From chalk lines to roof lines--Putting final shingles at the top

[redwoodcoast]

A couple of weeks ago, I asked a question about how to operate a chalkline in relation to putting new three-tab asphalt shingles on a shed roof.

Got some great answers and my son and I went to work. Unfortunately, it was much more work than I anticipated, and being a "40-something" mom with an 18-year-old not too enthusiastic son as a co-worker, just getting the bundles of shingles on the roof just about killed both of us.

So, work has progressed quite slowly. However, the end is in sight. We are at the top! We measured so as to adjust the last few rows of shingles so that they end right at the top.

Perfect! Well, maybe not. This is a shed roof, basically a slanted piece of plywood built on an angle with none of those fancy valleys, ridges and other parts of a roof that we know nothing about. So, other than cutting off parts of the three tabs at the end of each row, it has been pretty simple.

Except, what do we do now. My son pointed out, just as we prepared to start the last row, that half the shingle will be grey, the bottom half with the tabs will be white and the "black tarry strip across the shingle will also be exposed. And where do we nail it?

I did buy a piece of drip edge that will come up over the top of shingle and I suppose we could nail right at the top, slop roof cement where the shingle and drip edge will meet and go from there....will that work.

But, hey, I'm a woman, it is still going to look ugly with the half-half color and tar at the top, and with using the chalkline and all throughout, we have otherwise a very "perfect" looking job. Of course it took us some 12 hours so far for 8 bundles...

Any suggestions?

[dpb]

[e-mail] wrote: ...

Congrats! Sounds perfect, so far. And whilst the son undoubtedly complained to high heaven (it's in the job description of teenagers, after all! :) ), down the road he'll be bragging and inside right now he's as full of himself as can be...

...

...

Drip edge goes at the bottom, not the top, so don't use that here.

If there isn't a ridge vent (that is, if the two pieces of roofing meet at the roof ridge), then lay the last rows at the peak w/ the proper setback and, if necessary, trim to the peak.

Then, to finish, take the shingles and, starting at the end of the house into the prevailing wind, turn them ninety degrees and lay them over the ridge where there's an equal amount on each side. Use two nails on each and a dab of roof cement under the top edge of the first one. When you're done, you'll have a nice, single-color ridge w/ no tabs showing.

If you will look at some other houses, you should be able to see how this works.

If, on the other hand, there is/was a roof vent, post back and someone can lead you through that as well.

Again, sounds like you made a good job of it!

[dpb]

....

Sorry, just realized what I wrote--start at the end away from the prevailing wind so each course is covering the previous _INTO_ the wind.

If you're in an area that doesn't have such strong winds routinely as here, this isn't particularly important, but here we have lots of (mostly south or southwest) winds for days at a time. So, if start at the east or north end of a roof, the ridge shingles are then laid "into" the wind....

[<aemeijers]

You cut the tabs off a row of shingles, and nail them up individually. (Actually, you usually cut the shingles right above the tar line, but whatever works.) Yes, some spots of roofing cement here and there may be needed, if a tab lands where there is no sticky spot. You cap the thing off with premade ridge vent, or cap shingles, or (most people) with a bunch of shingles cut in thirds, with the tops tapered so the next shingle hides them At the end, you nail down a cut tab to cover the last light spot, and seal the nails with some tar, and sprinkle some of the same granules you scraped off an extra shingle into the tar spots to hide them. (Thy actually sell the granules at the roofing store for big spots, but most people only need a tiny bit.)

If none of this makes sense, google for &#39;basic roofiug&#39;, or go find a DIY book, to see pictures. It ain&#39;t hard, just filthy and nasty.

aem sends...

[marson]

previous posters must have missed that this is a shed roof, no ridge, so no ridge vent and no ridge cap. go ahead and put drip edge on. when you get to the top, cut the top of the shingles off and just use the bottom half with the colored granules on it. if it works out that you need just, say, and inch of colored shingle, then you will have to make a judgement call about what looks best; the little strip or a bit or black showing or an oddball row. nails will have to be exposed when fastening this last row, but cover the nail heads with a small dab of roofing cement (available in caulk tubes--one small tube will do it) if you&#39;d like. (bet you it doesn&#39;t leak even if you omit the tar).

[kevin]

Actually, I think the other replies might be completely confusing depending on what kind of roof you have.

Do you have sort of the classic american monopoly house "two slanted pieces meeting in a ridge at the top" roof, a so called "gable roof"? If so, then listen to the other replies. It just comes down to cutting a bunch of shingles in thirds, then laying the pieces out like a big caterpillar right down the ridge so that only the nice part of each piece is showing. The Very last one you can cut off the ugly part. You end up with 4 nails showing on that very last piece. This method works basically the same if you have a ridge vent, too.

Or, do you have a very simple "one slanted piece" kind of roof, basically just half of a gable roof, which is called a "shed roof"? If so then the caterpillar trick doesn&#39;t work, since there is nothing on the other side of the peak. In this case, shingle right up to the very top edge. Hopefully your last row will have the visible ugly part butting right up against the top edge. Or even better, it will hang over a bit, and you can trim it so that it fits exactly. Now nail your piece of drip edge on so that it sits on *top* of that ugly part -- the rain landing on the drip edge will either fall off the one side of the roof, or run down on top of the ugly part of the top row of shingles. Then, cut off the ugly part of an entire row of shingles, so all you have left is the nice looking tabs. Just nail these across the top edge of the roof, *over* the drip edge, and preferably hanging over a little bit off the top edge of the roof, so the entire drip edge is not visible from above and won&#39;t get rained on. These should cover up all the ugly part that was still visible from the row before. You will end up with a row or two of exposed nails holding on these last pieces. Just put a dab of black roof cement on each nail head, and no one will ever notice.

