The roof - day 6 - Sunday

On Sunday, Sergio came over for another 1/2 hour to add a few more missing screws to ensure all sheets are securely fasten onto the cariola structure. Originally, we had planned on installing the caballette - the sheet-metal that is put on top of the roof, right above the main cavallo, just where the sheet metals of the east and west side meet.

However, After he ensured me that not installing it will not cause much water leakage, I decided to postpone this task until we come back from Santa Catalina in 2 to 3 weeks...

More than 88 screw heads need to be covered by sealer paint - it gets mighty hot in the sun ontop of that roof!

I spent the Sunday morning on top of the roof, covering all 800 screws with Sulfatil ( a thick paint-like liquid that serves as sealer) to ensure none of the screw holes. It took almost a hole quart. Well, I'm telling you: It gets mighty hot on the roof in the sun - even though we're 700 m (2200 ft) above sealevel!

 

Oh, why did I postpone the installation of the caballette?

Well, I noticed that even thought the sun is heating uo the roof quite a bit, and in the sun it is quite hot, under the roof it is very comfortable. Not too hot, not too cold. I'm guessing this is, because the hot air that develops right below the burning hot zinc, is rising up to the highest point of the roof, and, as there is no top yet, escaping freely to the outside. I'm guessing, once the caballette is in place, the air will no longer leave so easily, and it will get a bit hotter. When I mentioned my concern to Sergio he confirmed: once the caballette is in place, it won't be so nice and cool anymore on the terrace!

Last night I had another one of these great ideas...

If, instead of screwing the caballette directly onto the zinc, I screw pieces of cariola onto the zinc, and the caballette ontop of these cariola pieces, there will be holes, through which the hot air can escape. And, since the caballette is 60cm (2ft) wide, the overhang of the caballette over the zinc will still be wide enough in relation of the 7 or 10 cm height of the cariolas, that rain won't be able to enter.

To do this, however, it requires to cut about 40 pieces of cariolas, and drill 2 or 3 holes into each of them to attach them onto the zinc. That takes time. And one person on a Sunday morning is not going to be able to accomplish this...

So, I'm hoping the gap on top is not going to cause too much problems, and we'll be able to do the right thing when we get back here...

And, I guess, I'll be adding another "The roof - day X" post by then...