Painting a roof

[Panda]

Hi all,
I'm about to paint a roof of an old QLD'er? about 40% of the guttering also needs replacing. This is my plan so far,

- I thought I would start with the painting of the roof (corrugated iron) then move down to the gutters (replacing and painting), then move onto the exterior weather boards

Here is the roof plan (comments welcome)
- Hit the roof with a wire brush or wire wheal on a drill to remove surface rust. Repair any rusted areas. Should I be doing any sealing around nails etc??
- Hose the surface and allow to dry
- Place a coat of Penatrol onto the surface possibly 2 coats
- Use a full gloss roof paint like walpamur 2 x coats
- I have a small Wagner spray gun with a flexi extension. I thought I would give that a go. I have used the full airless ($4000) type guns for interiors, however, I don’t think I need that here. Its going to be either the spray gun or a corrugated roller with extension.


Any comments or recommendations,


Cheers,
Panda

 

[demoman]

hi panda,

Good luck I'll never do a roof again.

Sounds like you've got the process pretty well sorted.

I found the wire brush best for the rusty bits then applied rust converter.

The corrugated roller didn't work too well for me as the ridge parts of the corrugations didn't accept the paint as well as the valleys. The spray gun would be the go.

Watch your footing after the first coat as the roof becomes a bit slippery ( keep plenty of clean undies at hand )......my experience anyway.

Cheers

Jared

 

[Panda]

heheheh.... I don’t have many pairs of undies I suppose its time to buy some more. Anyway lets not go there....


Did you use a safety harness? I’m a bit of a safety nut so I think I will check those out. And why would you never do a roof again?


Cheers,
Panda

 

[Tools]

Panda,
I wouldn't be using a full gloss for a roof.Dulux mak apaint specially for roofing that will stand up to the sun.

Tools

 

[skater]

hi panda,

Good luck I'll never do a roof again.

Sounds like you've got the process pretty well sorted.

I found the wire brush best for the rusty bits then applied rust converter.

The corrugated roller didn't work too well for me as the ridge parts of the corrugations didn't accept the paint as well as the valleys. The spray gun would be the go.

Watch your footing after the first coat as the roof becomes a bit slippery ( keep plenty of clean undies at hand )......my experience anyway.

Cheers

Jared

Agree with everything Jared has said.

We tried to paint the roof of the PPOR many years ago. It was rusted as well. The wire brush helped remove the rust as well as make the small puttyable holes larger.

The corrugated roller is the most stupid gimmick I have seen for relieving you of your money as it does not work at all. We found that the corrugated iron had different sized valleys & troughs to the ones on the roller. As Jared says use a spray gun, thats what the professionals do. We didn't even think of using a spray gun (we were young & stupid).

We didn't use a safty harness & we kept sliding down. I actually fell of once. That was when we gave up & decided to let the damn thing rust away for a couple of years until we could afford to replace it. My recommendation: USE A SAFTY HARNESS.

 

[Panda]

Thanks Tools I'll check that out. However, the paint that I mentioned is a paint specifically for the roof. It is roof paint. I'm going the silver tin colour, not sure what its called. Did you think that I was referring to a non-roof paint?

Cheers,

Panda

 

[Panda]

sound like this roof is going to be fun

 

[geoffw]

Many many years ago (pre ww2) my uncle (according to family folklore) painted the roof of his parent's house. It was summer, and it was extremely hot. He worked extremely hard, and the roof was completed.

That night, they had the first rain for many months- and it poured down. The paint was not waterproof.

He never painted the roof again.

 

[Tools]

oops,after re reading your post Panda,you did specifically say roof paint.Sorry.

Tools

 

[plumtree]

Dear Panda,

I would do the gutters asap! I think that gutters are very important on a weatherboard house. They offer protection from water and uncontrolled water benefits termites.

First thing in painting a roof is to ensure the iron is solidly in place. When you find loose 'nails' don't hammer them back in consider a new roofing screw. This is a job you will want to do once only. The roof joists will no doubt be as hard as concrete so be prepared! Loosened 'nails' driven back in just do not want to hold and will come loose again in the next big wind.

Your choice of paint is good on an old roof because you will get a different texture where the iron has rusted. I think the colour name may be "silvermist" but be wary of a gloss paint for this reason.

I admire your industry! I have found that paying an expert roof renovator worth the expense in time and money. My first roof took me almost a month to complete whereas the bloke I hired took 2 days (& $2000) and painted and restored the works. He used a harness and a water blaster? to do the cleaning. He then sprayed the penetrol & paint premixed as a first coat. Just paint for the second coat.

Good Luck.

