What should I use on a simple shed roof?

Motorcycle Mike

Motorcycle Mike

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I am building a simple 4x8 lean-to shed like this: http://www.hometips.com/diy-how-to/leanto-shed-build.html

I am planning to do it as cheaply as possible, but still looking decent enough and withstanding the elements.

I originally planned to just do asphalt shingles, as I would likely only need 1 bundle, until I realized that not only would I need one bundle, but also roofing roll ?, shingle caps?, felt? -- all coming in bigger quantities than I need. I really don't know what I would need, as I have never roofed before -- anyway, it all seems like a pain in the butt for a small 4' x 8' roof.

Are there any simple and cheap alternatives that I could use that would still look decent enough and protect the shed and contents? Is roof sheet metal cheap enough, and do they make any that runs like: ||||||| instead of ==== ? Could I get a sheet of metal that runs ==== and cut it in half in order to run |||||||?

Any other ideas?
 
Forget the felt etc get a starter strip and a bundle of shingles it is easy, or get a sheet of barn steel and you are done.
 
Scuba Steve said:
Forget the felt etc get a starter strip and a bundle of shingles it is easy, or get a sheet of barn steel and you are done.
Click to expand...

+1 to shingles. If you know any roofers, they always have some overstock laying about used for starters, ask nicely and they might give ya some.
 
you're over complicating things....sheds do not need to be built to same code as houses, same with their roofs, in fact a lot of houses are not built to housing code, unfortunately. You dont need felt or tar paper underneath.

Get two bundles. in fact if you want em, come and get em, i have extra bundles that i cant give away, lol. dark gray.

Use shingles on side and bottom edges flipped up side down as starters, do the rest of the roof and then cut the remaining shingles in threes to get your caps. Me and my buddy did my house roof and i did my 6x12 shed by myself.

btw cut the shingles for caps so they look like this:

http://www.hammerzone.com/archives/roof/maintenance/reshingle_3tab/asphalt/peak_details.htm
 
I built my shed 20+ years ago and just used shingles and never had a problem. The shed is unheated and a lot of the "Builder bling" stuff is for heated buildings. If you really want tar paper I think I have a roll somewhere. PM me with what you need if you want to bother and I'll try to find it.
Unless you're going "Holmes on Homes" you don't need it.

PS The link talks about a shed 6 feet long. Making it 8 feet long is only a few $$ more if you have room. Sheds are never big enough. As soon as you finish it everyone suddenly "Finds" stuff that needs to go in there. Lock it and have the only key surgically attached to your body.

Check Craigslist for free stuff like patio stones for the base. They're better than plywood IMO.
 
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^^ Agreed. i had a 6x6 shed that came with the house and it wasnt big enough....to make it worse, the door opens to the inside, so 1/4 of the damn thing is taken up by the swinging door.

I ripped one wall off, extended the shed by 4 feet and continued the roof slant. I can now park 4 bikes in the extended portion and have built a storage rack above the bikes easily doubling the capacity.

So now, in there i can park 4 bikes, lawnmover and my spare compressor and above it i have the large AC unit, my generator and 2 sets of winter tires plus my spare motorcycle parts...With material it probably cost me less than 300 for everything. 3 extre concrete pillars, 2x4's, plywood, vinyl etc etc.
 
Shingles....cheap and quickly installed. and looks great after.
 
Here's a cheap option for you. I work at a Ford Dealership and we have an abundance of tailgate protectors. You can have as many as you like.
Cheap? Doesn't get any cheaper.
Effective? Mostly.
Pretty? Probably not.
 
If only they were 8' wide -- then I could overlap 3 or 4 of them and I'd have a kick as roof.

As it is, I will probably just do shingles. The shed is built now, just needs some protection.

sportbiker_kev said:
Here's a cheap option for you. I work at a Ford Dealership and we have an abundance of tailgate protectors. You can have as many as you like.
Cheap? Doesn't get any cheaper.
Effective? Mostly.
Pretty? Probably not.
Click to expand...
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