Employee Manual www.ReliableAmerican.us/corporate

How to install a shingle roof...
A Foreman's Perspective.

This document is intended for use by team leaders (AKA Foremen) of a shingle roofing crew. As a foreman you must look at the job differently than an installer might. It is your responsibility to maintain a safe and smooth running job site and by studying this document you will have the necessary tools to run a safe and smooth job site.

Some things you must consider: First and foremost YOU are in charge of this job. Your primary duties are no longer that of an installer. You should be the first one on the job and the last one off the job, expect to work an extra hour every day.

Planning
At the start of each day, it is your duty to plan the day. If you fail to plan, you are only planning to fail. First start by reading the work order COMPLETELY and if you have any question call the project manager IMMEDIATELY. Ask yourself the following questions to aid you in planning the job: What safety equipment is required on this job? Were all the materials on the work order delivered and were the materials the right color? Where shall I place the dumpster? How will the garbage be moved into the dumpster? On which side of the roof should I start?

• Read over your work order and make sure that it makes sense to you before any work begins. At the start of the job is the time to answer your questions, because if you wait until it's too late sometimes work will have to be un-done and re-done.
• You must always maintain a safe job site and work environment. Make sure you have all the safety equipment necessary for this job. Familiarize yourself with the Safety Manual. Think about what can go wrong and how to protect yourself and your crew. Hold a 5 minute safety meeting at the beginning of each day discussing what safety procedures you expect to be seeing from your crew.
• Check that the proper materials were delivered. Double check your work order for material types, colors and quantities. It has happened in the past that the wrong materials were ordered or the supplier made a mistake and delivered the wrong materials. Knowing this before the job starts will speed up the correction of the problem and allow the correct materials to be delivered ASAP. If the wrong materials, or not enough materials were delivered contact the project manager ASAP.
• Placing the dumpster as close to the building as possible is the best way to speed up a job. You can then throw the garbage directly into the dumpster. It is not always possible to place a dumpster directly next to the building you are working on, and if you have to place the dumpster in the street you should somehow reserve a parking spot for the dumpster.
• As stated above sometimes the garbage can be thrown directly into the dumpster. Sometimes the garbage must be dropped to the ground and moved by wheelbarrow, or by hand, to the dumpster. It is important to maintain a clean job site so you should delegate this responsibility to one, or multiple, crew members. Perhaps those who show up late have garbage duty?
• Knowing which side of the roof you are starting on encompasses many variables, mostly dumpster location. It is not wise to tear off the side of the roof closest to the dumpster then roofing that side of the roof and then drag old garbage across a new roof. You might also want to plan your elevations around the sun, and work in the shade on the hottest parts of the day. Remember never bite off more than you can chew and never tear off more roof than you can put back on in the same day. Always leave the job water tight over night.

Remember it is no longer your primary duty to install the materials. You will find yourself answering questions and supervising the crew, in addition to installing. It is important to check the details before and after, details such as flashings and valleys. These are critical areas and the roof is almost guaranteed to leak if installed improperly.

Standard shingle specification

You will find that most work orders are vague in description. That is because the project manager makes assumptions based upon our standard specification and you need to know the standard specification to fill in those blanks in the work order. Anything written on the work order supercedes this standard specification.

• Read the shingle wrapper to determine step pattern and exposure of the shingles. Different manufacturers have different patterns and exposures.
• Fix all rotten wood, and refasten any loose wood. Remove as many existing roofing nails as possible. It is preferred to remove roofing nails rather than pounding them back in.
• Ice shield should always be installed at least 1 1/2' past the exterior wall at gutter lines, this can be determined by measuring the over hang. Ice shield should always be installed 3' or more in every valley. Ice shield should always be installed at least 18" at the roof to wall intersections and around penetrations like chimneys and skylights. When installing Ice shield around chimneys and skylights be sure to wrap the ice shield up the penetration. When in doubt install Ice shield.
• Shingles are installed with a minimum of 4 nails per shingle, except on mansards which receive a minimum of 6 nails.
• Flashings should always be replaced when ever possible. This excludes situations when removing the existing flashing will cause damage to the skylight or aluminum siding. NEVER leave existing flashing if it is questionable, even if it will cause some damage. If you feel removal of some flashing will cause damage but will leak if not replaced, call the project manager. It is sometimes safe to re-use the skylight flashing on VELUX skylights if it is reset.

Some things to remember (critical details)

• Make sure that temporary supports are built around fragile plants where garbage might falls.
• Make sure tarps protect all walls and land scaping where garbage might fall. Never start tearing off a roof unless a tarp is hanging from that elevation. You can never have enough protection, this includes the neighbor's house.
• Garbage is heavy and WILL crush plants.
• Chalk you lines. Chalk your lines at least every 3 coarses, if for no other reason to be used as a reference point for your shingle coarses.
• Before shingling a valley determine from which direction the majority of the water will be flowing and instruct your crew to cut the valley accordingly.
• Make sure the jobsite is spotless and water tight before leaving for the day, even if you are returning the next day.