? About roofover in Marks book...... & my current roof

[artzypantz]

Hi everyone

After dealing with the AC, now its time to move on to the roof.
1977 single 14x80 original metal roof is whats there now.
I'd like to do the roofover with new metal like the one in Marks book.
I have tiedown straps (metal straping), and some type of cable (anchor?) that go over my roof right now.
My questions are:

1- would i be able to put the tiedown & anchor cable back over the new roof if done like in Marks book?

2- Do i have to be able to get under the trailer to take the tiedown and cable(anchor?) off the roof?
(the reason for asking this is my metal skirting is actually down in the ground about 3 to 4 inches and i don't want to have to dig it out to remove the skirting)

3- What if i want to put a 4 inch over hang or sofit/facia type thing on my new roof like in Marks book........will i be able to reinstall the tiedown and cable (anchor?) over the new roof with sofit/facia??

4- What if my current roof has large dents (valleys) from the previous owner walking on it? Will the roof over job in Marks book work in this situation??

5- How can i tell where the roof joist (stud) is at to screw the new roofing to?
Start at the edge of the front of the trailer and measure back 16 inches continuously???
What do you do if one of your roof joist are broken & you don't know it?? Open your ceiling and try to support it by reconecting with new boards?

6- I have seen trailers in my area that have a shingled wood roof on them now, Can i put one of those roofs on my trailer??
How would one go about doing this?

I don't have marks book, but i am ordering it today as soon as i am done writting this.
I was sitting out side and these things started coming to mind.
I was unsure if Marks book on mobile home repairs upgrade covered any of these issues or not. Some books cover general areas and other books cover various senarios. I don't really know how Marks book is. Reguardless, i am purchasing it.

Thanks for any help, advice, opinion, etc.
It is greatly appreciated!!!
God Bless!
Tonia

[JD]

Hi Tonia,

You may want to check on your home's build and local code. A 1977 would probably have internal over the home galvanized straps built into the walls, under the siding and below the roof metal. I don't think you would be required to use external straps if you use a more modern anchor strap system that goes from the ground to your frame. There are several different types of anchors and models of strap systems.

I would not want a strapping system over the new roof because it is bound to create rusting and other damage. With an overhang, the strap would only be effective if it went through the roof at the top of the wall rather than around the overhang.

If the dents are between sound roof trusses, then you are probably OK. The end to end wood nailers (or whatever they would be called) would support the steel panels. If any of your trusses feel soft or nonexistent, then they should be repaired. They could be broken or the webbing could have come apart. You should be able to feel every truss as you walk across the roof.

Repair of the trusses could be done through the top of the roof instead of through the ceiling, since you will be installing a new roof anyway. I would open a door like cut between the trusses, leaving one long side attached, to get access to the trusses. Repair the trusses (you could reach two trusses from one opening) and then fold the metal back down and install a patch over the cut. A patch would give back some of the strength that the original metal roof had. For the patch on a galvanized roof, I would use galvanized metal with a sheet of 30# roofing paper sandwiched between the metal patch and the old roof. This will act like an insulator to deter metal to metal electrolysis that occurs when sheet metal is laid directly on top of each other.

This is just my opinion for your repairs. Others may have good ideas also. Again, check to see if you must use over the roof strapping. That is an old technique that has been replaced by internal strapping and ground anchors to the I beams.

JD