I’m a Roofah!

Or, if you’re not from the Boston area, I’m a roofer.  And not really, but my friends invited me to help them roof their barn in exchange for free knowledge.  I told them I’m always down to be their free-labor guinea pig!  The more I learn, the better it will serve me in the future when I’m renovating hubby’s and my retirement house in Hawaii wistful sigh.

When I arrived, Briggs [Ab’s hubby] told me that Abbie and I would serve as ground crew while he prepared the roof for the metal roofing tiles he’ll start putting up next weekend.  So mostly we stood on the ground handing him up pieces of wood that he nailed to the barn roof over a layer of blue insulation paper.  Briggs had just started laying the paper, wood flashing, and batton boards when I arrived at 11.  I climbed up the ladder for a closer look:

226a        226b

While Briggs worked on the roof, Abbie and I un-tarped the metal roofing tiles in the driveway and moved them one by one from a pallet up onto the nearby sawhorses:

226c        226d

When we were done, I snuck into the back yard to say hi to their chickens [and one rooster named “Stew”] who were snacking on some fresh pumpkin pieces:

abbie and briggs chicken coop with chickens and 1 rooster        abbie and briggs chicken coop with chickens and 1 rooster

Meanwhile, Briggs was making great progress with the roof – I went back up the ladder to hold a piece of wooden edge flashing while he nailed it down:

226g        226h

Here’s some great pics Ab got of me helping Briggs with cutting boards and climbing up to help:

cutting batton boards for briggs to nail to the barn roof        climbing the ladder to hand briggs wooden batton boards

At the end of the day, I finally got up on the roof!  The wooden battons act like steps, making it much safer to climb to the top:

me and briggs sitting on the barn roof         

Here’s 2 pics I took from the top [you can see Ab in the 2nd one, getting ready to take our picture]:

view from briggs and abs barn roof        view from briggs and abs barn roof including abbie

And some pics Ab took from the back side of the barn:

me and briggs sitting on the barn roof         me and briggs sitting on the barn roof

Next weekend I get to go back and actually help install some metal roofing tiles – woohoo!!!  Thanks Ab and Briggs for letting me help, and thanks for the delicious lunch!

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8 thoughts on “I’m a Roofah!”

  1. You are braver than me getting up on the roof. I might be able to get UP, but I would be paralyzed trying to come down! 🙂 Nice chicken house. Looks like it’s chilly back there!

    Reply
    • I was worried about getting down, too, but it was a piece of cake – Briggs talked me through it and also held the ladder steady while I got back onto it. That helped a lot!

      Reply
  2. What a great project and what fun that you could help out!
    Love Ab and Briggs’ barn – what a great house, barn, piece of property, and location they own!
    Careful Alison – I’m with Ab, I don’t like high places!

    Reply
    • They have an amazing setup! Love the house, the barn, and the rooms in between! After jumping out of a plane heights don’t bother me much anymore. Especially when there’s someone around to call 911 🙂

      Reply

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