Rotten Decking on Your Roof?

Jun 16, 2021 | Roofing

The roof deck or sheathing is a layer that is installed between the trusses & joists and underlayment layer in a typical roof install. The roof decking acts as a unifying structure by tying the trusses & joists together. This layer can be made of different materials like reinforced concrete, plywood or wood. Materials can rot because of contact with moisture. The damaged part of the decking requires replacement when rotting occurs.

Wood (or other) roof decking is located behind the shingles and functions primarily as a substrate to which shingles or other roofing materials are fastened. The roofing system on top of the decking prevents the interaction between wood decking and atmospheric agents. Unfortunately, sometimes shingle or other roofing materials fails to protect the decking. The moisture causes the rot of wood and leads to leaks and growing of mold inside the house.

Any roofing company will tell you that these processes are dangerous for the construction and its inhabitants. Mold removal is often a long-term and costly process. Fungus and other types of microorganisms that develop with the aid of moisture also cause different type of disorders like rashes, coughing, night sweats, asthma, or other types of allergies. The mold destroys the roof decking and adjoining constructions it comes in contact with. It is suggested that the mold from the wooden roof decking should be removed as soon as possible; this procedure can be done by removing the damaged portion of the wood decking and replacing it with new wood decking.

It is often difficult to identify rotten decking from the outside as it is covered by shingles. The decking may look normal, while moisture seeps through the material. Expert advice from a roofing company should be sought to check the decking condition both from the outside and from the inside (attic). All damaged areas should be marked for the future replacement. It is easy to note the rotten decking as it differs visually from the normal wooden surface.

The replacement of rotten decking will be done from the outside. A repair crew of aroofing company will need appropriate safety gear to protect themselves from falling. The necessary tools are: pry bar, putty knife, saw, hammer, pliers, snips or utility scissors. Repairers also will need nails, plywood (to cover the area, where the rotten decking was removed from), flashing materials, and roof cement or caulk.

First the repair crew from a roofing company removes all shingles over the damaged area with the aid of pry bar, putty knife and pliers. The same thing will be done with the roofing felt/underlayment under the covering; the material will be cut with the utility knife. Repair crews should mark roof rafters before sawing to prevent the damage of supporting constructions. Their locations are shown by the nail pattern. Then the saw is used to remove the rotten areas. Pieces fixed with nails on joists will be removed by lifting them up with the pry bar. The cleaned area will be covered by the piece of plywood with the same thickness and dimensions as the damaged/removed pieces. After the panel is fixed in place with nails, it will be covered by the sheet of roofing underlayment. Then the repair crew puts shingles on the area (the new, or removed shingles if they were not damaged) and fastens them with nails. Their heads can be covered with the roofing cement for additional protection from water. Lastly, any flashing near the repair should be examined and possibly replaced as its integrity may have become compromised during the repair process.