Monday, August 29, 2011

Roofing the Tube (and the box)

We are having a new roof put on because the cedar shakes on the upper roof were warping and failing - they were improperly installed in the first place on top of a layer of asphalt shingles (which is not okay since cedar needs to "breathe").

I am a little nervous since Hurricane Irene just rolled through and dumped a tremendous amount of water on the Catskills and my house was pretty well exposed to it all with the roof off.  I have been trying to call my contractor since yesterday morning, but no answer.  Phones and/or power are out up there I think.

This is the strange junction where the mansard roof on the tube meets the flat roof on the box.  Apparently this caused some confusion and creative problem solving because it requires bringing the mansard down further along this side of the house than it does around the rest of the house.


This is the guys installing new plywood sheeting along the mansard.  My understanding is that after they stripped the old shakes and shingles they found nothing but a 1/4 inch layer of plywood underneath, which is inadequate to the task.

This is the peak of the roof after they covered it with the ice and snow barrier - a very important layer I am told.  I just hope it kept Irene out.

And here's a bunch of guys working up on the roof.  Man is that sky blue.  Crazy blue!!

As of Friday morning the status update is that they are going to need a scaffold brought in to install the asphalt shingles on parts of the roof.  I didn't ask why.  I don't honestly care.  Timing doesn't matter much to me.  I just want them to finish on budget and on quality (is that a thing "on quality"?).