It can be an expensive surprise for homeowners to find faulty slate installations, especially after moving into a new house. Occasionally, we will find one or two mistakes in new slate roofs. Rarely, will mistakes be found on older slate roofs. Usually, when doing an inspection of an older slate roof, some of the fundamentals don't need to be checked. Had these fundamentals been violated, the roof wouldn't have lasted. On newer slate roofs, the fundamentals should be checked.
Fundamentals
Install a cant strip of the same thickness of the slate. (For further reading, see "The Slate Book," page 108, by Stearns, Stearns, and Meyer, 1998).
Use the correct exposure for the size of slate AND roof pitch. (For further reading, see "The Slate Roof Bible," page 198, by Joe Jenkins. 1997) or find a copy of the NSA (National Slate Association) Installation Guide
Install the first row of the Starter Course chamfered side down and be careful of the sidelap.
For further reading about inspecting slate roofs, slate roof jargon and installation and repair problems,
Below are a few pictures of some of the fundamentals violated on a lower sloped porch roof.
Also See:
Our Neighbor's House: Installing Slate Roofs: from http://www.slateservice.com A new slate roof is a big investment. Whether you are reslating an addition, or installing slate on your ...
We all know that going “Green” is popular in many aspects of daily living. For countertops, the Green products are generally expensive and don’t perform as well as granite or quartz countertops. This discourages many customers from making a decision to buy. However, within the Green family, Eco by Cosentino is the most affordable and least “fussy” material available. ECO™ by Cosentino is a durable surface made of 75% recycled content composed of post-industrial or post-consumer materials and is bound by an environmentally friendly resin which comes in part from corn oil. ECO is non-porous, never needs sealing and is scratch and stain resistant---not scratch and stain proof, but scratch and stain resistant.
ECO is composed of:
mirrors salvaged from houses, building and factories;
glass from windshields, windows and bottles;
granulated glass from consumer recycling practices;
porcelain from china, tiles, sinks, toilets and ECO by Cosentino elements
ECO uses products that have reached the end of their lifecycle - this means materials being used in ECO cannot be incorporated in to any other industrial product that would otherwise collect in landfills.
Learn more about Eco at www.ecobycosentino.com. If you are into “Green” products, Eco can be the right product at the right price.
I recently heard on the radio that "Company X's" gutter covers will prevent ice damming, and the subsequent damage to homes caused by ice damming! Amazing! Several years back, I went to a remodeling show at the Baltimore Convention Center and the most prevalent vendors were gutter cover companies. Around every corner was a tube dripping water down a mock-up roof and over a new-fangled gutter cover into a reservoir. Step right up folks and watch the leaves slide right off the gutter! Get your perforated aluminum right here! Protection from clogged gutters is big business. During the show, I believe the figure I heard was hundreds of millions of dollars annually in installed sales.
With limitless potential customers, covering gutters is a lucrative business, and it's not surprising to hear some tall claims. The most common claim is (and I say this in a generic way) "never clean your gutters again," or something to that effect. In my own experience, I have never seen a product that completely keeps out the debris. It seems that the main problem of these systems is the failure to keep out small debris. Small particles can easily enter the gutter and build-up inside the gutter forming a thick muck leading to clogged gutters. This was also the finding of Tim Carter, from "Ask the Builder." Tim wrote a series of articles and performed some tests of his own. See his article: "Gutter Guards, Do they Really Work?" From his own tests and experience, Tim prefers gutter covers with very small perforations, mesh or possibly even micro-screens. Whatever system is installed, plan on disassembling portions of the system after two years to flush out the debris so it does not build-up.
Back to ice damming. From my previous article: Winter Snow Storms Can Wreak Havoc on RoofsI discussed the fact that thirty-two inches of snow on your roof can weigh over fifty-five pounds per square foot depending on the density of the snow. This mass of heavy ice and snow, whether stationary, moving slowly or moving quickly down a roof, is very destructive and a relatively thin layer of aluminum over the gutters will do nothing to add protection the roof or prevent ice damming or the results thereof. Perhaps the only true solution to ice damming is Joe Jenkin's Snow Apron shown in the video below.
In this video, Joe shows how he has removed the first 36" of slate roofing, and installed copper pans. These pans, once soldered, form a fully supported, monolithic sheet that is impervious to ice, snow and water.
If we could eliminate ice damming and subsequent damage from ice damming by installing a thin sheet of aluminum over our gutters, that would truly be amazing.
This house on the left has a damaged aluminum gutter cover at the bottom of the valley. It also has a damaged drip edge. This white gutter cover is installed under the slates.
This massive gutter cover below was damaged and pulled out during the snow storm.
These two photos above show another house with damage from ice damming, including a damaged gutter cover, paint and woodwork. Below: more damaged gutter covers and gutter.
This gutter cover is visually obtrusive. It really stands out on the roof. When you look up at your house, the first thing that catches your eye should not be your gutter covers.
Not only do gutter covers not prevent ice damming and the damage from ice damming, some covers can actually cause damage to the roof.
These gutter covers are attached to the roof between the first slate (starter) and first row of slate. These slates have snapped in two as a result of the bend in the gutter covers not being installed at the correct angle. Another common problem is that the installers will screw directly through the roofing material. With slates, which are not self sealing, this will leave an avenue for water infiltration.There is definitely a need for gutter covers. The risk to life and limb climbing ladders twice a year to clean the gutters is significant. When finding a solution to your gutter problems, don't believe everything that you read.
Suggestions for choosing covers:
Small Perforations
Should not interfere with the roofing material
Use quality materials like aluminum, steel or copper
Portions should easily disassemble for future cleaning of gutter
Not visibly obtrusive
There are many systems out there. One that I have seen and used is Leaf Relief, which conforms to the suggestions.
Velux offers sleek new designs and great features. Velux offers manually venting, electrically venting, and fixed units. Sun shades and blinds are also available. These skylights can be installed on tile, slate and shingle roofs. Velux also offers curb mounted skylights for flat roofs. Have an old "bubble skylight?" Velux can make a custom unit to replace that old bubble.
Signs of recent damage. Occaisionally, I'll be on a job that involves an insurance claim relating to a leak. Usually, normal wear and tear wont be covered by insurance. It may seem obvious, but if the leak is in the field of slate, new damage can often be determined by the presence of small chips of slate (not always though).
These small chips will wash away with the rain. Larger chips and pieces will hang around and eventually end up in the gutter. So, if there is every a question of whether some damage is old or new, look for small chips of slate around the problem. This picture shows tree damage and there are lots of small pieces.
The kind of damage shown in the picture is usually caused by falling tree limbs, falling snow and ice and people.
For other information on slate roofing, visit: Slate Roofing
One of the main problems with trying to make an old house low maintenance is losing those details which
make an old house special. Most pre-war homes have a lot of architectural details in the eaves of the home, including highly detailed beadboard soffits and special rake molding.
Typically, if no or low maintenance is the goal, these details go out the window. Rake molding is often covered by a piece of coil stock bent on an angle to cover up the molding and rake board leading to a dull and dumbed down exterior! Aluminum soffit panels are usually installed and have no interest.
But several products have come along in recent years that can give a house traditional details and still be maintenance free.
Among this new generation of products are ACCM's Presige line of aluminum moldings, Certainteed's beaded soffit panels, and a full line of rot resitant moldings from Azek. Making cornices and moldings out of metal or long lasting materials is nothing new, but its nice to see a modern twist on an old idea.
