# Best way to tarp roof?



## Gary in WA (Mar 11, 2009)

Addition ties to house roof: Anytime you overlap, you are asking for a leak. I buy the big ones, 50x40', or so. Get it on the roof, run 3' over the ridge, and nail it down with 2x4's flat on top. Tie a rope to each lower corner, with a tennis ball (slit) tied to other end. Throw ball to ground close to tie-off location. Pull tarp down, spreading it tight. Nail perimeter 2x4's to hold side edges down, tie off bottoms, including every 6' spaced ropes. If really windy, make one roll with each 2x4 before nailing. 

Addition ties to house siding: Nail tarp to sides of rafter/truss tails on house over addition location. Nail end of rope(100') to house side of tail about 6' in from end of tarp. Thread rope through pulley, attach pulley to house tail in front of tarp, with loop going under hanging tarp (think Roman shade). Same on other end. Attach 2x4's to bottom of tarp for weight and keeps tarp spread out. Pull ropes, lifting tarp by rolling up in place, and tie off. Finish day's work, lower tarp, pull over work by attached tie ropes, secure. Be safe, G


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## jogr (Jul 24, 2007)

Thanks GBar. 

The cheapo tarps at Menards and such seem to snag and open on any wood sliver or bump so I know those are a waste of money. Do you have any advice on what kind of tarp to get that will only be used a few times by a DIYer? It probably doesn't need to hold up as well as something that pros would use every day. Is there any tape that can be used to fix a stray hole or in tarps?

I've got quite a bit of leftover very heavy poly from my concrete slab work. It's wide enough and plenty long for the opening I'll have. From working with it I know it's tougher than those cheapo tarps and can be patched with the right tape. It might be too slick to walk on but it's a 4/12 roof and I could probably avoid walking on it. I could wrap the edges around a 2x4 to nail down. Do you think that would work or bad idea?


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## Scuba_Dave (Jan 16, 2009)

I used 2 tarps on my house when I dormered the back
The 2nd one overlapped by about 6' or more
The top went over the peak & securely nailed down
I used ropes to tie the lower ends down 
It was fairly quick to untie & roll the tarps up, or roll them down
I did all the demo work inside 1st
I also prebuilt the walls inside, ready to go up
So once the roof was off the new roof went up pretty quickly


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