Archive for the ‘metal roofing’ Category
Tuesday, April 26th, 2011
There are many houses in Arlington and Alexandria that are virtually identical to this one, most were built 50 to 70 years ago; this house was probably on its third or fourth roof. As you can see, the existing light gray shingles are old and worn and are at the end of their life. The Owner of this house will soon outgrow it, so it was important to install a new roof that will protect the property but will also add some curb appeal when the day comes to sell it and move on.
Click on any picture to enlarge:
Here you can see the pitted and cracked shingles from the side porch.
First: Off with the old roof; once the old shingles are removed we inspect the roof deck for rotted or split boards. Generally these houses are really solid, most of them have old growth 1×6 pine or sometime oak roof decks; the density of the boards resists rot even when the roof is neglected for years. This house needed a few deck boards replaced because of cracking and a little warping; so far these boards have had at least 18,000 roofing nails driven in and pulled out of them and they look like they can take 18,000 more.
old roof removed
When replacing a roof we have to act as if it’s going to rain any minute-even with bright blue skies, we work quickly to cover the house from rain. That’s why we focused on the main house roof first before working on the lower porch roofs.
The main house is covered first
Once the main house was waterproof I started on the lower porch, to add some curb appeal the Owner opted for a standing seam copper roof on the small front porch. When installing an accent roof like this symmetry and scale are of the utmost importance. I made these 16 oz copper panels in the shop, they divide the roof into five equal segments; if you look around you’ll see metal roofs that were installed from one end of the house to the other, without evenly dividing the roof you wind up with a full size panel on the left and a little skinny panel on the right. Asymmetrical layout can look ridiculous or it can be just a little off , bothering anyone looking at it-even if they don’t know why.
To keep the roof as compact and graceful as possible I turned the standing seam panels up the wall in one continuous seam, the technique takes time and practice but it looks perfect. The panel is never cut into, I fold pleats into the copper and then double lock the seams for a completely waterproof joint that requires no sealant or solder; its taken years to perfect this technique and no I won’t show you how to do it.
Double folded upstand in standing seam copper roof
At the end of one very long day we have a finished beautiful roof.
Charcoal Timberline shingles with a new standing seam copper roof
Timberline Charcoal with Standing seam copper roof front porch
If you have a house that needs a new roof or a boost in curb appeal give me a call; I’m sure we can figure something out.
PS: Check out Thumbtack, you can find all sorts of businesses there. You can read reviews and find just what you are looking for:
Roof repair and replacement
Thanks for reading,
Tom
703-299-8888
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Tags: copper roof, copper roof flashing, metal roof repair, shingle roof repair, shingle roof replacement, standing seam metal roof, timberline charcoal shingles, timberline shingles
Posted in Alexandria VA roof repair, Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Arlington VA roof repair, McLean VA roofing contractor, Northern VA roof repair, Roof leak alexandria, Standing seam copper roof, Standing seam tin roof, VA roof repair, VA roofing, Virginia roofing contractor, arlington VA roofing contractor, metal roofing, northern va roofing, roofing contractor northern virginia, standing seam | No Comments »
Monday, March 7th, 2011
This is standing seam tin roof, probably around 40 years old. During high winds the eave edge of the roof was peeled back and flipped over on itself; the owner did his best to push it back and laid bricks across it to hold it down. When the panels flipped over it split the metal along the seams, there was really no repair option, the roof needed to be replaced.
The majority of the roof is a charcoal asphalt shingle, this area was the only one with metal. This portion of the roof has a very low slope, too low to replace the metal roof with shingles. This area is also invisible from the ground so there really wasn’t any reason to install another metal roof. My client chose TPO membrane, TPO is a bright white material that will perform perfectly in this application.
The pictures below will take you step by step through the job, click on any to enlarge.
We removed all of the old metal roofing and found that the roof decking was all in great shape. The panels you see being laid out is 1″ thick polyisocyanurate rigid insulation board; it has two functions, first it protects the roofing membrane from the rough bumpy roof deck and it also provides good R-value.
