Cold roof in Kalamazoo

Hey, my brother showed me how to upload more pictures. You guys are in for it now. I can do it myself! We did this spring; an old cape cod with the multiple attics and a lot of ice build-up in the winter. We tore it off and installed new framing over the old roof and then vented it. You can see the openings on the bottom to let the air in and then the ridgevent opining in the top. Look at the last picture of the job the old roofers did on cutting in the ridgevent! A BFH if I ever saw one.

http://picasaweb.google.com/crookston.john4/ColdRoofInKalamazoo?authkey=Gv1sRgCOTnivPelaiZGg#>>>

We will probably be starting on Tuesday the 8th, you could come up late that day and stay the 9th to work with us. Long trip back for the 10th though. Let me know what you want to do. OS>>>

Going for 2 weeks from Thurs. to Thurs Sept. 10-24th.

At least that is what is marked on my calendar>>>

When are you going and when will you get back? I think I have another big job that is going to go also. Same principle, but not on a cape cod like your house. I could show you how to build a cold roof on the big job and then show you the pictures and such from the house we will be doing soon.

Maybe we can take a bunch of pictures and then share them with the rest of the bunch here on the coffee shop. A before, during and completed sequence. Mike from NZ does a nice job of that and I think the bunch would be interested. John aka Old school>>>

Yup. The whole dam fam>>>

Going to the continent! Wow!>>>

I will see and give you a call O/S. The Family are scheduled to leave for Switzerland on Thurs. the 10th. I dunno......>>>

Twill, Hey, we recieved the contract for that one in the mail today. It is tenatively scheduled for the week after labor day. Does that fit into your schedule? Give me a call. Old School>>>

Well said Pgriz!>>>

Tom, you give me more credit than I think I deserve. I can tell you what has worked for us, but keep in mind it continues to be an evolving body of knowledge/experience. So far (knock wood), none of the installations we have done in the manner described had problems, but you never know if you just got really lucky, or you actually have figured it out. We finished two jobs this month with the additional ventilation, and have another three to do this month.

I'm bidding on one that the homeowner is planning to redo, but she's been taken advantage of by other roofers before, and she's a little gun-shy. We've been referred to her by another roofer, and the reference checks she did on us were good. 100-year old house, no vapor barrier to speak of, cheap steel panels (screw-through) on top of old metal shingles, original decking, a mixture of various insulations, no ventilation. The roof leaks, regularly, and all the hot-shot roofers she's hired over the years have not stopped the water. She's thinking of tearing the whole roof off and starting over. But she doesn't have the cash to do it. So... what's the best that we can do with the funds she has available. So, we're trying to get "what's possible" and "what's needed" to overlap.

As for your situation, if you're thinking of 2x2 sleepers, why not upgrade that to 2x3 and then you have 2.5" of air channel? At the bottom, you may want to extend the sleepers past the current fascia to create a new fascia, then remove the decking over the eave space, and install new soffits spanning the new open eave area. At the top of the ridge, I'd suggest removing the decking from the top as usually there's a small attic up there, to create a mixing chamber, then install either good ridge vents or a vent like a Maximum. With this approach, you get good soffit intake, a good air channel, and a good exit (with mixing between the individual air channels at the top plenum).>>>

That is why we are all here. No one knows as much as everyone!>>>

Cool. I was thinking 'bout gettin' a hold of you on this. Thought I'd go thru this forum 1st tho.

Just went thru kalamazoo last weekend O/S :)>>>

Hey, you can call me if you would like. A couple of reasopns to do it the way I did. There was some swail in the roof and I was able to take it all out with the 2x4's on edge. We pulled a line on the top and bottom to get it straight and then pulled a line up and down from these points to make sure there was no sag in them. The finished product is straight and level within 1/8 of an inch. Very nice.

I know that 2"s should work, but that is two different layers also. Why not just use one layer to do the whole job. I am figuring a couple of the same type of jobs right now. Maybe if I get one or both you could come up and meet me and I could show you what we do and why. I do know that it cures a lot of problems all at once. I am not that far away from you. 1-269-806-1266>>>

O/S I came across some interesting graphs. 1999. Author: Wayne Tobiasson @ Army Corps of Engineers at it's CCREL (Cold Regions Research Laboratoy) It is in the NRCA Metal Roofing Book. It pertains to the venitlation of cathedral ceilings and takes into account the height of the vented "chambers", rafter bays, cold roof assembly. Whatever it is you are creating. It also takes into account the airflow scenario--- intake, R-Value, exhaust ventilation, length of rafters, friction and basically gives you the ideal space for airflow

While it was hard to understand for me, and now explain, one of the examples they showed was for about 1-3/4" Height for a common rafter run (under 30 ft.). Heck I still don't know if I have interpreted this all correctly! Anyway O/S I wonder if your project is a bit overdone.

I have the same issue on my Cape Cod w / a kneewall & sloped ceiling. I am now thinking of pulling the decking and simply adding 2x2 sleepers on top of the rafters and installing new sheeting. Seems like less work, aggravation and expense.

I'd like to hear more from you & Pgriz on this.>>>

Twil, On the front of this one we cut out the old soffit and then install a new fully vented aluminum soffit. The air flows from this new soffit directly into the area between the new 2x4's. We sprayed urethane insulation to the bottom side of the old roof at this point, so there is no air getting into the first of the old attics. on the back side of the roof, they had a flatter deck. We extended the roof rafters 6 inches and then installed the vented soffit. We also blew celulose insulation into the old attic space so that there was at least 9" total everywhere. we cut holes through the old plywood and let the air flow where ever it wanted to, but the ridgevent was at the peak obviously and the air flow is from the soffit to the peak. We left the old roof louver holes and such right in the old roof as we built a new rafter structure right over it. At the higher points, it all becomes one attic.>>>

O/S- did you close off the existing roof vents? Or more to the point, if the existing attic area vents along w/ the new cold roof assembly, how do they "blend"? Does one vent more than the other? Is there enough intake to for both areas?>>>