Tips for Using a Roofing Hammer
A roofing hammer speeds up any roofing job and, although it is
a relatively expensive tool, it is worth the investment for a
large roofing job. A roofing hammer's heavy weight is an
advantage for quickly whacking nails home, but be careful of
its serrated head which is especially hard on fingers if you
miss the nail. With a built-in course gauge set according to
the exposure desired, this hammer is far more precise and much
faster than simply eyeballing the top of the shingles. The
guide pin can be set in any one of the several holes for the
desired course depth. Hook the pin on the course below and let
the bottom edge of the shingle rest against the heel of the
hammer.
The hatchet side of the hammer is designed for splitting
wood shingles to size. It is less useful for composition
shingles, but is still good for chopping out old roofing
cement or flashing.
Valleys
Open Valleys
Apply the Roll Roofing, Fill in the valley with an 18-inch
piece of roll roofing. Roll out the length needed from a
36-inch-wide roll. Then flip it over; strike a line at 18
inches; and cut it with a utility knife. Roll it up again
before carrying it up to the roof. Coat the valley with
roofing cement and lay the piece of roll roofing granule-face
down Drive a nail every 12 inches down one side. Nail the
other side after nesting the piece completely into the valley,
leaving no voids beneath it. Then center a full-width
(36-inch) piece over it, granules down. Nail along one edge
only. Let the roofing run wide, which means letting extra
lengths of roofing flop over the ridge and eaves; these will
be trimmed later. Split the roofing at the ridge and eaves so
that it lays flat. Trim its lower edge flush with the eaves
and cut a slight radius at the inside corner on the
intersection of the eaves.
Full Weave
Finish shingling adjacent planes of the roof that meet at
the valley. With a helper, complete the shingling of each
plane, weaving the shingles by laying alternate shingles down
at each course and pushing them into the valley. Clip the
uppermost corner of every overlapping shingle. Apply two nails
at the side of the shingle that crosses the valley. Do not
nail within 6 inches of the centerline of a valley. If the
pitch of the roof differs on either side of the valley, you
may have to weave as many as three shingles on one side to one
on the other.
Half-Weave
The half-weave valley is a variation on the woven valley.
Begin by laying down roll roofing as described. Completely
shingle one side of the roof, overlapping the valley at least
12 inches beyond the centerline. Next, shingle the opposite
side, letting the shingles overlap the finished side. Clip the
uppermost corner of every overlapping shingle. Do not nail
within 6 inches of the centerline of the valley. Strike a
chalk line down the center of the valley and trim the
shingles. Trim corners nearest the valley and seal shingles
with roofing cement.
Ridges & Hips
Gang-Cut the Tabs
Ridges are made by cutting single tabs off of shingles. The
easiest way to do this is to stack a bunch of shingles neatly
together. Use a square as a guide as you cut through the first
shingle to separate the tabs. Taper the cuts slightly then you
can use the top shingle as a guide to slice through the
shingles below.
Trim the Final Course
Wrap a ridge shingle piece over the ridge to check whether
you need another course of shingles on either slope. Trim the
last course of shingles to fit just up to the ridge.
Wrap the Ridge
Strike a chalk line on the most visible side of the house,
usually the front. Wrap a single tab over the ridge, making
sure the alignment notch centers over the apex. Use this as a
guide for snapping the line. If there is a prevailing wind
direction in your area, work toward it. Apply one nail at
either side of each tab and just in front of the sealant line.
Top it Off
Nail the final shingle, and cover the nailheads with
roofing cement. Seal each tab with roofing cement for a truly
wind-proof ridge.
