Is It Safe To Walk On A Metal Roof
2 the metal roofing was installed over closely spaced nailers or sheathing.
Is it safe to walk on a metal roof. Can be walked on provided. 1 the roof is not too steep and. In fact metal roofs can stand up to you walking on them better than ceramic tiles and some other roofing systems. It means that for your personal safety and the safety of your roof it s best if you simply stay off your roof and only let a professional walk on it if absolutely necessary.
You should not walk on a wet metal roof period. I ve done a lot of work on metal roofs and i have only came across 1 that was too thin to walk on. Proceed to walk safely on the metal roof by staying on or at least near the rafters. Always move slowly and carefully to keep your balance.
Generally speaking it is as safe to walk on a metal roof 30 or 50 years after installation as the day it was installed. It wasn t that it wouldn t support me either 230lbs it just bent and dented when i walked on. If you have a metal roof with panels that are formed like shakes or tiles you should be walking on the low spots of the panels that are closer to the roof deck. They may also talk to you a little bit about if you ve chosen a metal roof that consists of formed panels like a shake or tile profile they will tell you specifically where to walk on those panels.
Always are going to tell you to use a soft sole shoe to grip on the roof and to not cause any damage. It is true however that some metal roofs are made of very thin material or very complex shapes and these require that whoever walks on them show some care and attention. Rafters are normally located 16 to 24 inches apart. Sorry if that s not the answer you were looking for.
As far as possible walk only on line of screws on metal roofs and on front of roof tiles where they are double thickness and suppor ted by a timber batten underneath. In fact most are safer and easier to walk on than many other types of roof coverings. Wet metal roofs are extremely slippery and the risk of falling is really high. You ll know when you step on a rafter because it will feel solid underfoot unless the rafter is rotted of course.
Even asphalt gets damaged from repeated traffic something that isn t necessarily true of metal. Even if you have to do asphalt composite or wood roofing if it rains don t go up. In general you should avoid getting up on any type of wet rooftops. Avoid walking on the seams.
Don t allow harness to give you a false sense of security it s a last resort only.