Cheap Builders "Skylights"

Got a call last week about a cracked skylight only to discover that the builder of the home had just laid two pieces of plexi-glass over the holes, used some kind of crappy caulk around the openings before laying the glass and then drove two 3 inch roofing nails on each side with the heads of the nails pinning down the plexi-glass to the roof.

I sold them two Velux curb mounted skylights. Built two 2x2 frames, waterproofed the area with GAF Storm Guard and installed the Velux Flashing Kits.

They have to think they re in heaven now!

They were quite discouraged with the builder when they realized how much energy was well "going out the window."

They were "very" pleased with the Velux product and the added leak protection/energy efficiency of the storm guard membrane. They added some extra money to the check without me asking and made sure to get a few business cards from me before I left. :)

I am always amazed by the apparent ease by which you remove the minimum amount of old roofing then insert the new roofing. Must be that stack method of roofing (discouraged by the manufacturers) y'all use in your part of the country.

The rack method, yeah. AKA running bond. Used to have people from eastern climes occasionally on the crew and they would say, "What? You don't want your 'weather veins' to line up?" "Yeah," we'd say, "They do, but every third course, not every other course."

On the other hand, we're just finishing a Carriage House and CT recommends the racking method. Couldn't handle the 4 1/2 inch set-back so we did 13 1/2. Those shingles are hard on the hands. Three feet wide and eighteen inches tall, two-ply "stack" and no laminate hump. "Tres cher," though.

When Elk was still Elk and they first came out with the super glue on the lightweight laminate cuz of the ridiculous winds I believe are a little south of natty, I called up the manuf at the plant there and asked how the heck we were supposed to get them apart for repairs and such. "Have you tried using a troll?" she asked. From where I sit, people are a little funny all over the place. People can get a little seasick on the charter boats sometimes near here and there is always talk about UFO's but I can never seem to find any little green men hanging around to peel fused shingles apart when I need them. That must be a Texas thing.

I could have removed the old shingles in just about the same way irregardless of how they were installed but yeah around here 3-tabs are ran at a 6 inch off set straight up the roof but dimensionals are ran at a 45 degree angle.

It is very rare for me to come across a roof that I can't repair due to shingles not unsticking but in the summer months I have to get to the job very early before the blazing sun comes up for too long and welds those suckers together. Occasionally, I run into a roof that actually requires waiting for the sun to warm the shingles where I can then just peel them apart by hand.

When I sold roof replacements, every house needed a new roof. Now that I only do repairs there seems to be nothing I can't fix. Funny how things change! :laugh:

Chuck Said: I could have removed the old shingles in just about the same way irregardless of how they were installed but yeah around here 3-tabs are ran at a 6 inch off set straight up the roof but dimensionals are ran at a 45 degree angle.

It is very rare for me to come across a roof that I cant repair due to shingles not unsticking but in the summer months I have to get to the job very early before the blazing sun comes up for too long and welds those suckers together. Occasionally, I run into a roof that actually requires waiting for the sun to warm the shingles where I can then just peel them apart by hand.

When I sold roof replacements, every house needed a new roof. Now that I only do repairs there seems to be nothing I cant fix. Funny how things change! :laugh:

Hey can I use your photos for my eblast this week? I will give you credit of course - perhaps I can toss a RCS mug your way.

You sure can Mrs. Vickie. I still have the mug from years ago when you honored me as the RCSer of the month but I will make you a deal!

If I ever get out of line (again) :blush: maybe you could just let it pass? :silly:

Of course, it's a deal. But... what did you do?

Not trying to knock your workmanship but,I would not put nails in that bottom apron flashing.

If you don't nail down flashings at the bottom they will pop up after a few years allowing wind driven rain and insects to get in. Not to mention it looks pretty rough standing on the ground looking up at raised flashings. I understand that you may not believe what I'm saying but after 30 years of repairing roofs I've discovered this to be the truth. I put a little dab of clear Geo-Cel over the nail heads. ;)

I never put nails in the bottom apron flashing. Part of that is the difficulty in nailing through a piece of tile covered by metal. But to prevent uplift, I have the metal bent 1/12 steeper than the pitch and also put an extra downwards bend of 1/2 " at the bottom that cuts down on uplift occurring later.

Looks good Chuck. Ya might use a pole barn screw next time if your worried about uplift. I love RCS, it's a tough crowd.

Back in the olden days lol when I first started my construction and roofing business, I fabricated all of my sky lights I framed out my own curbs and routed the 2x4's so the tempered glass would fit, I didn't like the sound of rain drops hitting the double domed prefab sky light, then we flashed the curbs using copper and applied a silicone seal on and under the glass lite, since this project was for my own house and we had 22 of these things in our kitchen and dining area we used a bronze tinted tempered lite It was a project but we lived here for 20 plus years and never had a leak

Been nailing down the bottoms of flashings for over 30 years without a single issue so I'm pretty sure that's what I will continue to do. Sometimes I run into roofs done by other roofers that failed to nail down the flashings and they look like their about to fly up into outer space at any second. :laugh: I even get calls from clients that specifically request a quote to nail down their flashings that are popped up with that being the only repair they are seeking. :P