Two roofers came out today and said very different (and
much more expensive) things than the two who had
been here before.
The tarp on the floor under the buckets leaked sometime last
night or this morning (sometime after I finally managed to get
to sleep, after the inflow slowed enough that I didn't have to
empty one of the buckets every half hour). Maybe the last piece
of plaster to fall down punctured it? Anyhow, the ceiling of
the bedroom immediately below is damp, and I think the bed got
dripped on. Bleah. Replacing the tarp later.
So ... dumping a bucket of Lysol (or bleach) on the
roof to let it follow the same path as the rainwater
did, so as to kill the mold that's probably growing in my walls
and ceilings: good idea or bad idea?
I did eventually get up on the roof myself, and saw a great
big crack near one end of the part where the tarpaper had blown
off. But I also saw a dip over the place where most of the
water comes in -- no obvious hole, but it looked like the material
had been worn down a bit as well as the wood under it sagging.
(Interestingly, the first two roofers said I didn't need to replace
the wood because, among other diagnostics, "it isn't sagging".
Did they just get distracted by the Big Obvious Problem and not
notice the more subtle one that's letting in more water? Both
of the guys who came out today said the existing asphalt needs to
be completely removed, not just covered over; and the wood underneath
inspected as it's uncovered, and replaced as needed on a sheet-by-sheet
basis.
The dip I'm talking about is the dark spot near the upper right
corner of the first photo in
my post on
the ninth.
Regarding putting plastic over the roof as a temporary measure
until work can start, I was cautioned not to use nails. So my plan
to use multiple tarps and overlap the edges (uh, shingle-style more
or less) is out. I need a single piece of plastic long enough to
span the length of the roof, front to back (and ideally side to side,
though perhaps I can get away with taping a seam if it's parallel
to the direction water will flow, instead of across the flow?).
And I'll need to sprinkle bricks or rocks all over to keep it from
ballooning up in wind. I'm supposed to be going out for a
not-Valentine's dinner with a friend later, so while we're out I'll
see whether there's an affordable sheet of plastic in suitable
dimensions at one of the big box hardware stores. (If it's only
supposed to last a couple of weeks, I can probably get away with
the cheap clear stuff instead of the heavy blue tarps I'd planned
to use if it needed to last any longer than that.)
I have a lot of towels to launder.