nobody.really
08-09-2004, 09:54 AM
I've built decks. I have no experience building roofs. I'm planning a porch with a pretty complicated roof. (Think of a gazebo roof intersecting with a shed-type roof, intersecting with the corner of my house, and you get the idea.)
So I'm thinking of doing the footings, substructure, decking, pillars, railings and steps myself, but bidding out the roof.
1. Am I somehow letting myself in for trouble by bidding out only part of a project?
2. Will contractors be willing to bid on such a project?
3. As a matter of sequencing: If you were building a porch, would you build the deck first and add the roof second, or would you put up the beams and trusses first and then build the deck under it? In other words, would the deck somehow get in the way of building the roof?
4. What would you as a roof contractor want from me? I’m planning a “Southern”-style porch, with the deck roughly 3' off the ground and the roof supported by 8' (wrap-around) pillars above the deck around the perimeter, roughly every 8' . I envision using 12' 4x4s to support both the deck and the pillars. Consequently, I hope to present a roofing contractor with a finished deck (without railing) surrounded by a bunch of 4x4s sticking roughly 12' in the air (9' above the deck). Is that what a roofing contractor would expect? Would a roofing contractor need to be involved earlier in the project (for positioning the 4x4s or something)?
Thanks for any insights you can provide! :)
So I'm thinking of doing the footings, substructure, decking, pillars, railings and steps myself, but bidding out the roof.
1. Am I somehow letting myself in for trouble by bidding out only part of a project?
2. Will contractors be willing to bid on such a project?
3. As a matter of sequencing: If you were building a porch, would you build the deck first and add the roof second, or would you put up the beams and trusses first and then build the deck under it? In other words, would the deck somehow get in the way of building the roof?
4. What would you as a roof contractor want from me? I’m planning a “Southern”-style porch, with the deck roughly 3' off the ground and the roof supported by 8' (wrap-around) pillars above the deck around the perimeter, roughly every 8' . I envision using 12' 4x4s to support both the deck and the pillars. Consequently, I hope to present a roofing contractor with a finished deck (without railing) surrounded by a bunch of 4x4s sticking roughly 12' in the air (9' above the deck). Is that what a roofing contractor would expect? Would a roofing contractor need to be involved earlier in the project (for positioning the 4x4s or something)?
Thanks for any insights you can provide! :)