Nail Under a Sealed Shingle
Driving a nail into the covered nailing zone of a shingle without bending back the brittle course above it.
Roofing
Shingles, flashing, gutters, and tracking down leaks.
17 techniques
17 shown
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Shingles 2
Shingle Nail Placement
Placing shingle nails so the water channeling down every butt joint above never crosses a nail hole.
Flashing 4
Don't Caulk Above Openings
Leaving the siding joint over head flashing uncaulked — it's the drainage exit for water that gets behind the siding.
Kick-Out Flashing
The flashing at the bottom of a roof-to-sidewall run that diverts runoff into the gutter instead of down the siding.
Siding Butt-Joint Flashing
Slipping a flashing piece behind each siding butt joint instead of relying on caulk.
Sloped Window Sills
Pitching a rough sill with a back dam so water that gets past the window drains out instead of soaking the framing.
Gutters 3
Downspout Freeze Relief Y
An upside-down Y where a downspout enters a buried drain line, giving meltwater an exit at grade when the underground run freezes.
Downspout Assembly Basics
Building the offset in place instead of by formula, nesting each section into the one below, and keeping screws out of the water’s path.
Leaf Blower Gutter Cleaning
Clearing gutters from the ground with a leaf blower and an extension pipe hooked over the gutter edge.
Leak Repair 1
Patch a Rubber Flat Roof
Primer, seam tape and sealant with geotextile bedded in, so the patch flexes with the roof instead of cracking at the edge.
General roofing 7
Sheathing Strength Axis
Why a structural sheet's long dimension has to run across the rafters or joists it spans, and what happens to the deck when it doesn't.
Bend Aluminum Trim Coil
Folding trim coil to a crisp straight line in place — a light knife score and a block instead of a brake.
Read a Pitch on Site
Getting the pitch of a roof or ramp with a speed square and a level — or a hanging chalk line as the plumb reference.
Chalk-Lining Finish Fascia
Snapping a two-end chalk line so finish fascia installs dead straight over imperfect framing.
Plumb Cut vs. Heel Cut
The two rafter angles: the plumb cut matches the pitch angle, the heel cut is its 90-degree complement, plus the bevel when meeting an existing roof.
Rafter Layout With a 12-Inch Square
Laying out a common rafter's plumb, seat, and tail cuts with an oversized square — the pitch scale for plumb, the slot for level.
String-Line Fascia Straight
Offset blocks, a string line, and a gauge scrap that pull a long fascia run dead straight when there are no rafter tails to cut to a line.
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