roof repair? or replace????

[Guest]

I'm new here and also to Mobile Home Ownership. I just crawled up on my roof and found out my "lifetime" spanish tile roof must have been for the lifetime of the previous owner. It not only doesn't have all the "caps" for joining it (dbl wide), ALOT of the 40 1/2" X15" tiles are badly cracked or totally broken off in places. I took one of the caps to a roofing wholesaler and they had never seen a tile like these. There's 6 "humps" on each tile. No idea where to purchase them. (MH is '72 Universal). The only thing I can think of is ripping off all the old tile (possibly there will be some plywood under it?????) and having some of the spray on stuff put on... Is that the least expensive roof in California (desert-HOT) My neighbors seems to have either that or composition shingles. Comp shingles are out of my price range right now, too much else to do on this fixer-upper. I can take photo if need be and try to post it. Thanks for any and all info/thoughts..

[Yanita]

Hi,

Welcome to the site.

I must admit I have never heard of a MH having a tile roof. Thats alot of weight.

If you could post us a pic. If you think you will be needing a new roof check the Articles link in the blue task bar above.

I saw another of your post, might I suggest the MH Repair manuel that is located in the BOOKS/PARTS link above.

Look forward to your future post and participation to the site. Lots of great folks here to help talk you thru the repairs.

Have a great night,

~Yanita~

[JD]

Hi Sheila,

Sounds like you have the plastic type tiles. Around here in Fresno, they came on and off the market in a flash. There are some excellent steel tile (looks just like tile or shake roof), but I would think that they would be too heavy for most MHs. They also wouldn't crack.

There may be sheathing under the tile, but most likely there will be 1x4s attached to the original roof. As far as cost goes, I think a comp shingle roof is one of the least expensive re-roof available, provided your home has sheathing and was originally built for shingles. If it was not built for shingles, I would not recommend using them.

When it comes to spray urethane, rubber and acrylic roofs, this material is applied with a very expensive spray rig. This type of roof should be installed by a contractor. In my area, these pros are getting $4500 to spray a single wide and $5500 to $10,000 for doubles, depending on which product you choose. Basically, you would get what you pay for on these sprayed products.

A DIY could spray or roll on an elastomeric roof, using Snow Roof, Kool Seal or similar elastomeric. While this would probably be the least expensive option, it is also very short lived.

The same process as the elastomeric roof can be applied using a true liquid rubber (EPDM) or rubber/latex blend. These products cost about $250 (Conklin) to $350 for a 5 gallon bucket (JNK products). These roofs are not cheap, even for DIY. The Conklin product requires a (same price) base coat and all of these products have a very thick viscosity, meaning less coverage per gallon. At the recommended 20+mil thickness, you will cover 50 sf per gallon. You can do the math on that one for your home. This will come out to a little over $2000 for an average double wide, using the Liquid Roof product (my preference), with all the accessories.

EPDM Liquid Rubber Roof
http://www.jnkproducts.com/liquid-rubber.htm

Conklin Rapid Roof Products
http://www.conklin.com/catalog/products ... f+Coatings
(go to page 2)
Also, Conklin is constantly looking for new "distributors". For an inexpensive sign-up fee, you can get the products MUCH cheaper.

Hope this helps,

JD

[Guest]

Thanks JD for the info. Ok, here goes MORE ??s... How do I tell if there's sheeting under the tiles? Rip one up? And how do I tell if the MH was designed for a comp roof? From the best I can tell the mfg of the MH is out of business (surprise, surprise!!). Since I've been burned by a "contractor" (who wasn't) before, does a roof person that applies this liquid roof need to be a contractor? Is a comp roof (if there's sheeting) something a female friend and I could do (with some internet education?) as most things, labor is the most expensive part! Also, alot of my neighbors that have the rubber/liquid roofs seem to have very large bubbles on their roofs. (older MH park so maybe they've not been taken care of). Thanks again.

[Guest]

Oh JD, I forgot to tell you the roofing contractor I went to said the tiles were made of concrete and something else..they're pretty heavy. Maybe that helps with and ideas you may have.

[JD]

Yep, pulling a tile or checking at the missing ridge cap tiles would be how to check for sheathing. Even then you can't be absolutely sure the sheathing isn't just at the ridge, eave and vents. If your tiles are a concrete based product, I would certainly think the roof would handle composition shingles. If this home had shingles on it originally you should be able to see the rows of nail/staple holes. Having the roof inspected by a mobile home qualified contractor, inspector or engineer might give you a correct answer also.

The Liquid Roof product can be done by a DIY home owner and would be an easier project than trying to learn and do a shingle roof properly. When you see bubbles in any of these "mop-on" products, it usually means that the area was not clean when the product was applied. The bubbles can also happen from air working it's way through sheathing seams, which is a sign of vapor barrier problems or something similar. While the bubbles don't look right at all, a quality product like the rubber or conklin stuff should not leak or tear at the bubbles. It is very strong stuff. The bubble could also be lanced and removed and new product applied as a patch. These products clean and accept the same product as a patch very well.

JD