 

[pulse]

I've done a small flat roof, the old paint was peeling, minor rust only. I cleaned with a GMC high pressure cleaner, took off 99% of the old paint. Then I spot primed the rusty areas and used a hand held krebs airless sprayer. It had an extension tube into the bucket of paint. The whole process took 4 hours over two days. It is best to work systematically, spraying bands across the roof while facing up the slope. Scaffolding would be a good idea. If it is steep the a harness is good, but would probably drag through the wet paint. Also don't paint in the evening or early morning, wait until the iron is warm, you don't want condensation.

Here is a photo of the roof, no "after" photo yet

Cheers
Pulse

 

[demoman]

Hi Panda,

Looks like there's plenty of people here who have been down the roof painting road.

Our roof was on an old Victorian ( era not state ) cottage and was quite a steep pitch. Add to that the fact that I'm not good with heights and you may understand better why I will never do another. I had a climbing rope tied off on one side of the house and the other end around me. The whole process was incredibly uncomfortable with the heat coming off the roof and the paint spilled and I slipped into the guttering and ruined that etc etc.

Anyway, the thing was I finished the job eventually to the amazement of my neighbors and it looked great for many years until we sold. BUT I could have been doing other things that I'm better at and finished the whole reno much quicker by paying a professional to do it. ALSO and more importantly, I could have really hurt myself all for the sake of a few dollars saved and being too stubborn to recognize it. In short being keen isn't necessarily being smart.

I don't want to deter you in any way but maybe it wouldn't hurt to get a few quotes and see what you think after that. Good luck with it.

Plumtree - some good advice there.

Pulse - that's not a roof, it's a walk in the park ( just jokes )

Cheers

Jared

 

[Panda]

Thanks everyone, however I must admit I am starting to worry about the roof now I know from experience when lots of people say the same thing about a reno job I should listen. Its actually a pretty big roof and quite steep in some areas. Maybe I could just not do it at all

The only reason Im doing the roof is becuase it looks pretty bad because of the surface rust. I am going to paint the out side or the house and do the gutters and immediatly after get a valuer in.

I renovated 90% of the interior a year ago. I have another project that might be on the table so I want to get a reasonable valuation (I know there has been some CG already), but I am aware that I am tending to want to fix everything, which I have held myself back from. From a rental perspective it will add no value, its purely for the valuation.


What do you guys think. Will that have much of an effect on the valuation? Will the house look unfinihed with a gleaming exterior and a rusty roof? hmmm..

Panda

 

[skater]

Around where I live there are notices on lampposts advertising $850 to paint a roof. Maybe that's an option.

 

[depreciator]

I've seen notes like that, too Skater. They're usually on telegraph poles.

I want to paint my PPOR roof white before next summer to cut down on the heat. It's a flat tin roof (fairly new) on a 2 storey building and can't be seen from any vantage point (except a plane) so I don't care what it looks like.

I'll be paying someone. The risk, coupled with the need to hire a 30 foot ladder and buy material means it makes sense.

Of course, when they realise the roof can't be seen or accessed without a 30 foot ladder, they'll be inclined to take some short cuts so I'll have to keep an eye on them - maybe from a plane?

I also want to put some of those round spinning vents in the roof. Anybody have an opinion on them?

 

[Merovingian]

I also want to put some of those round spinning vents in the roof. Anybody have an opinion on them?

The ol' whirlygigs. Our next door neighbour self-installed four of them on his roof, and swears by them — especially in summer. He installed them last summer, for memory, and noticed the improvement immediately.

The roof was a tin tile roof, on a house about 35 years old. The dimensions of the roof are probably about 15 metres by 8 metres, just to give you an idea.

They are also visible from both our houses, and they don't look too bad.

I'm not sure of the price of them, though — although I don't believe they're terribly expensive.

 

[knightm]

they are called "whirlybirds" (and probably other more technical things as well) my bro has put them in a few places. Great for removing heat from the roof cavity for hotter climates(even sydney in summer), make sure you get one that can close, so you don't suck all the heat out in winter.

oops just saw your post merovingian

 

[Merovingian]

they are called "whirlybirds" (and probably other more technical things as well) my bro has put them in a few places. Great for removing heat from the roof cavity for hotter climates(even sydney in summer), make sure you get one that can close, so you don't suck all the heat out in winter.

oops just saw your post merovingian

Yup, also called whirlybirds.

Here's a nice link I found — no prices quoted though.

 

[depreciator]

Thanks for that everyone.
I'll bung a couple in.
Ceiling insulation will go in shortly, too.
I'll do everything to avoid putting in air con - I just don't like it. I also reckon that there are only about 20 days every summer in Sydney where it's really necessary.
Scott

 

[skater]

I also want to put some of those round spinning vents in the roof. Anybody have an opinion on them?

We put them in about a year ago. They were quite cheap. I haven't noticed if they make a difference or not though as we also put in ducted air-con & insulation at the same time.