Installing a Faux Slate Roof

By Tara Build It How-to Roof

Re-roofing a house can be an overwhelming prospect. That said, there’s a lot of instant gratification in roofing, and if done on a beautiful day, it can even be (dare I say it?) fun. Whether you’re looking to save money or just have a hand in sheltering your old home, some roof projects are worth undertaking.

For me, providing the labor meant I could install a premium, historically accurate roofing product while protecting my budget. The roof of our century-old Foursquare had been replaced with three-tab asphalt shingles, but we couldn’t use the original products (asbestos shingles) to resurrect its character. Other homes of our vintage—along with many buildings in our town—were roofed with slate, a seemingly ideal compromise. But installing a genuine slate roof would mean re-framing the entire roof system to carry the weight.

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