barn roof

INCase · Apr 24, 2023

The 1905 slate barn roof is going bad fast. especially with all this wind we've had and of course when a couple start to leak the rain rusts out the nails below and its a cascading effect.

the barn is worth saving but needs to have something done sooner than later.

question. maybe dumb but you don't know if you don't ask... i was wondering is it possible to install steel over the slate shingles? basically to save the labor in stripping as well as the hassle of stripping slate from 50ft high (peak of the barn) and the shear amount of slate on a 45x72ft gambrel roof barn. logic would say cannot drive screws thru the slate but maybe someone has tried it or there is a way to do it??? or partly strip enough to put new perlin strips down and steel on top of that?

Very hard to get someone that can/will fix the slate. i've got quite a bit of spare slate but lately they've been falling fast. one amish crew is willing to work on it and has before for my wife's grandparents but they aren't terribly reliable and another fellow will work on it but has no way to get up there (??). I'm estimating i can buy the steel for about $6-7000 (not counting ridge cap or edges ect ect) but getting it on is another story.

Thanks.

ss55 · Apr 24, 2023

Are the singles really slate or are they asbestos? we ran into that when my grandparents house was sold.

moresmoke · Apr 24, 2023

If you are somewhere that you can go 3-4 ft between purlins, you could strip out and screw down 2x4s.

Myself, I would take it all off and do the job right. Actually I would think there is a market somewhere for the used slate.

As far as access, there are plenty of outfits that rent manlifts.

504 · Apr 24, 2023

If you can fix the slate it will go another 100 years

Michael Soldan · Apr 24, 2023

That slate is worth a fortune ,if you can't fix it by replacing certain slates , then take it all off and put another roof system on , the slate will pay for you new roof.

INCase · Apr 24, 2023

THey are slate. imported from vermont according to family records.

I know they have some value. how to get them down 50ft without breaking is a trick. i've seen them listed for about $1 each.

Finding a manlift that you can rent that will go that high near us hasn't been easy to get. the highest one will go 50ft but that gives you no reach over the barn. need at least 30ish ft of reach probably.

INCase · Apr 24, 2023

if its not too late maybe..

and IF these guys know what their doing. we're in NE Ohio if anyone has any suggestions on someone that knows slate.

the idea at the moment is to put new steel ridge cap on (old one is rusted) and replace everything that needs replacing. lots of pin holes too.

Vito · Apr 24, 2023

If its the thick Vermont slate there definitely is a market for it. I would remove it prior to installing a metal roof. Thats a lot of weight off the roof structure. Rent a shooting boom forklift to get it down to ground level.

Vito

sandcastle1 · Apr 24, 2023

I am also in NE Ohio, I would talk to some local roofers and find out if they can recommend someone to do the slate either fixing it or taking it off. I would not want to put steel on top of the slate I think that you would be making it to heavy. Good luck

JD Dave · Apr 24, 2023

I'm a fan of saving old barns. Many barns around New Jersey have been left abandoned, deterorated and wasted simply because of the lack of roof repair. I would get rid of (or save the material) of the slate and engineer a system to install a shingle or metal roof right now. Time is of essence. A bad roof will destroy a perfectly good building in three years! You will spend a fortune, now and in the future, to repair the slate and unless you're a purist and have deep pockets, getting rid of the slate is a no-brainer. The goal is to fix the roof now before leaks ruin your barn.

SHALER · Apr 24, 2023

There is a man out of Lisbon OH, Chuck Pickleshimer that does slate work. If that does not work out, I side with the other posters that do not recommend steel over slate and if necessary, sell removed slate which will pay for the new steel roof or come very close.

DoubleO7 · Apr 24, 2023

You need a friend with a retired fire/ladder truck!

philcaseinWPA · Apr 24, 2023

I have the same problem but my barn is only 50 X 32. I have had Mr Picklesimer fix slate at my barn and house and another 20 X 30 building. My house was built in 1899, barn in 1898 and the other building in 1897. There was another guy that did slate work , David Frankovich or something like that. I haven't seen his add lately. I like the look of slate but it is hard to find someone to fix it and it is expensive also. One side of the barn is way worse than the other, probably 20 or more slate off. This springs winds have played havoc with the old slate. I would think that with as many slate roofs as there are a young ambitious person could do okay. Hard work and can't do it on a computer I guess.
Phil

Russ from MN · Apr 24, 2023

I would take the slate off, try to save as much as possible and sell it. We put an new roof on an old cabin that had questionable roof boards, We stripped it with rough tamarack 1x4's every 20 inches and screwed steel to it.

Geo-TH,In · Apr 25, 2023

I bought the house next door built in 1920.
What I thought was slate turned out to be asbestos!

Take a piece of slate that was blown off and look for asbestos fibers or have it tested for asbestos,

If you have asbestos, run forest run.
Removing asbestos will cost a fortune.

I vinyl sided my house.

Covering asbestos will be cheaper.
Covering asbestos will be kicking the can down the road.

BarnyardEngineering · Apr 25, 2023

(quoted from post at 15:55:57 04/24/23) I'm a fan of saving old barns. Many barns around New Jersey have been left abandoned, deterorated and wasted simply because of the lack of roof repair. I would get rid of (or save the material) of the slate and engineer a system to install a shingle or metal roof right now. Time is of essence. A bad roof will destroy a perfectly good building in three years! You will spend a fortune, now and in the future, to repair the slate and unless you're a purist and have deep pockets, getting rid of the slate is a no-brainer. The goal is to fix the roof now before leaks ruin your barn.

Most of the time they're left abandoned due to lack of money. I've got a 32x50 barn that's falling down and all I can do is watch. Can't even afford to hire someone to tear it down.

INCase · Apr 25, 2023

thanks for the feedback.

I'll see what the crew can do.

at a bare minimum this spring as soon as the weather is fitting we'll at least have the amish guys put new ridge on (1/2 of the leaks are down the ridge) and replace the missing ones from the wind storm and all the pin holes. maybe that will spare me 5 years??

hadn't thought about being able to get much $ out of selling the slate. on market place looks like they are getting about $1 each but not sure where to market the vermont slate counting the number of rows and estimating 10 wide for each slate it is probably around 6000 pieces of slate. There is a company out of Vermont that buys- (removes) old slate but not sure if they will travel to Ohio to get them.

Leroy · Apr 25, 2023

And any broken slat DO NOT throw away artists will buy those to paint on.

jaoneill · Apr 25, 2023

Most of the time they're left abandoned due to lack of money. I've got a 32x50 barn that's falling down and all I can do is watch. Can't even afford to hire someone to tear it down.[/quote]

I was in the same boat. The year after I sold the dairy cows (1989) a sizable section of roof blew off our already shaky, poorly built barn. knowing that its days of housing cows were over, I had two options: 1) spend $10K-$15K on repairs that would enable me to keep a high maintenance building on the (NYS) tax rolls and continue paying the taxes and annual maintenance on it. 2) let it go.

WNYBill · Apr 25, 2023

In NYS a barn will/should be assessed less than a storage/tool/machinery shed of the same size. Barns have no value and NYS assessing
is Ad Valorem, based on sale value.

barn roof

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