The Union and journal., 1860-01-20
Barn Roofs---Shingling.

II is important in our cold and rainy eli
mate to keep out all the wet ut almost any
cost. Ii is poor husbandry to build barns
and then suffer them to leak and rot the tim
Der inside as well as the hay.
In the country shingles are the only thing
worth naming for roofs. Good shingles only
Ndescryc regard. Iay good shingles properly
and they will last thirty years. No mend.
ing will be required except in places not well
executed by the carpenter; if there should
be leak, find out where It is and put on q
new shingle-not half dozen, as some men
do.
How TO SAVE MONEY IN sHINGLING.-lt
has long been rule among carpenters to lay
shingles 50 as TO have three thicknessesat the
least through the whole roof. Shingles four
teen or fifteen inches long are laid so as to ex-
pose but four and one-half inches to the
weather. Three times four and one-half arr
thirteen and one half-thus such shingles
lie thicker than three fold.
Now this is double waste-ior three
shingles, lying upon each other, will rot
much sooner than two shingles will, in that
position, for they are not so soon dried after
a storm. Ii is rOtting that must be guarded
against, more than all else The argument
that three thicknesses will prevent the blow
ing in of rain more than two will, proves too
much.
Why not double board the sides on the
same principle? Because none OF the boards
will last us long. So when roof is covered
with boards only, running up and down, and
battcned-the battcns should bc quite mar
row, and cover but little of the under board.
Otherwise both layers soon rot, as many peo-
pie know who have sheds with cheap roofs.
Shingles of fourteen or fifteen inches in
length should always be laid Sir inches to the
weather, that they may dry soon after rain
the sooner the better. Shingles worth lay
Ing never wear out in the common mode OF
laying; but il is well known that they often
rot out before they are half worn.
To keep shingles dry US possible, tight, or
close boarding under them should never be
permitted. lay upon the raitcrs narrow
strips of board, with open spaces, three inch
es between. Nail your shingles on to these
strips, and then You give them fair chance
to become dry on the under side after n
storm.
Good shingles always lie quite close enough
on the rooC-and though violent storms may
drive few drops under the shingles-this
happens in all roof-but here the shingles
are soonest dry.
SEE TIE GArN.-By laying shingles six
inches to the weather, instead of four and a
half, we save one-lourth of the shingles-onc
fourth OF the nails-and one-fourth OF the
labor of putting them on. And as this our
roof will last ut least one-fourth longer than
the other, we save much more than one-fourth
of the cost of lumber and of laying.
Many carpenters and builders have come
10 the conclusion that hgM boarding under
shingles is wrong; since the shingles rot
sooner than in open boarding. Yet we have
seldom seen a carpenter lay hisshingles more
than 4 l-2 inches TO the weather, let them be
long or short, good or bad Why is this
Because they would not depart from an an
cicnt rule.
Poor shingles are not worth taking as n
gift. Carpenters cannot lay half as many
in day. They never turn water wcll-and
they sOsn rot. Some men are well pleased
with sawed shingles, because they lie so close
to the boarding. But this is the cause OF
their rOtting sooner than the poorest kind Of
shaved shingles. There is a nap on them
that causes them TO retain any wet that hap
pens to come between them.
II any one doubts the propriety of laying
good shingles six inches to the weather rath-
or than four and half, we can show him
roofs, 20 years old, in good state of prcser-
yation, and more sound than Others laid with
three thickncSses.-Mass. Pioughman.