Fixing a Hole
Aug. 4th, 2010 05:57 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kevin_standleeAfter lunch today, and before the worst of the sun hit That Darn Roof, Lisa decided to try and fix the specific hole that opened up yesterday. We first went to the post office, then by the hardware store where we bought what we thought would be a spot fix of roofing compound. However, before going up top, Lisa read the instructions more closely and realized that the asphalt compound wants 30-60 days curing time before you can put an overcoat on it. She set it aside and worked on Plan B. I took the camera with me and documented the process as I stood by at ground level, ready to send up supplies or provide help as directed.
Lisa here was cutting off the loose bit of roof fabric that has been dangling off the edge of one of the sheets. This isn't quite as precarious as it looks because she has two safety lines tied onto the main support rope, but it still is a long way down.
Lisa targeted this piece because it's almost exactly the same size as the hole she needs to patch, and because it needed to be trimmed anyway. Waste not, want not. You can see the hole above and to Lisa's left.
While cleaning out the hole, Lisa sent me over to get the leaf blower. (You can see it behind her in this picture). She used it to help clear out all debris from the hole.
She then poured Gray Goo (Snow Roof undercoat) into the hole. At this point, things got messy.
The Gray Goo is sticky and messy (and it stinks). Lisa had a devil of a time getting the patch of roofing fabric to get into the hole and stay put, and in the process she got a lot of the Goo on her gloves.
Getting the Goo on your gloves is Not Good. It's not that the Goo is caustic or dangerous; it's just that you get Goo on everything else you touch. It ruins your effectiveness. Lisa put more Goo on top of the roofing material, gingerly sealed the can of Goo, threw the plastic trowel off the roof, then stripped off her gloves and threw them off the roof, tossed her ear protection down to me, and carefully climbed back down the ladder, carrying the leaf blower. After getting out of her safety kit, she tried to wash as much of the Goo off of the gloves as possible and hung them up to dry on the clothes line.
Here's what the patched area looks like when she was finished. I'm amazed at how well this photo came out, given that I took it from ground level with a 10x zoom and no tripod. Lisa tells me she plans to nail a board over the patch temporarily until she's ready to cover the whole area with roof fabric, just so she doesn't step in the Goo while it's still curing.
By the time she got done with this hole-patching project, the sun had fully hit the roof, so there would be no more work this afternoon. However, we could get a few other things done.
Heading back across the property to the utility trailer whose main boards she'd painted Monday, Lisa propped the utility trailer's gate up and painted one side of the one new board installed in the gate. While she did this, she directed me to get a wheelbarrow and haul gravel to fill in a couple of holes that have developed on the property. She stepped in one of them last night walking in the dark and nearly twisted her ankle.
When we brought a sheet of plywood down from the lumber yard on Monday, Lisa directed me to prop it against a wall. Today, she noticed that the board had developed a pronounced bow along its long axis. She says that's not going to be so bad, especially as it will probably flatten back down once installed in the back of the trailer and fastened to the base board with wood screws. She had me move the sheet to a place where spilled paint will do no harm and she started to paint one side of it. In this case, there actually was enough room for two people to work, so she gave me a paintbrush and I started applying Tudor Brown paint to the board.
Of course, I'm usually all thumbs with this sort of thing, and this was no exception. My first dip of the brush was too deep, and I got way too much paint on the brush. But we survived, and we have a coat of paint on the board now. Maybe tomorrow we'll be able to turn it over and paint the other side. We're not looking for fancy painting here. We just want to protect the wood somewhat so it will last better in Oregon weather.
After the post-lunch work — my blood sugar was a quite reasonable and normal 108 — I went back inside and dealt with Day Jobbery for a few hours, while Lisa took the unused asphalt roof patching compound back to the hardware store for a refund.
Maybe we'll get more roof work done this evening once the sun is off the roof again. I'm a little concerned that there are breezes starting to kick up. That will make it much more challenging to lay the roof fabric down.
Lisa here was cutting off the loose bit of roof fabric that has been dangling off the edge of one of the sheets. This isn't quite as precarious as it looks because she has two safety lines tied onto the main support rope, but it still is a long way down.
Lisa targeted this piece because it's almost exactly the same size as the hole she needs to patch, and because it needed to be trimmed anyway. Waste not, want not. You can see the hole above and to Lisa's left.
While cleaning out the hole, Lisa sent me over to get the leaf blower. (You can see it behind her in this picture). She used it to help clear out all debris from the hole.
She then poured Gray Goo (Snow Roof undercoat) into the hole. At this point, things got messy.
The Gray Goo is sticky and messy (and it stinks). Lisa had a devil of a time getting the patch of roofing fabric to get into the hole and stay put, and in the process she got a lot of the Goo on her gloves.
Getting the Goo on your gloves is Not Good. It's not that the Goo is caustic or dangerous; it's just that you get Goo on everything else you touch. It ruins your effectiveness. Lisa put more Goo on top of the roofing material, gingerly sealed the can of Goo, threw the plastic trowel off the roof, then stripped off her gloves and threw them off the roof, tossed her ear protection down to me, and carefully climbed back down the ladder, carrying the leaf blower. After getting out of her safety kit, she tried to wash as much of the Goo off of the gloves as possible and hung them up to dry on the clothes line.
Here's what the patched area looks like when she was finished. I'm amazed at how well this photo came out, given that I took it from ground level with a 10x zoom and no tripod. Lisa tells me she plans to nail a board over the patch temporarily until she's ready to cover the whole area with roof fabric, just so she doesn't step in the Goo while it's still curing.
By the time she got done with this hole-patching project, the sun had fully hit the roof, so there would be no more work this afternoon. However, we could get a few other things done.
Heading back across the property to the utility trailer whose main boards she'd painted Monday, Lisa propped the utility trailer's gate up and painted one side of the one new board installed in the gate. While she did this, she directed me to get a wheelbarrow and haul gravel to fill in a couple of holes that have developed on the property. She stepped in one of them last night walking in the dark and nearly twisted her ankle.
When we brought a sheet of plywood down from the lumber yard on Monday, Lisa directed me to prop it against a wall. Today, she noticed that the board had developed a pronounced bow along its long axis. She says that's not going to be so bad, especially as it will probably flatten back down once installed in the back of the trailer and fastened to the base board with wood screws. She had me move the sheet to a place where spilled paint will do no harm and she started to paint one side of it. In this case, there actually was enough room for two people to work, so she gave me a paintbrush and I started applying Tudor Brown paint to the board.
Of course, I'm usually all thumbs with this sort of thing, and this was no exception. My first dip of the brush was too deep, and I got way too much paint on the brush. But we survived, and we have a coat of paint on the board now. Maybe tomorrow we'll be able to turn it over and paint the other side. We're not looking for fancy painting here. We just want to protect the wood somewhat so it will last better in Oregon weather.
After the post-lunch work — my blood sugar was a quite reasonable and normal 108 — I went back inside and dealt with Day Jobbery for a few hours, while Lisa took the unused asphalt roof patching compound back to the hardware store for a refund.
Maybe we'll get more roof work done this evening once the sun is off the roof again. I'm a little concerned that there are breezes starting to kick up. That will make it much more challenging to lay the roof fabric down.