We fastened the insulation board with plates and screws, the round silver plates act almost like washers, giving more surface area for the center screw to clamp the insulation tightly to the roof.
insulation being fastened to the roof deck
TPO membrane comes in a variety of widths to suit most common applications. To keep seams to a minimum we chose a 10′ x 100′ roll of TPO; it is secured to the roof with screw and seam plates; these are smaller than the insulation plates but perform the exact same function.
TPO membrane being fastened to the roof
The second course of TPO is installed and the overlap is welded with a hot air welder; once welded the seam is as strong as the field of the membrane. This seam requires no glue, no caulk or sealant and no maintenance.
The one and only seam in the roof
The edges of the roof are secured with drip edge, it’s an L shaped piece of painted aluminum that waterproofs the roof edge and secures the membrane at the perimeter. You can also see a TPO pipe flashing installed and welded to the membrane.
TPO pipe boot and drip edge
After the drip edge is installed we cover the fasteners with white TPO cover flashing. This entire roof system is designed to overlap and enclose all exposed fasteners, this will make a roof virtually maintenance free.
We use matching shingle ridge caps at the peak of the roof, this will look perfect from the street.
All done; this roof will provide good service for a least 20 years with minimal maintenance from the owner. The bright white membrane surface and insulation board will also keep the upper floor cooler in the summer and a little bit warmer in the winter.
completed TPO roof
Tags: Energy Star Flat Roof, flat roof, leaking flat roof, low slope roof alternatives, metal roof replacement, row house flat roof, shingle roof repair, TPO, TPO flat roof, White Flat Roof
Posted in Alexandria VA roof repair, Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Arlington VA roof repair, McLean VA roofing contractor, Northern VA roof repair, Roof leak alexandria, Standing seam tin roof, VA roof repair, VA roofing, arlington VA roofing contractor, metal roofing, northern va roofing, roofing | No Comments »
Friday, October 1st, 2010
One of the top sources for roof leaks is the flashing around the chimney. Making and installing flashings on the roof is part art and science and it takes a considerable amount of skill to do properly; I’ve found that the art end of the job is what gets people in trouble. The following pictures show how we do our work; the flashings we make for chimneys and skylights are bulletproof and have never caused us to return to a clients house again, I also think they are lovely to look at.
We measure the length and width of your chimney and the slope of your roof. The flashings are custom made in our sheet metal shop for your chimney. Depending on the type of roof we can make the flashings from zinc, copper, stainless steel, aluminum and lead coated copper; they can also be painted any color you wish. We can fabricate flashings of any size no matter how big or small your chimney or skylight.
Once the flashings are made they are sent out to the project with all other necessary materials. The pictures below show the old flashing and shingles being removed, some rotted wood being replaced and finally the installation of waterproof underlayment.
The old flashing is rusted through tin
new piece of 1x6 roof decking where the other had rotted
Installing waterproof underlayment around the chimney
Most elements on a slate or shingle roof are installed from the bottom up, here we start by installing the lowest flashing called the apron.
Installing the copper apron flashing
Next we install step flashings, step flashing are small “L” shaped pieces of metal that are laced in to each course of shingles as they climb up the side of the chimney.
Step flashings are installed in each course of shingles
This is the most critical piece of the entire assembly, the pan flashing does most of the work in shedding water. We form our pan flashings with a rounded bottom edge (vs. a sharp fold) to keep this area dry; creased or square folded metal can hold water which leads to corrosion and leakage. All of the seams we use are double locked and are completely waterproof, no matter what nature throws at this house the chimney will not leak.
Copper pan flashing being installed behind the chimney
The pieces that cover the step flashing along the sides of the chimney are called counter-flashings, here it is being trimmed to fit beneath the pan and over the apron flashing.
Counter flashing being installed on the chimney sides
The final step is applying a bead of high quality sealant to the joint between the new flashings and the masonry.
Completed copper chimney flashing repair
This roof will be good for another five years, when replacement of the roof becomes necessary our flashings can be reused. If your chimney or skylight is leaking we have a bulletproof solution, call any time and we will be on our way.
