236 



at fifteen to twenty years 

 and upward. The wood 

 shingle roof on George 

 Washington's home at 

 Mount Vernon was re- 

 paired by him in 1785 and 

 was not again repaired un- 

 til i860 a life of 75 years. 

 There have been many in- 

 stances found where shin- 

 gle roofs have lasted satis- 

 factorily for fifty years and 

 even one hundred years. It 

 is not at all unreasonable to 

 attribute such a life time to 

 cedar when we consider 

 that the old sarcophagi in 

 which some of the Egyptian 

 kings were buried three 



thousand years ago are still found in fairly sound con- 

 dition. One lumber dealer in Montana reported that he 

 was willing to guarantee for twenty-five years wood 

 shingles sold by him. 



Now when we come to consider cost per annum a sub- 

 stantial credit balance readily appears in favor of the 

 wood shingle, as compared with any substitute. Yet there 

 is a very important proviso to be considered. Any wooden 

 shingle will not do. The National Lumber Manufacturers' 

 Association, whose office is in Washington, as well as the 



AMERICAN FORESTRY 



ASPHALT SHINGLES 



Vulcanite Individual Asphalt Shi 

 weather and nailed four and 



to hump and curl some- 

 what. Again the roof 

 should not be less steep 

 than one-quarter pitch, one- 

 quarter pitch meaning that 

 the vertical distance of the 

 ridge above the top of the 

 walls where they support 

 the rafters is one-quarter 

 of the distance between 

 those walls. For one- 

 quarter to one-third pitch 

 the standard sixteen inch 

 shingle should be exposed 

 to the weather only four 

 inches. On steeper roofs 

 the shingle may be exposed 

 four and one-quarter to 

 four and one-half inches, 

 while on the vertical sides of houses a five inch exposure 

 is conservative. 



An equally important point is the use of a proper 

 nail. Many builders nowadays lay a shingle roof with 

 ordinary steel wire nails, instead of 2>y 2 or 4d gal- 

 vanized cut iron nails as recommended by these asso- 

 ciations of manufacturers. The steel wire nails are 

 much easier for the carpenter to hold in his mouth, 

 as well as somewhat cheaper and more readily obtained, 

 but they rust very quickly under the influence of 



ngles are laid four inches to the 

 one-half inches from the butt. 



Courtesy Cortright Metal Roofing Company. 



A METAL SHINGLE 



At the present time wooden shingles and substitutes are used in 

 about equal proportions. 



Shingle Branch of the. West Coast Lumbermen's Asso- 

 ciation in Seattle, furnish specifications for the construc- 

 tion of a durable shingle roof. This information is usual- 

 ly found in the possession of the better class of architects 

 and builders, but may be had by any wtio are interested. 

 The salient points only can be given here, but they empha- 

 size first the use of the best grade clear shingles not over 

 seven inches wide and not less than five shingles to two 

 inches in thickness measured at the butts. Forty per cent 

 of the shingles sold throughout the country measure 

 six shingles to two inches, and are consequently liable 



Courtesy Patent Vulcanite Roofing Company. 



SHINGLES IN ROLLS 



Here is another form of vulcanite roofing in which the shingle effect 

 is secured though the material is made in rolls. 



the wood acids. As time passes these nails thus 

 permit the shingle to buckle and warp, and in event 

 of fire the loosened pieces readily fly off and become a 

 menace to neighboring property. Why use a twenty-five 

 year shingle and a five year nail ? Scientific experiments 

 have demonstrated that the modern cut iron galvanized 

 nail is in no way inferior to the old cut nails used by our 

 forefathers, many of which nails are found today in 

 perfect condition when old Colonial buildings are de- 

 molished. When cut iron nails are not obtainable good 

 results can often be secured with steel wire nails gal- 



