The last couple of decades have clearly shown that the science of construction is developing rapidly - technologies and materials appear that until recently seemed fantastic. One of these innovations, which is gaining more and more popularity in private construction, has become bituminous tile roofing.
The bituminous tile is a piece soft roofing material. Structurally, these are small fiberglass sheets impregnated with polymer bitumen.
From the outer upper side, the tiles are covered with basalt or mineral chips, which increase the mechanical strength of the roof and give it an original textured design. From below, the tile is covered with an adhesive bitumen-polymer layer, which ensures reliable fixation of the roof to the substrate.
Benefits of a soft roof
Bitumen shingles as roofing attracts a large number of builders and designers.
This is due to a number of advantages inherent in soft roof:
- ease of installation. Minimum skills are enough to independently lay the tiles and cover the roof of your house;
- high durability. Bitumen and fiberglass are not subject to corrosion, significant thermal deformation and decay;
- excellent waterproofing properties;
- resistance to ultraviolet radiation;
- the ability to cover curved surfaces of complex configuration with an arbitrary slope (even vertical planes);
- high aesthetics. Various manufacturers offer a very wide range of colors of shingles. The finished roof with bituminous tiles most of all resembles snake scales;
- small specific gravity. The tile is very light, which allows you to install lightweight truss frames;
- low coefficient of thermal expansion, which allows it to be operated in any climatic zones;
- good soundproofing properties. The combination of a plastic bituminous layer and basalt topping perfectly dampens the sound of raindrops and hailstones hitting the roof.
There is, perhaps, only one drawback of shingles as roofing - the need for careful preparation of the base surface.
As you can see, bituminous shingle roofing is one of the best roofing options for private houses.
The structure of the soft roof
To your attention! Now let's talk a little more about the device of soft roofing. Like any other type of roofing, shingles are just the tip of a complex roofing pie. Directly under the tiles is the base, which can be made of OSB boards, moisture-resistant plywood or boards. Boards must be impregnated with antifungal and refractory solutions.
The base rests on the crate and rafters, between which a layer of thermal insulation is laid. Thermal insulation from below is lined with a vapor barrier.
Tip! For high-quality laying of bituminous tiles, careful preparation of the base is of paramount importance - it must be perfectly even and dry.
Ventilation ducts or cavities are necessarily organized under the base of the soft roof.
If ventilation is not provided for, then moisture accumulating under the base will lead to swelling of the wooden elements of the roof structure and a decrease in the fastening strength of individual sheets of tiles and the entire roof as a whole, which will inevitably significantly reduce the life of the roof.
The installation of bituminous shingle roofing is quite simple, but in order for the roof to last a long time and not require regular repairs, all layers of the roofing cake must be done in strict accordance with the instructions for preparing and laying the tiles.
Installation of a soft roof
As mentioned above, the installation of a roof with shingles begins with a thorough preparation of the base. The best material for the substrate are OSB boards.
They provide the necessary rigidity and evenness of the surface at a relatively low cost and sufficiently high durability.
The substrate must be level, clean and dry. For reliable waterproofing, under the shingles of bituminous tiles, an additional lining carpet is laid from rolled material (such as glass isol or roofing material).
Advice! At the same time, please note that at roof slope angles of more than 18 degrees, lining must be done only in places with an increased risk of leaks - along valleys, cornices and overhangs. With smaller slopes of the slopes, the lining carpet is laid along the entire slope from the bottom up. The overlap is at least 100mm. The rolls are fastened with galvanized nails to the base and the overlap places are sealed with bituminous mastic.
Installation of roofing from bituminous tiles begins from the middle of the lower edge of the slope.
At first, a rectangular cornice tile is laid along the edge roof overhang, and then raise the rows up. The first row of shaped tiles is laid so that the bottom of the shingle petal is 20-30 mm from the edge of the eaves.
Then the bituminous tiles are cut flush with the edge of the eaves and must be glued with 10 mm bituminous glue.
The procedure for laying tiles is quite simple:
- From the wrong side of the plate, remove the protective film, warm it up with a building hair dryer and put it in place.Additionally, the bituminous shingles are fixed in place with galvanized nails so that the nail heads are hidden under the top layer of the shingles. Also, when nailing the tiles to the base, you should make sure that the heads of the nails do not go deep into the plates, but at the same time grab them tightly enough to the tree. Laying rows of shingles is done so that the top shingle covers the nail heads of the bottom row.
- Finally, the tiles are fixed under the influence of solar heat - heating slightly melts the bituminous base and the tiles stick together with each other, as well as with the base. If laying is carried out in the cool season, it is recommended to heat the tiles with a building hair dryer to seal the joints.
Attaching tiles to the wall
At the junction of the roof to the vertical wall, a metal triangular rail is stuffed. The tile is laid on the lower part of the lath, and on top of it a valley carpet made of rolled material is laid with an overlap on the wall.
The roll is glued to the tile and wall with bituminous mastic, which provides sufficient waterproofing.
The width of the overlap strip to the wall should not be more than thirty centimeters, and in snowy regions, it can be up to seventy centimeters.
The upper part of the junction is covered with a metal apron. The apron is attached to the wall in any convenient mechanical way and sealed with bituminous glue.
Organization of chimney and ventilation pipes
If the dimensions of the chimney exceed 50 cm, and it is located across the slope, it is recommended to arrange a groove in the upper part of the pipe. It will prevent the accumulation of a large amount of snow above the pipe.
All terminals of antennas, pipes, attic vents, etc. are sealed with special aprons for soft roofing. These aprons are laid on the base and fixed with galvanized nails.
Further, when laying bituminous tiles, it is cut off along the edge of the apron, placed on its edge and glued with bituminous glue.
After that, you can mount the required roof outlet.
Installation of ridge tiles
Ridge tiles, like eaves, have a rectangular shape, but fit across roof ridge the short side to the slope, the center line up the skate. Just like pitched, ridge tiles are fixed with galvanized nails, overlapped by 50 mm and sealed with bituminous glue.
Like pitched, ridge tiles are finally fixed and sealed after warming up by the sun or a building hair dryer.
And the last note - if your roof has places with a very complex profile and multiple intersections of surfaces, it is still worth contacting roofing specialists to properly lay the roof in difficult places.
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