Going Off Grid in East Tennessee; The Story and Chat Thread (Elizabethton: classes, tanks)

[RSMTN]

I am not surprised you found that the metal roof had leaked but I'm astounded at how many leaks you uncovered. At least the metal is gone and you now have something you can trust.

Guess we are not bothered with the noise of rain on our metal roof because it's a two story house. After seeing what you uncovered we will probably never use metal again.

Have a great summer.

Roger

[Ted Bear]

Originally Posted by RSMTN

I am not surprised you found that the metal roof had leaked but I'm astounded at how many leaks you uncovered. At least the metal is gone and you now have something you can trust.

Guess we are not bothered with the noise of rain on our metal roof because it's a two story house. After seeing what you uncovered we will probably never use metal again.

Have a great summer.

Roger

There is no way you can put metal roofing on a slope that small and not have it leak. The snow sitting there alone will slip through all of the seams. Standing seam metal might work....but probably will leak as well unless it is really well installed.

Shingles will do the same thing. They look pretty, but the real water repellant will be the snow and ice shield which you put underneath the shingles. The shingles are going to cup pretty quickly in all likelihood, and you can hope that all of the holes (from the roofing nails to hold down the shingles) which you put in the shield will self seal and provide a leak free roof.

If it leaks now, take up the shingles, put down new shield, and put down a rolled roof or a hot tar roof. That should make it waterproof 'forever.'

[Alaskapat528]

New roof looks great!!! What's your next project?

[Gue]

That ice & water tarp looked terrific! Heavy duty water repellent!

I hope this will be the last roof you have to install!

[CA Sweet Pea]

Lisa - looks like you and Mike did a great job - once again! The roof looks nice and hopefully it will be exactly what you need.

Thanks again for sharing!

[polizzio]

Lisa & Mike,
I discovered your thread Sunday night, spent 6 hours cumulatively reading and following the story from the beginning. The view from the front door is awesome, the rolling hills, the wildlife, I see what compelled you guys to build there. Perhaps one day I too will make TN home, 52 years in southern Louisiana, New Orleans-Laplace area. You guys have so much energy, creativity, and commitment........I admire you for it :-)

[JSMAS]

I'm not surprised by the leaks at all. A waterproof barrier (at least tar paper) should've been installed under the metal. The supplier should've informed you of this. Condensation forms underneath the metal and precipitates onto the wood. The ice and water barrier stuff you used would've been great. The water damage probably wasn't from leaks at all. Just condensation. My Father's garage has a metal roof, with no sheeting. In the morning it literally rains inside the garage!

[KiwiKate]

Congrats on finishing the roof Lisa. Are you happy with the "gray"? It looks pretty white to me.

[wirerat123]

With that small of a pitch, no type of roofing is going to keep water from getting in the wood under. The key is the underlayment you use to protect the wood.

As a roofer, I think you did a good job, but wouldn't have advised you to go back to shingles. Metal roofing is FAR superior in every way. Sure it's noisy, but it's more energy efficient, less likely to blow off in heavy winds, low maintenance (Often lasting longer than anything else about the house.), and just wait until the first hail storm, the tiny shingle gravel will be EVERYWHERE! You will have to re roof it, and start over. With metal it would have just been slightly dinged up.

If it were me I'd put the metal back on over the shingles. The shingles will absorb a lot of the sound of the metal, and the metal will add a tripple layer of protection. Metal > Shingles ALWAYS. I've been a roofer off and on for 20 years. And as a professional roofer there is only one type of roof going on my house and that's metal roofing, best bang for your buck in the industry.

With that slight of a pitch though, I would consider pre stressed concrete panels torch down rubber covering the whole thing and cover it with a foot or two of dirt forget about it forever.

[Hawk J]

Howdy L&M .

I did two of my garages with metal roofing. I put tar paper down on top of the plywood sheathing, then the metal panels. More pitch on your roof would have been better, imho.

Have a wonderful evening. Get some good, well deserved rest.