Tom 703-299-8888
P.S. If you are out our of our service area we can make and ship a complete skylight or chimney flashing kit to you. All you need to tell us is the measurements of the chimney or skylight and the slope of your roof and we can have it on the way to you in a day or two. Just call 703-299-8888
Tags: chimney flashing kit, chimney flashing kits, chimney flashing repair, chimney leak, copper roof flashing, copper skylight flashing, diy chimney flashing, DIY flashing repair, flashing kits, how to flash a chimney, skylight and chimney flashing
Posted in Alexandria VA Slate Roof, Alexandria VA roof repair, Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Arlington VA roof repair, Roof leak alexandria, VA roof repair, VA roofing, falls church roofing contractor, metal roofing, northern va roofing | 1 Comment »
Friday, September 10th, 2010
This is a covered porch on the rear of a house we completely re roofed a few years ago. The structure was built by Harry Braswell, Inc. and is designed to give the owner some covered outdoor space.
The main house roof is covered with GAF Timberline asphalt shingles in Charcoal with a few lower accent roofs in standing seam copper; keeping with the same scheme, copper became the obvious choice for the new porch.
One very important note here; you’ll notice that the rosin paper and felt are secured with copper nails; I have seen many jobs where the underlayment was installed with steel nails, cap nails or even staples. Using anything but copper nails will lead to a failure; copper is soft, steel nails and staples will eventually wear through the copper panels as the panels expand and contract over the nail heads and staple crowns. If you are considering installing a metal roof ask your contractor how he installs his felt and paper, if he says staples or cap nails you should find another roofer.
The black paper is 30# asphalt felt, it provides temporary waterproofing if it happens to rain before the job is finished; the pink paper you see is Red Rosin Paper, its job is to isolate the copper panels from the asphalt felt. I could write pages about why copper needs to be kept away from felt paper but I’ll save that for another post.
As the panels are laid out across the roof they are locked to each other and then are folded over the copper drip edge at the eave edge of the roof. This curved eave end detail you see here is virtually unknown on this side of the Atlantic. Although this detail is barely visible from the ground I think it adds a “hidden jewel” aspect to the job.
“Can you show me how to do it??” Sadly, no; the only two people I’m teaching this to are currently in Kindergarten and Pre-School, and they are going to have to wait at least 12 more years to learn it.
After the eaves and seams are completed we installed new snow guards. These bronze guards clamp onto the standing seams and keep ice and snow from sliding off the roof in large sheets. There are many different designs for this purpose, guards can be casted to look like eagles, pineapples, fleur de lis, and clovers.
And finally a copper gutter to carry the rainwater away.
If your house needs a hidden (or not so hidden) jewel you should call me, I’ll be happy to help.
Thanks for reading,
Tom
Tags: copper roof, copper roof eave detail, copper roof flashing, falls church metal roof contractor, Standing seam copper roof, standing seam metal roof
Posted in Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Arlington VA roof repair, Northern VA roof repair, Standing seam copper roof, Standing seam tin roof, VA roof repair, VA roofing, Virginia roofing contractor, arlington VA roofing contractor, falls church roofing contractor, metal roofing, northern va roofing, sheet metal, snow guards, standing seam | No Comments »
Thursday, September 24th, 2009
Zinc Roof Dormer
An example of the limitless possibilities with Zinc Roofing
I recently attended a training for an upcoming project; my clients chose VM Zinc for their roof. I have worked with copper, tin, lead, aluminum and steel for years but this was my first exposure to Zinc.
It tools almost identically to copper, it’s a little bit easier to form. Zinc stretches very nicely and when you are forming it with a hammer it’s as if it knows where you want it to go.
Here are some mock ups that were made over the three day course:
Soldering Zinc Sheet
Zinc solders beautifully, it is very demanding (temps, fluxes, cleanliness ,etc) but once you have the technique down there is nothing you can’t do.
Reinforced zinc solder joint
The round dots you see centered on the joint give the joint strength during expansion and contraction. I have soldered miles of tin and copper, but soldering zinc was almost like painting with molten lead.
Zinc skylight flashing
This is a mock up of a skylight or chimney flashing in a standing seam roof. This flashing detail is very clean and simple and will last for an easy 100 years.
Zinc roofing when installed properly offers some of the same benefits as a copper roof. Both will last for at least 100 years with very little maintenance. However if you are looking for longevity but don’t want the green patina on your project then Zinc might be perfect for you.
