When laying the roof during repair, cleaning work, it becomes necessary to move along the roof. But if the structure is usually designed for a heavy load, this cannot be said about the material of the flooring.
Is it possible to walk on metal roof tiles
Whether or not you can walk on the roof is determined by 2 factors: the angle of inclination and the material of the roof. If the slope is steep enough, special devices are required to move. In this case, the load falls not on the roof, but on the supporting structures. If the slopes are gentle enough, you can move along them. And then the nature of the material plays a decisive role.
Most modern materials, with good resistance to wind and snow loads, are not designed for point pressure and are rather fragile.
- Profiled sheet - a thin profiled sheet of galvanized steel. Decking thickness from 0.4 to 0.8 mm. It flexes over a person's weight. In order to walk on the corrugated board on the roof and not crush it, you need to follow certain rules.
- Metal tile is a sheet with a more complex relief and a more durable, multilayer material. The specific relief increases the mechanical resistance of the roof, therefore it is easier to move along it, but ladders are used for movement.
- Flexible bituminous shingles - soft, resilient, glued to the crate. However, it is easier to move around on such a roof. Firstly, bituminous shingles are laid on a continuous crate, which increases its overall strength, and secondly, the shingles are overlapped, which also improves this indicator.
- Ondulin or other roofing material - also allows you to move around the roof without additional devices. However, this is not due to strength, but to the fact that a continuous crate is placed under the ondulin.
- Slate is a hard, but rather fragile material. He usually withstands the weight of a person, and prying with a hammer, an improperly driven nail have the most destructive effect.
If the roof is laid with ceramic tiles reinforced with slate, you can walk on it without fear.
How to walk on metal tiles so as not to wrinkle
You can walk on metal tiles during repair and installation, observing some rules.
- Under no circumstances should you walk on the tiles laid on the ground, in stacks, or when the slabs simply lie on the crate, but are not secured. The inherent mechanical strength of the material is low. As proof, you can lay a defective leaf on the ground and try. Dents remain even from a heavy object.
- It is recommended to clean the surface before going over the metal tile. Even small debris - pebbles, metal scraps, scale, shavings, sand, other construction debris, when displaced, damage a thin polymer layer on the metal. And this is fraught with corrosion and rusting of the entire sheet. Unlike steel alloy, the polymer coating is extremely sensitive to abrasive materials.
- The metal tiles are placed on the lattice lathing and fastened to the slats with nails. Such a section has the mechanical strength of the board and can withstand the weight of a person. If you need to walk on the roof, you can only do this along the mounting rails. Often, especially with a large sheet size, additional slats are installed, but they only serve as insurance against sagging.The material is not attached to them, so it is impossible to visually detect an additional rail.
- You need to step into the space between the waves. A raised ridge is much more sensitive to such a load and crumples under the weight. It is necessary to ensure that each step falls on the next conditional "tile". The foot is placed parallel to the ridge, the step is performed by rolling from heel to toe. You need to be especially careful in winter.
If you need to move around the roof a lot - during the repair, for example, cover the required area with soft material, like a mattress mat, and put boards on top. In this case, you can not be afraid to wrinkle the metal tile. It is advisable to lay the boards on the battens of the crate.
It is recommended to wear shoes or sneakers with soft soles when repairing a roof. Then the profiled sheet is more difficult to scratch or wrinkle.
How to climb a metal roof
The standard way to climb onto the roof is to place a ladder over the overhang. However, in the case of metal tiles, this is fraught with deformation. If installed correctly, the overhang reaches 40-50 cm and is not reinforced with anything.
To climb onto a sheet metal roof, use the following methods.
- At the place of support, a soft gasket is laid. It will protect against scratches and wrinkling, but will not provide a firm footing.
- The best method is to enter the roof through a roof window. The attic window is also suitable, but if it does not go to the pediment, but to the ramp.
- When installing the roof, ladders and erection ladders are installed. The edge of the latter extends slightly beyond the edge of the overhang. The ladder is supported on a solid metal structure and climbed up.
With a large angle of inclination, the ladder on the slope is mounted by default, regardless of the material of the flooring.
Rules for handling metal tiles
Metal tile is a high-quality, durable material, but it is designed for a specific load. During storage, transportation, laying, in order not to damage the material, it is necessary to follow some rules.
- During transportation, the sheets are stacked on top of each other and fixed. For this, the transport must be equipped with special devices.
- Unloading is carried out both manually and using lifting equipment. The first option requires at least 1 person per 1.5–2 running meters of the product. The minimum number of workers is 2 people.
- It is necessary to take metal tiles by the edges of the stamping lines from the sides. In other areas, the material wrinkles more easily.
- The sheets are lifted to the roof along the guides installed from the ground to the cornice. If the height of the building is too high, a wooden lifting structure is assembled. They put a metal tile in it and raise it in this form.
- You need to transfer sheets vertically. This way, sagging is avoided.
- Only soft slings are used to lift or move metal tiles.
- After unloading and installation, minor scratches and abrasions often appear on the material. These damage must be repaired immediately.
Metal tiles are a very popular roofing material. However, it belongs to thin-sheet materials. When installing, transporting, securing or repairing it, certain rules must be followed and caution must be exercised.
