and freezing / expanding in places you don't want it to happen.

A proper cold roof is well ventilated to the OUTSIDE temps, thus keeping the snow cold until it melts uniformly and naturally.

 

[Clay45]

All of the homes where I grew up had cedar shingled roofs because of the higher wind resistance. A few miles inland you began to see more composition shingles. A couple of guys using the pointed end of pickaxes could strip a pretty good size roof in half a day and start laying new shingles down soon after. They just swung hard enough to pierce the existing roof and jerked backout removing a large wad each time. Some of the lattice was damaged but was easily patched or spanned when laying the new cedar shakes back down.

 

[Rustyiron]

There sure is a lot going on these day's in "building science". It's due to (basicaly) insulation.
I worked on a 200+ year old house a year ago, original wood siding! Not a lick of insulation and that means no trapped moisture. The more we insulate, a good thing, the more attention needs to be paid to airflow & vapor barriers.

 

[Industrial Toys]

I know it's about control, but it never made much sense to me, to seal a house so tight, and then have to bring in air with an electric motor that runs pretty much 24/7.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Well, it's done and mostly over with. I think, the only reason they speak of hundred year old ceder shingles, is because nobody is stupid enough to take them off. I paid, and yet helped out. Hottest days of the year.

 

[bigtiller]

It's a lot of work but I think I see the problem, the best roofer around these parts, would have had 8 or 10 young Mexicans on that roof.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Actually, the one young kid who did most of the work was from South America. He acknowledged the heat but never once complained or shirked his responsibilities.

It made me once again think how hard some people work in terrible conditions, how others have it easy by comparison and then those that just let others support them entirely.