Zinc will develop a light gray patina within about 18 months with average exposure to rain and moisture. The patina is self healing; if its ever scratched or worn off it will re develop in a matter of months.
Were all looking forward to the Zinc project and I’ll put up some pics when it starts.
If you’d like more information feel free to call or email tom@lyonscontracting.com
or www.vmzinc.com
Tags: gray metal roof, light gray metal roof, standing seam zinc metal roof, zinc roofing, zinc skylight flashing
Posted in Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Standing seam copper roof, arlington VA roofing contractor, flat seam roofing, metal roofing, northern va roofing, sheet metal, standing seam | 2 Comments »
Monday, August 17th, 2009
I’ve had a bunch of people ask me how I made the copper vent in the last post. I had to make a smaller one for the the master bath steam shower; so I took pictures along the way.
Copper vent tube
Make a tube: single lock a copper sheet into your desired diameter and length. You should remember geometry from junior high but if you don’t; multiply your desired opening by 3.14, that will be the size of your flat stock before you roll it. Since the vent tube will be in the weather make sure you solder the back seam. This one is a six inches across.
Copper vent ring
Make a ring: the protection ring will keep out wind driven rain. The outer ring should be about 2.5″ wider than the vent pipe you just made. Same as the other pipe; single lock and solder the seam.
Beaded outer vent ring
Roll a few beads into the copper; it adds strength and beauty to the job.
Struts on inner vent tube
Fabricate three struts to support the outer ring, these can be riveted on. Don’t forget to turn down all of your free edges; you want a place for water to drop off before it reaches the inner vent pipe. I test each vent I make, and I have forgotten to turn down the tabs, it leaks, trust me.
Outer vent ring riveted in place
Rivet the outer ring to the struts, use two rivets per strut and the whole assembly will be rock solid. Also use copper rivets with BRASS mandrels; don’t use the phony copper rivets with steel mandrels; after the rivets are set the head of the mandrel stays behind. When it gets wet it will rust and leave streaks on your beautiful new vent. Spend a couple extra bucks and get the right rivets.
Copper cone vent
Make a cone: the cone should be at least 2″ wider than the inner vent pipe. Rivet the seam and solder.
When you make the cone be sure to leave three tabs to rivet the cap to the three struts.
Copper vent
Ready to be brought to the job site. This vent is completely baffled; meaning it won’t leak during heavy wind driven rain or snow. Since it is made from copper it should last at least 100 years.
Standing seam copper roof and copper vent
Solder a flange to your new vent a the proper angle. Clean the roof area, flux and solder the new vent flange and you are good to go.
I hope the photo descriptions helped; if its too much of a job for you or you just don’t have the time I’d be happy to make one for you.
Tags: bathroom roof fan, bathroom roof vent, copper roof flashing, copper roof vent, custom roof vent, metal roof skylight flashing, roof vent, Standing seam copper roof, standing seam metal roof
Posted in Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Standing seam copper roof, arlington VA roofing contractor, metal roofing, northern va roofing, sheet metal, solder, standing seam | No Comments »
Monday, August 10th, 2009
This town house has been gutted from top to bottom by another contractor; when its finished it will be a brand new house inside of the old brick walls. Like many townhouses in Old Town Alexandria this one has been added on to a few times over its 150 year life.
We started on the upper roof of the oldest section of the house, this section got a new White TPO membrane roof. TPO membrane is installed over rigid insulation board and can really cut down on cooling bills. The membrane is bright white and reflects most of the suns rays; making the upper floor a much more comfortable place to be. TPO requires very little maintenance so it is a really good choice when access to the roof is difficult. You can see the mousetrap we had to build just to get up there.
While working up here you could really feel the difference between the neighbors roof (black roof on the left) and our roof; our roof was a relatively cool 80 degrees while you couldn’t even touch the neighbors roof without gloves because it was so hot.
Standing seam copper roof and copper vent
Because the lower roofs are visible it was important to install a period accurate roof. We installed a new 16oz double lock standing seam copper roof over both lower roof sections.
The really cool looking vent is also made of 16oz copper, the vent was custom made for this project and will be venting the hood over the kitchen range two floors below. We wanted all of this roofs components to have the same 100+ year service life, so copper was the only logical choice for this new vent.
