Use Chequer (Tread) Plate as Roofing Sheet?

Due to a fortuitous temporal co-incidence between two jobs that need to be done before winter I got to wondering if aluminium chequer (tread) plate can be used as roofing sheet.

The tread plate job needs one sheet cut into several strips. Cost £150 (ish) including cutting and delivery.

The felt over shuttering ply roof on my storage hutch behind the workshop needs re-doing. Looks OK but some of the ply is rot. Roughly £150 for plywood and felt with a fair stash of both left over. Hafta collect and cut too.

Two sheets of tread plate at £300 (ish) will cover the hutch roof and supply four sufficiently wide offcut strips to do the aforementioned tread plate job.

Cost being essentially the same tread plate will be less messing about, no felt and supplied cut to size, but will need a bit of creativity with silicon sealer round the edges and, probably, something made to put an upstand on the side that joins the workshop. But will it work OK?

Clive

And some insulation to prevent condensation on the inside?

Ally is light but treadplate thick and heavy - are you sure about using it? Could you not use copper roofing sheet? Quite thin and light probably much lighter than treadplate.

You will definitely need some thick insulation on the underside.

Brian

Brian, John

Insulation obviously needed to stop condensation. I have embarrassing quantities of 2" polystyrene sheet hanging around until it comes in handy so thats not an issue.

DMB

Not worried about the weight. Total roof area is about 15 ft x 2 ft and a bit. Question only arose due to the co-incidence of time and prices. Normally I'd have just done standard felt on ply but having just priced up the tread plate job the similarities in price made me say "Hang on!". Loosing all that polystyrene in a good cause being a side benefit.

Clive

Cut the bit off that you want and flog the rest on e-bay at an inflated price. Go out and buy a new shed ??

Polystyrene - great fire risk, use it wisely.

DMB , Treadplate comes in several thicknesses.

Speedy Builder5, I have used 2" polystyrene in my workshop roof. Its OK, just dont use gas torches in shed!As regards new shed, just helped a neighbour erect an Ebay shed. Quite flimsy thicknesses of timber but OK for the average garden shed, I suppose. Also been helping with one of the club's sheds. Old and cladding and some of the frame rotted. We stripped the outer cladding in stages and replaced with similar but thicker planks. It had previously been lined with some nasty stuff, might have been chipboard which had got very damp at the bottom. That's been replaced by 9mm(?) plywood. The door was also stripped to the frame and re-covered, with all new locks and bolts. We think that we now have an almost new shed for a bit under a grand. New roof and felt. Shed about 12 x 10 or 8ft.

Chequer plate has to be more expensive that just plain flat aluminium sheet. Or corrugated iron, or flat galvanised sheet.. Appropriate roofing sheet has the advantage of additional strength over flat sheet. Best of all, and still probably cheaper than chequer is insulated two layer roofing sheets with say 4in thick.

Bazyle

Difference between tread plate and plain alloy is less than you might think. For 1.5 mm thick plain alloy is about £110 for 2500 mm x 1250 sheet whilst 1.5 mm tread plate is about £140 inc VAT.

But this is one of those oddities where other factors make more expensive material into a cheaper job! With the tread plate I get free delivery and free cut to size with essentially no waste from 2 sheets. Other stuff coming on same order means the extra sheet moves me up into a higher discount bracket too.

Ply and felt I have to collect or pay minimum order delivery charge from the builders merchant then cut ply myself and when all is done will be left with about 2/3rds or more of a roll of felt left over and a significant bunch of none too useful ply offcuts. Bit like Colemans making their money from the mustard left on the side of the plate. Its the offcut waste and collection time or builders merchant delivery cost that makes the difference.

Proper corrugated roofing sheets can't be sealed against the end of my workshop and would need to be cut too. A job I hate with passion.

Its weird really but just this one time ...

Clive

Is EPDM (aka rubber membrane) an option rather than felt? Nowadays I always prefer it - it lasts basically forever, 20 years so far on my shed with no issues, advertised as 40+ years expected. Offcuts, adhesive etc. readily available on Ebay. Still needs a ply base, but because it never leaks that doesn't deteriorate.

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Clive, just built a new shed from the remains of a playhouse, and fed up with roofing felt failing quickly, I tried Cladco roofing, after seeing it on my daughters gazebo. It is not expensive, and you can buy all the accessories for it. No ply needed underneath, just joists. For a workshop you will need to insulate, but the roofing itself seems good so far. Google Cladco for more info.

Chris Gunn

I tried an alternative to felt called Liquid Rubber, an experiment which turned out badly; a shame because the idea of just "painting" on the necessary waterproof membrane (complete with detailing) is an attractive one.

When my felt roof gave up, I went with corrugated zinc sheets.

Best thing I ever did!

Jim

I would get used or reject box profile sheeting with 50mm insulation, cheaper for the size than the alloy, goes on quick and its fit and forget! Look on ebay!

Phil