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Old 02-28-09, 06:24 PM   #1
gascort
Helper EcoRenovator
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Saint Louis, MO
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Default I might need a new roof... and more.

So.... we bought our home almost two years ago. It's from 1920 and has had lots of stuff done to it over the years. This summer, while looking for ways to improve efficiency, I noticed that our house has a roof cap vent along the ridge, but no soffit vents. Further inspection revealed that the insulation up there was applied to the underside of the roof, not around the living area. We have an attic bedroom, so the sequence goes (from inside - out) sheetrock, fiberglass insulation, roof boards, felt/tar paper, shingles. NO AIR BREATHING ROOM! I felt a bit overwhelmed at the time, plus it was too hot to work up there, plus we had a baby. My plan was to add some soffit vents and to remove the insulation that was directly under the roof, at least the 30% of it that I had access to that was outside our bedroom.
Today I was working on a new patio in our backyard, spreading gravel base. I turned around toward the house and saw several areas of buckling!!!! They vary from 30cm to 1m wide, and probably rise 3-5cm from where they're supposed to be.
I'm scared. The roof was brand new when we bought the home, and we were not planning on having another huge expense (sewer broke last winter @ $3500). I just hope we get through the next few months without water leaks and that I can fix it myself, or with a little help from friends/family. We were planning on some more fun upgrades, like adding a bathroom and wood floors.
I'm thinking the solution will be to:
1. remove the sheetrock from the bedroom ceiling
2. use something to make some space between the bottom of the roof and the insulation. Possibly coroplast - I have plenty laying around that I got from campaigns. Maybe leave a 1.5cm gap for breathing.
3. reinstall sheetrock, with insulation between sheetrock and coroplast and wrapping down around the room, not extending past room's walls out onto eaves.
4. Install a few soffit vents, and if I can't find a way to get those to work, install gable vents (I think that's what they are - the ones on the sides of the house) as close to the attic floor as possible.
5. Figure out how to repair the roof, and pray that it doesn't require complete replacement.

Anyone have any experience/ideas here?

Hopefully this huge PITA will also come with some hefty energy savings after I do it right.

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