-Kevin

[Lawrence]

[e-mail] wrote: This is a shed roof, basically a slanted

Pehaps I can summarize the other posts and add my bit. You cut the shingles in half to make the last course. the drip edge you have may not be useful at this point but you may be able to use a flashing which is a a simple right angle made of galvanized metal. One edge of the flashing can cover the edge of the last course. the other edge can cover the adjacent wall. If there is siding on the adjacent wall then the flashing would ideally slip underneath that siding. If that is not possible then you can nail it to the adjacent wall and cover the edge of the flashing (and nails) with cement. What nails cannot be covered with flashing can be covered with roofing cement.

Lawrence

[redwoodcoast]

[e-mail] wrote: Hi all, OP again.

Just to clear things up. This is a small free-standing shed. And from my last post here a few weeks ago, I learned that this type of roof is called a "shed roof." Unfortunately, I don&#39;t remember the name of the poster that told me that....

So, a very simple freestanding structure with a slanted roof. If you stand at the front of the shed, the roof is probably 14 or so feet high. If you go to the back, the roof is down to, oh, say, 7 feet high

-- this all being guess.

Anyway. Had three roofers out earlier who all wanted around $700 to roof this with three-tab....decided could not afford it, but considering the labor and the aches and pains that son and I had, maybe that would have been the smarter move....LOL>

Anyway, sounds as if I need to do the last "course" as I thought and then do another course of only three-tab cut-offs and then put the "drip edge" over the top of that...it&#39;s not really a drip edge, I don&#39;t think. It&#39;s a three inch, bent in the middle, thing I got at the home center....Anyway, I think I have some half-baked ideas. We&#39;ll try them out on Saturday.

Of course, if any of you any anything to add, feel free.

[kevin]

Good luck and have fun.

As for the drip edge, just be the rain and wind -- imagine where the water will go when the wind is blowing (it can go uphill a ways). And whatever you do will likely be fine, since this is just a shed and won&#39;t be storing valuables.

-Kevin

[Cliff Hartle]

Just continue up the roof as if it didn&#39;t stop and cut off what ever hangs over the top. I guess your last exposed course will only be tabs, just nail them so the nails are under your flashing.

Also its easier and neater to nail the last shingles first and then trim. It will be impossible to measure and cut the tabs first and then try to nail them straight. Strike a line where the bottom of the last course will go. Nail them as high as you can and then trim the excess. For extra protection you can put a dab of roof cement on the nail heads.

Attaching the flashing so it doesn&#39;t leak is going to take some thought. You need to use aluminum nails and attach it without crushing it.

[kevin]

Please, people... she already said this is a "shed roof", and is not adjacent to a wall. There is no flashing.

[Cliff Hartle]

I think you are splitting hairs as to the term flashing. You seem to define flashing as metal used to between a roof and a wall or valley flashing between roofs.

According to this

The strip at the top could be considered flashing. What would you call it a J channel? I have an idea that she most likely was sold a piece of aluminum fascia. I can&#39;t imagine any thing pre made at a home center that would be any thing else.

I could have told her she needs to bend a piece of coil stock with a brake to exactly match what is needed, but I didn&#39;t what to start throwing around more terms and confusing the OP more.

[redwoodcoast]

The original poster is wholly confused and flustered. LOL.

I have read through the posts and also a couple of e-mails I have received and I think I have a plan. It may make it an extra layer of tabs at the top, and it may be a little bit more overlapping than needed, but it should do the job, I think, and not look too bad, except the last layer will probably be about two inches further down on top of the underlayer...does that make sense. In other words, I&#39;ll overlap the next to last row of shingles much more than normal to make it all work out.

As I mentioned for the $100 more or less that I spent, I almost should have hired it out. But then we would not have learned so much, got notes from all you helpful people, built up so much muscle, or even missed catching a nasty case of poison oak from cutting back the bush that was bushing against the top of the shed when we went to roof...

Oh, as to the drip edge/flashing....it is an "L" shaped piece of aluminium that has a special bend on the roof side as well as another bend on the fascia side to direct water in the appropriate directions. It comes over about 1.5 inches on to the top of roof. I plan to nail the last course and put the edge on top of that. Roofing cement will also come into play, both under the last line of tabs, as well as between the metal and the three tab.

Finally, I&#39;ll use 1/2-inch roofing screws with rubber grommets to attach the edge to the fascia.

Thanks again all, Tina (who plans on a very celebratory Saturday afternoon when this is all finished, and hopes not to be out on the roof in January putting a tarp up if it begins to leak).

[kevin]

Sorry, no splitting of hairs meant. Just trying to help clear up (potential) confusion.

I should drop this thread.... but the internet seems to make me and everyone keep responding to the very last to defend their, um, honor or something. So here goes...

According to that link, almost every definition talks about transitions between two surfaces, such as roof planes, a roof and a wall, a door and a wall, a deck and a wall, etc. One or two of the more vague definitions basically say "flashing is a piece of metal to keep out the rain".

I would call it a drip edge. And so did the OP.

How about aluminum drip edge? Not fascia. Drip edge.