Teetorbilt

OK people. it's Teetor time, have at me.
3 yrs. ago I painted some left over shingles with a good exterior latex paint just to see what happened, so far nothing. This experiment is being conducted in the So. Fla. area, lots of sun, wind and rain.
All of the companies that I contacted (paint and shingle) have told me not to do this. I want an explanation as to why I shouldn't paint my roof. Everything that everyone has told me has been disproven in a test that has been ongoing for three years.
I would appreciate some input as my project is about to go into the trash because the plywood going bad.

Grumpy

3 years really isn't a long time when an asphalt shingle is supposedly a 25 year product.

I would assume there could be a chemical reaction, though I am not a chemist.

I would also assume that thepaint would begin to wash away and the roof would need re-painting wvery 5 years just like walls.

Maybe the paint is the reason the plywood is bad j/k

__________________
-Grumpy
Chicago Gutters Chicago Roofing

Teetorbilt

As you know I am going to a metal roof....sometime. I have 5-6 yrs. left on the exsisting one. The problem is that it is dark red and the utility bills kill me during the summer which is about 9 months down here. I am just looking for a short term solution to lighten it up. I was thinking that maybe the paint would shrink and cause the shingles to curl but I've pretty much ruled that out.
The reason the wood rotted was because I didn't do anything to it. I just nailed a half a dozen shingles to it and painted. I put one end of it on a concrete block to give it some pitch, facing south and checked on it from time to time. If I had used felt, flashing and kept the bottom out of the dirt it would still be fine.
The test was to examine any adverse effect of paint on shingles and I don't see any.

Anita

Teetorbilt,

I know this is a pretty old topic, and you may have already painted your whole roof by now..

BUT, have you considered additional attic ventilation to reduce the heat gain? If you are gaining enough heat through the roof to effect your utility bills, you don't have enough ventilation.

We have a black roof on our house, garage, shed. The shed is the best example since it is not air conditioned, but is insulated. One would expect it to be unbearable inside in the summer, but it is actually quite cool due to proper ventilation. We have a turbine vent on it, I do not know if you can use them in Florida I have heard of restrictive codes due to the storms you get.

An acceptable formula in most cases, is one vent (one unobstructed square foot) for every 300 square feet of attic floor space. So if you have two vents on 1500 square feet of attic floor space, you need more vents!!

just a thought.