Tomorrow the roofer is coming to start the roof. He says he’s going to rip off the entire roof and felt it in the first day. The forecast has rain and possibly strong winds coming the day after. He says he’s going to staple the felt down really good. I think he should only rip up what he can replace the same day given the forecast, however I’m not a roofer and I am not sure if felt can withstand wind and rain and whether I have to be concerned about leaks when it rains with just the felt on the roof. I sure would appreciate a speedy answer, he just informed me of his plan this morning. Thankyou.
Unless using a synthetic underlay (ie:feltex) with button caps,I like to cover whatever I paper the same day.
Ideally, ripping what can be reshingled in the same day is ideal.
The only way to secure felt is with a tarp on top of the felt.
Which to me is a waste of time. One spends a significant amount of time tarping and untarping the roof and there is never any guarantee that your roof will not leak if you get a freak storm with 70 MPH winds.
This is always scary to anyone… plus the fact is that when the paper gets wet it ripples until sun dries it out, so starting the day before a storm has always seemed th o me to be a waste of time and a restless nights sleep for me and the customer…and in my area they want to inspect after all shingles are off and the i&w shield is installed. I am at war with the inspection place for the fact of liability on the jobs, caues I am small crew of 1 or 2 besides myself. I told them I can take pics along the way, but that I cannot leave the deck exposed til they feel like showing up to inspect…
A ‘Dried’ in roof is exactly that. Obviously he is comfortable doing this. I am too. No need to worry. Is a mistake possible? Yes. Will everything be okay? Probably.
it’s best to cover up everything you tear the same day, but felt will keep most rain out for a few days unless the storm gets really harsh.
I would not tear off what i could not shingle without a tarp. But thats me.
You should voice your concerns!
We typically Tear-off only what can be completely roofed back if there is 40% chance of rain. We monitor the weather activity each morning.Anything greater than 40% We Typically wait. For Us here, Tarps are always on the trucks, Creeping up Storms is a concern to watch for during summer months.
The Felt paper was designed to be used to keep the decking dry until the Roofing could be installed. I would not let it go past two days, without checking the paper for possible need of replacement.
N.Carolina
A good underlayment installation will protect your home for a couple of weeks easily.
If done right with quality materials it will stand up to considerable wind also.
Let the roofer do his thing, it will be alright.
I tried that once (it my own roof) and the second it started blowing rain it was coming thru my roof. I would never leave a customers roof with just paper over night.
Use 30# felt or premium 15#.
Standard 15# can get saturated and leak, quite badly.
Just like anything else in life, for it to work right it has to be done right.
If you punch any holes in the underlayment it will leak.
If the underlayment is not flat it can pool up water at the wrinkles, and leak.
Premium 15# and standard 30# will stand up to 50+ mph winds for the first few days after application.
On the other hand, if there is a forecast for 3 days of constant rain it is not a good idea to tear off any more than you need to.
If you are using standard 15# felt it is a good idea to shingle over it the same day.
I had to dry 1 in today, not by choice… We tore off and had to replace 38 sheets, I just happened to have 40 on the truck,lol typical plywood replace job in this area, contract stated 15sheets on upper roof. But when we got to lower it was all shot too! One of these days I will post some pics.I always sell o.s.b. and when I post pics you will see why. Just did 1 20 yr old 3 tab, o.s.b sheathing, not 1 rotten sheet 23 sq. Not even a loose nail!
I forgot to say 1 important thing I use Shingle mate paper, 3 times the price, but worth it for steeps and overnight peace of mind…
I only use Roofer Sellect 15 pound fiberglass felt.
So far it’s held up to 60 mph wind twice were the roofs next door lost shingles and it’s held rain out when it came down in sheets.
Heard of a paper job once holding up for 4 months.
A tarp over a dried in roof is a good idea if rain is likely overnight.
on some large new construction projects its quite common to dry in the whole roof with felt right after its sheathed. on a slower application like cedar or slate the paper could stay exposed for a long while. If your crew knows what they are doing they should know how to button and felt and make a roof tight.
you should have a radar.
if theres heavy weather comin
in just tell the roofer to let it blow over.
he/she should want to do that anyway.
gweedo
[quote=“jwoolfsroofing”]This is always scary to anyone… plus the fact is that when the paper gets wet it ripples until sun dries it out, so starting the day before a storm has always seemed th o me to be a waste of time .
A small tarp covering the nexts days starting shingle area, ensures no time is wasted waiting for the felt to dry, ie. paper is not wrinkled therefore no labor $$ is wasted.
James[/quote]
hey gweedo, whats up man?
How many holes you put in a tarp before you consider it unworthy of covering felt?
If you paper it right you dont need a tarp.The only exception is if there is snow coming in.