The pipe you see on the left side is a plumbing vent; it allows air into the plumbing system. Remember putting your fingertip over the end of your drinking straw? The water would stay in the straw right?; well this pipe vent does the same thing for the sinks and toilets. This pipe is the only soldered connection on the whole roof, all other flashing details are done by creasing, folding and forming complete sheets.
Standing seam copper roof
Finishing up the wall coping and flashings. When designing a roof system it’s really important to think think of the roof not just now but 50 years from now. Everything on this roof is copper; the nails, the rivets, the panels, flashings and even the clips that hold the panels in place are all made from the same gauge copper. When materials are mismatched they create weak points it the roof system. Like all metals, copper expands and contracts with temperature change. Unless allowances are made for that movement and all integral parts are up to the stress the roof will literally tear itself apart in just a few seasons.
Flashing and parapet walls on copper roof
The flashing details we used on this project have been in use for 300 years in Europe, they are completely waterproof because there is no cutting of the copper panels. All of the folds and curved flashings are formed from complete sheets of copper, details like this take a long time but the roof will never ever fail. Although bright and shiny now this roof will be a warm bronze/brown color in about two months; about ten years from now it will begin to turn green (think Statue of Liberty).
Copper roofing has a service life of around 150 years, however if it’s not installed with tremendous care, skill and attention it can fail in a few months.
copper skylight flashing
Tags: coper pipe flashing, copper roof, copper roof flashing, copper skylight flashing, copper wall, seamed roof, Standing seam copper roof, standing seam metal roof
Posted in Alexandria VA roofing contractor, Standing seam copper roof, arlington VA roofing contractor, metal roofing, roofing, sheet metal, standing seam | No Comments »
Friday, May 29th, 2009
Another one done; this job wasn’t easy. We had brilliant sunshine last week and although it doesn’t look it from the pictures the stainless is really shiny. So you get the sun from above and then the sun from below bouncing back at you. I think the inside of my nose got sunburned.
A few things about this roof:
First: this is the worst its ever going to look. There is a light varnish on the material that we remove from the perimeter of each sheet before soldering; thats why some look hazy. The weather will remove the rest in about a month.
Second: after about two years the roof will develop a uniform light gray patina and the solder lines (which stick out sorely) will all but disappear. After the patina develops all the little dents and tool marks will also disappear. If you want a roof like this for your house come visit me at
www.lyonscontracting.comThe tool in the top picture is a soldering iron, an electric soldering iron. I have always used propane or acetylene irons; never again. This iron is from American Beauty Soldering Tools
http://www.americanbeautytools.com/.
I had seen electric irons in a few places on the web, I always figured they were too weak. Think about it, what would be better than a loud, white hot, roaring flame blasting out of the handle holding the iron; I was wrong.
My new electric soldering iron is my new favorite tool.
First off its silent; my propane iron is so loud I that I cant hear myself think. Imagine working in your office with a running motorcycle parked next to your desk.
Second, it holds heat unbelievably well, I can fully solder three panels without having to pause to let the iron heat back up. With its constant and even heat I am able to make more consistent seams with faster production times. With my propane iron I was able to fully solder around forty panels in an eight hour period, with the American Beauty 550W electric iron I was averaging around sixty panels in the same eight hours. This tool paid for itself before lunchtime on the second day.
Third, it is a breeze to set up, all I need up on the roof is a heavy gauge extension cord. Just plug it in, set up your work area and in five minutes the iron is up to operating temperature. With propane or acetylene I need the tank, the hose, the ignitor, something to hold the tank and a nearby fire extinguisher. With the electric iron I don’t have to worry about running out of gas, which always seems to happen at 5:45pm on the last two feet of seam to be soldered, that means coming back the next day and that costs money.
A special thanks to Mr. Virgil Brooks, he is the engineer at American Beauty Tools and has been a great resource. I have a prototype iron of his that I’m going to test out next month; can’t wait to see what it can do.
American Beauty Soldering Tools 1-800-550-2510
Posted in Alexandria VA roofing contractor, arlington VA roofing contractor, electric soldering iron, flat seam roofing, metal roofing, northern va roofing, stainless steel, standing seam | 6 Comments »
