On Fri, 04 Sep 2009 12:39:54 -0500, dpb wrote:

Jules wrote:
...
It's not something I want to get stuck into this year - just looking for
ideas and options right now. Maybe next Spring after it's warmed up a
little, and if time and money allow (that amount of shingles plus all the
lumber I'll need won't come cheap, I suspect)
...

Given the overall cost and effort, I'll reiterate don't sell short the
"find a cheap lift for the duration" option.

Yeah, that may well be the way to go. I still think a standard cherry
picker won't reach, but something a bit more heavy-duty might. Due to the
curve of the roof, it's the middle section each side that's probably the
harder bit; the bottom I can reach with ladders, the top's reasonably
'flat' if I can find a way up there - but the middle third's at quite
an angle.

Given that I know I'll have wood that needs replacing up there it's not a
quick job; I can see myself needing something for a week, and rental
for cherry pickers seems to be about $300/day around here. Buying then
selling (or talking myself into keeping is probably a good plan.

This old barn was still in solid shape (it's much drier here than MN so
that helps a lot) but w/ what siding that did need replacement and some
sill plate plus the roof material itself (got a year-end deal on 1/2"
shakes at $95/square as was this time of year after two _horrendous_
hail storms in town that spring left the building supply w/ more on hand
than wanted to store over winter) ended up into the $20K neighborhood.

Youch. I don't think it'll be that bad for me - I was guesstimating at
$10k for shingles but I've seen a few good deals on lately and it'll
probably be about a third of that for something that'll last (supposedly)
for 20-30 years.

I do have the end-wall which needs completely re-siding (and insulating -
basically strip back to frame and start again) so that'll be a couple of
thousand I expect. The frame needs fixing there, too - they built this
barn with a 3' tall concrete wall around 3-1/2 sides, but one half of one
end wall has the framing extending right to the ground. 60 years later,
it's all rotted out there, so I need to jack the hayloft floor and replace
the framework (I'm looking forward to doing that aspect, because it
doesn't involve falling off a roof :-)

It's an expensive project, and I don't even know what the heck I'll use
the barn for when it's done - just seems a shame to let it all collapse!

Is this an open (not solid sheathed) wood shingle roof I presume?

Yes (if I understand you) - the curved framing for the roof's made up from
a 3x6" laminate of 1x6" boards, 1x6" boards then nailed across that,
then boring ol' asphalt shingles on top.

There seems to be a tarpaper layer lower down; I don't know if that's
failed at the top of the roof (hence being able to see daylight in places)
or if it simply doesn't run the whole way up. Possibly the latter - the
way the barn's built it's as though they threw money at it when they had
it, and just worked with whatever material they could find when they
didn't.

Anyway, the upshot was the haymow as pretty full as well--didn't help
that the wind blew so hard and long it managed to work the haymow door
open along its sliding track either, of course.

Yuck. Ours has one of those huge hayloft doors with the hinges along
the bottom (and a smaller door with vertical hinges set within it).
There's a rail at roofline height with a rope/pulley system that's
supposed to allow the larger door to safely lower, but I doubt it's worked
in years (I know they had cows in there in '68, but I suspect it wasn't
much long after that when the previous owners stopped using and
maintaining it, judging by how bad the roof is)

cheers

Jules