[JJ]

this topic will probably get me flamed, but maybe someone else out there has this problem. We are into our second day of heavy rain, yeah its an anomaly for sure. We are living in duplex that I knocked all the walls out of, connected the services, and made a single family dwelling. We still owe 47K on the mortgage. (I don't see much hope in us ever paying this off). Because of the heavy rain, we have some major leaks, Its very obvious we need a new roof. It kills me to spend the money on a new roof (I can do it myself) when its probably just dumping money in a black hole. If things collapse real fast, we have two bugout places out of town where we're going to relocate to. I figure someone else out there has daily living expenses (not necessarily a new roof) that they are hesitant to pour money into...it doesn't rain here very much, so I see it as more of an irritation. My wife feels otherwise...

[wisconsin_cur]

I would get a couple of cans of black roofing tar, a paint brush, a putty knife and some old work clothes. On the next warm day (over 80 F) I would go over the roof inch by inch and go over every suspicious piece of roof with a layer of tar. Be sure that the tar allows water to run off of the roof and does not cause it to pool anywhere. Go over all seams and any place that it looks as if water may be wicked up under the shingles. Try to identify every place that the water comes in the home and then the place where that water gets through the roof (it may be several feet higher than where it comes in the house).

Repeat observations the next time you get a heavy rain and then go back up there on the next suitable day following. If you get them all the first time you are much more a man than me.

It should buy you a couple of years and it keeps the bride thinking that you are doing something and over the course of time you should catch up with the leaks.

Good Luck,
wis.cur

[JJ]

I'll make that my next project (when it stops raining!). A few months ago, I put roll roofing over the lower portion of the back of the roof, it worked once, but this rain has the ceiling in every room leaking. Its an old three tab roof and probably past its warranty. Also, the jacks were all leaking and I tarred them up. But it looks as if the whole roof decided to go all at once...however we have had torrential rain for about 24 hours, not your normal rain....

[HeckuvaJob]

I don't know your location or climate but I would do everything I could to make sure the attic and insulation are thoroughly dry after the storms. Leaks are annoying, mold is deadly.

I agree with WC's advice but I would try to get up there (attic) during the rains and see what's going on in real time. If someone can reach the roof with a hose, that would also work.

[Ludi]

Our roof leaked too when the rain finally got to us. It was a hell of a storm.

[IslandCrow]

My basement is leaking.

Work will start on this in a couple of weeks. What is unknown is if they will have to blast away some bed rock (the house is on a hill side) to allow proper drainage channels. This could be a very expensive job for us, but I think it is best to get it out of the way before the economy starts to slide even more than it has done. I also console myself that we are pumping lots of money into the local economy with this.

[SeaGypsy]

Hi JJ;
try this: one sunny day, get someone with a pressure sprayer up on the roof with someone else inside. Pressure clean the roof & mark leaks at the same time. Then get a silicon based paint, paint the whole roof.
Then silicon the leak spots and paint over them with the same paint.
Test with a normal hose not high pressure; after about 3 sunny days.

[JJ]

thanks everyone, and we are glad to have the rain, supposed to rain two more days (then it will probably rain again in 2013)

[frankthetank]

Invite a bunch of friends, PO'ers over for beer and brats. Make it a morning get together. Have shingles handy, a couple of nail guns, some tar paper. Keep mentioning the leaky roof, the hardships and the childhood you never got to experience because you were so busy HELPING OTHERS.

Start crying....like a little girl. Get more beer.

My mother in law had to mow the lawn in a bikini so the neighbor would give them free apples. (exhusband's idea).

[Ludi]

JJ, what's the square footage of your roof, approximately?

[oxj]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('frankthetank', 'I')nvite a bunch of friends, PO'ers over for beer and brats. Make it a morning get together. Have shingles handy, a couple of nail guns, some tar paper. Keep mentioning the leaky roof, the hardships and the childhood you never got to experience because you were so busy HELPING OTHERS.

Start crying....like a little girl. Get more beer.

My mother in law had to mow the lawn in a bikini so the neighbor would give them free apples. (exhusband's idea).

[Blizzard]

Uhh not to alarm you, but when you say "knocked out the walls" you didn't take out any load bearing walls right? That may be why the roof is leaking everywhere, it's about to collapse.

[JJ]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('Blizzard', 'U')hh not to alarm you, but when you say "knocked out the walls" you didn't take out any load bearing walls right? That may be why the roof is leaking everywhere, it's about to collapse.

[strider3700]

the materials to reroof that should be under $3000 if you go with low end shingles. If it's a simple box it should take a weekend, maybe a week if you've never done it and you're working alone.

Up here it's a no brainer to fix the roof properly. Of course it rains a hell of a lot. Also I wish I only owed $47,000 on my mortgage. This morning I was overjoyed to work out that I only owed $98000 as of tomorrow. My mortgage is less then half that of the average and 1/4 that of some people I know.

[JJ]

48,000 seems overwhelming to us...98,000 would be more so....the sheetrocks popping and foundations cracking because of the drought, the house is settling. And I think we're going to end up re-roofing the house anyway even though we don't own it...

[gnm]

JJ - is it a mobile? The size you described sounds similar - If so and it has a low pitched roof then you can just lay some sleepers (2x4 or even 1x4) perpendicular to the slope every 2 feet or so (screw them down right through the shingles) - then buy the corrugated tin and start screwing it down. That stuff is super easy to put on an lasts a whole lot better than tar shingles. It comes out being not much more expensive than tar shingle and you can do it in sections to break up the cost.

-G

[JJ]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('gnm', 'J')J - is it a mobile? The size you described sounds similar - If so and it has a low pitched roof then you can just lay some sleepers (2x4 or even 1x4) perpendicular to the slope every 2 feet or so (screw them down right through the shingles) - then buy the corrugated tin and start screwing it down. That stuff is super easy to put on an lasts a whole lot better than tar shingles. It comes out being not much more expensive than tar shingle and you can do it in sections to break up the cost.

-G

[gnm]

You should PM me - been there done that... Now know exactly what NOT to do!

But one tip - use 2x4's and then put R9 batts between them before you lay the tin on. Cheap extra insulation.

-G

[Ludi]

I'm glad you'll be doing it yourself, JJ. The main cost of roofing is labor.

[MarkJ]

I use 100 percent Grace Ice & Water Shield on my roofs, plus double on valleys and roof penetrations due to snow, ice-dams, heavy rain, driven rain, storm damage etc.

This winter we had an incredible amount of water damage locally due to sub zero temperatures, heavy snow, blocked vents, ice dams and lack of the typical thaw cycles. The typical el-cheapo ice & water barrier installed only on the eves, wasn't enough to prevent tens of thousands of dollars in water/mold/structural damage.