How To Nail Roof Sheathing

This video shows how some roofs fail under heavy winds in uplift situations.

How to nail roof sheathing.

Never attach roof sheathing with staples. Roof sheathing panel spacing hints. Boards used for sheathing range from those with a 4 inch face to 48 inch long plywood sheets. Spacer type panel edge clips are available from some manufacturers.

The problem exists because nail sizes and spacing used to attach the sheathing to the roof s structural members rafters or trusses do not provide enough strength to keep the sheathing on. Sheathing should be a minimum of 19 32 inch thick. Roof sheathing can be nailed or stapled. Use a 10d box 0 128 inch by 3 inch nail as a spacer to gauge 1 8 inch edge and end spacing between panels.

I m adding a deck with roof to the side of my house. 8d ring shank nails should be used instead. I read something that said the sheathing should be nailed on with 8d nails where i was planning to use 1 1 2 ringed plywood nails. Keep these tips in mind when roofing in hurricane areas.

The typical thickness range for sheathing is 3 8 to 3 4 inch. For sub floor sheathing 16 o c use a min of 5 8 t g plywood or 3 4 t g osb. Nail or staple sheets at 6 centers for middle rows and 3 centers for the edge rows. A structure s roof truss spacing can vary from every 12 to 24 inches.

Roof sheathing comes in grid marked 4 by 8 foot sheets and should be installed perpendicular to the frame. I ll be using 3 8 plywood sheathing on 2x8s with 16 centers. The roof s sheathing helps to keep the roof trusses or rafters properly spaced and is the strength that holds the entire roof together. During a hurricane the strength of the sheathing on the roof can greatly impact the homes ability to weather the storm.

The number of nails needed for a roof varies on multiple factors such as board face width length and roof truss spacing.