Anybody know anything about roofing?
 

We're having a new roof put on this week, if it ever quits raining sideways. Actually the garage is done. It went well, no surprises, etc. Off with the old, on with the new. Fine. Simple. Composite shingles. Not a steep roof. Easy, right?

However... the existing shingles on the house are nailed not to OSB but T&G cardecking. Cardecking is a very stable surface to nail to, but the roofers won't do it. They claim it's not a smooth enough surface and the roof won't look good.

Best I can tell, The Rules don't mandate a layer of OSB or plywood. I guess it's possible that the shingle manufacturer could insist on it for the warranty to be valid.

I'd really like to avoid spending many many hundreds of dollars for OSB and labor if I don't absolutely have to. Anybody have any insight here? Am I stuck? Are the roofers telling the truth?

Thanks.

I think its possible the roofer has a certain way he likes to do things. And he most likely had problems before with the T and G
decks, or maybe even lost money by having to redo some ones roof that used T and G and did not look good, or possibly had leakage problems from joining the Tand G eves to the osb roof.
So a good overkill shotgun method guarantee is to apply a all new, all uniform deck.

So he probably has a bias about T and G.
Or more than likely has a well practiced method of doing roofs and wants to assure you of a quality leak free roof. And not have to return and fix problems. So his method of insurance is to simply replace the whole deck of the roof

i dont think he is lying, he is just pushing is method and bias.
could be a good thing, its not some fly by night guy, and he is looking to keep up his reputation.
possibly.. or like any business get in get out quick and make the money, he pays for labor too
and most likely sticks to his methods

More than likely he has run into too many problems doing it before. Either that or he thinks he has you under his thumb and that you'll pay to change it out to OSB.

I bet a metal roof would go on the t&g without any problems, and last a very long time.

and cost more than the osb and the shingles

get the osb

Thanks, guys. No way can we do metal, and anyway, the squares are already on the roof.

I'm quite certain they're not going to replace the cardecking, just cover it with the OSB. At least that's what I think I know.

Looks like today's the day. The wind has stopped blowing and it's only raining a little.

One question- how good does the roof look now, other than the condition of the shingles? If you never saw a problem before, it sounds like the roofer is trying to "make work" because business is slow.

They used plain boards before T&G was used and that kind of roof lasts a long time. My house was built in 1946 and I had it re-roofed in '04- the roof looks fine and it's a lot easier to replace damaged boards when they're NOT T&G. If it has been nailed down well, it's as flat as anything and I have seen a lot of OSB roofs that look like crap because the OSB sagged between the rafters. I see that all the time and I would be more PO'd about that than a roof that's "not a smooth enough surface" because it was built with T&G.

BTW- if the rain isn't stopping, the last thing you want is to tear off the roof and replace with OSB. Not only will the rain get in, the wind will screw up your insulation. If they put OSB over the car-siding, you'll have to pay for trim work that wouldn't have been needed otherwise.

If you're replacing with three-tab shingles, you'll see more surface problems with the substrate than with dimensional shingles. Are they doing a tear-off? If not, the comments about car-siding not being smooth are moot because putting a new payer of shingles over old is about as lumpy as it can get. Also, if you already had two layers, a tear-off is mandatory.

I would prefer the T & G.
Stronger than OSB sheathing, and smoother than using ply with H clips.

Like bassman said..... a re-roof (shingling over existing shingles) is definitely not a smooth surface and they look fine.

Shingles will relax and conform to the substrate when they warm up in the summer sun.
Dimensional shingles hide a lot more flaws than 3 tabs.

Unless there was something wrong with the old deck, I wouldn't spend the extra money on covering it with OSB, I would just use 30lb. felt and shingle it.

Quit raining. Sun's out!

Dimensional shingles. Tear-off. Already two roofs up there.

Let the fun begin....

The reason the roofer wants to change it is because T&G can be a bit of a pain when you are nailing if you hit too many of the spaces between the slats. The nails can go right through the shingle. Not a big deal, and the spot you nail is covered by the next row. Plus, he probably want's to charge you a fortune to put a new layer on.

All I know is that if a roof is on fire, it's best to let the ****** ****** burn!

:hiding:

Bump for you!

Especially if it's got worthless OSB decking!

If the T&G is in good condition then they should just tear off, lay paper and shingle. I don't see any practical reason for a layer of OSB.

P.S. - I used to be a roofer.

Good news - most of the roof is 5/8" plywood over cardecking.

More good news - the sun is still shining.

Bad news - some of the plywood needs to be replaced. Quite a bit of it, actually.

$$$$

The sunshine has held and the roofers are making great progress. All's well except for the additional cash outlay....

Turns out the original roof was what was keeping (most of) the rain out. The 2nd roof was apparently useless. Guess we waited a year too long. (I have taken this opportunity to say 'I told you so' to my husband. I wanted to have the roof replaced *last* year. :p )

Thanks to all who chimed in to help.

Mods, feel free to close the thread. This one has run its course.

You ain't from here, are ya?:p

Right? Now it's time to send the thread WAY off topic!

Define "here." Maybe I'm from here, and maybe I'm not. :hiding: