Shingle roof yourself

Wooden roofs have become an element of ethnicity or an individual feature of an elite house. Shingle roofing made of wooden plates is inferior in terms of durability and reliability to modern coatings: sheeting, bitumen and metal tile. Due to the difficulty of production, the material is expensive. Wooden shingles are often placed on the roof of a gazebo or bath, covering a large area will require serious financial costs, but will become an unusual design element that attracts everyone’s attention. In this article we will describe how to make a shingle roof with your own hands, because this type of coating will significantly reduce the cost of arranging the roof.

Materials

For the manufacture of wooden plates necessary material that can withstand the effects of climatic conditions and reliably protect the house for decades. The following wood species are used as raw materials:

• Oak - is characterized by dense wood and wear resistance. Operation of oak shingle is possible in any conditions. However, it should be noted that the cost of the material is higher than that of softwood plates. In addition, the coating weighs a lot and requires a reliable roof system and crates.
• Pine is a resinous material that resists moisture and microorganisms well. It does not crack under the action of sunlight. To material served for a long time, it is necessary to treat it with an antiseptic. The price of pine shingle is quite affordable.
• Larch - light and durable shingle, not prone to decay and delamination, are made of it. The material is used at high humidity and snow load. The wood has a characteristic reddish or red-brown shade.
• Red cedar - has high strength and has a steady aroma. Material is not subject to rotting and damage by parasites. It is easy to process, creates a reliable coating. Red cedar shingle is expensive, but with its help you can create a roof that is unique in appearance and qualities.
• Aspen - has the shortest service life, but is cheaper than other materials. The wood is prone to rotting, making the roof of aspen, will often have to carry out repair work.

Shingle making

Shingles are wooden plates made from the butt of a log that is particularly durable. Logs are sawn on the blocks along the length of the shingle. They are made manually - by chipping from a wooden chock with the help of a cleaver. The wood must be mature and have a minimum number of defects. The blanks are wedge-shaped, and a groove is cut on the wide edge. The length of the plates can reach 700 mm, but more often material is used up to 400 mm in size. The thickness of the shingle is 10-15 mm. The depth of the groove is 14 mm, its width coincides with the size of the lower edge of the plate and is 6 mm.

The finished plates are dried in special chambers to a moisture index of 18%. This value is best suited for transportation, short storage of material and installation of the roof. All plates are treated with antiseptic. Usually shingles are made to order, as long storage takes place to unscrew the plates. For mass production used machines for cutting plates, but the quality of this material is worse than that harvested by hand.

Benefits

Installation of the roof of wooden plates has a lot of positive points:

1. Environmentally friendly and health benefits of wood used.
2. High thermal insulation quality of the material.
3. With proper design and handling, the shingle roof serves a long time.
4. Due to vapor permeability under the roof does not form condensate.
5. Creates a unique decorative style of the structure.
6. Maintainability coating.
7. High degree of sound insulation.

Among the shortcomings of the material:

• high fire hazard
• complexity of manufacturing and installation,
• solid cost
• the need for a protective coating.

Device

For reliable operation, the slopes of the wooden roof should be located at an angle of at least 30 degrees. The shingle covering over residential buildings is carried out in three layers, and it is enough to lay two layers above the utility room. Leave a gap for the ventilation between the waterproofing layer and the shingles.

Installation of wooden plates is carried out on the crates of bars of 50? 50 mm. The spacing of the crates is one third of the length of the shingle

1. Before laying the shingle, a eaves strip with a 5 cm end overlap is stuffed. The thickness of the board is equal to the thickness of the plates so as not to interfere with their installation.
2. The first row of plates is located at the eaves overhang, it uses a shortened shingle length of 300 mm. Their upper part is nailed to the first lath of the batten, and the lower one is adjacent to the cornice rail.
3. The next row starts to be laid after the previous one is completed, plates of usual length are used for the second row. The sharp end of each plate is inserted into the groove of the neighboring shingle.
4. The boards of the upper rows should overlap by half the width of the plate of the lower row. The upper part of the shingle is fixed with galvanized nails or screws for wood. All materials, except for oak, are fixed with a hammer. In the oak shingle, due to the considerable hardness of the wood, holes have to be drilled. The nail must penetrate into the crate not less than 20 mm. Two nails should be hammered into each plate, departing from the edge of 20 mm. Attachment points are protected by the shank of the next row The lower end of the shingle remains free, it can move when swelling from moisture and in the process of drying.
5. The construction of the shingled roof itself is arranged according to the principle of a cone - under the action of moisture, the plates fixed by the upper edge swell and close all the openings. When drying, they bend and dry well under the action of the wind.
6. Each next row is laid with an offset of 30 mm. The ridge is trimmed with a short shingle, the approach to the adjacent plate is 100 mm. A lining carpet is arranged in the valley, the central part of the valley valley 150 mm wide remains open during the installation of the shingles. The edges of the wooden plates must be glued.

Note! A metal apron is installed around the chimney to protect the wood material from fire.