Discover the history and charm of lead roofing

Although many people do not realize it, lead roofing actually provides an important level of weather protection for many homes around the country, and lead has long played an important role in traditional building. For owners of landmark homes with lead roofing, caring for that special roofing the right way is essential to keeping the home looking its best, and to maintaining the traditional look and feel of older homes.

Lead has long been used as a traditional roof covering, and it has often been used for flashing and for gutters, as well as to provide an excellent bridge at those junctions between the roof and the wall.

Back before cast iron came into wide usage, lead was also traditionally used for many cisterns and pipes, and some fantastic examples of these wonderful and beautiful products survive to this day.

Lead roofing has traditionally been applied by laying down sheets of metal on top of timber boards. This application allows the sheets to integrate with one another, and this in turn helps to produce a strong and weatherproof roofing surface.

As one may expect, lead roofing is among the most durable on the market, and lead roofs from as far back as the 18th century are still in use today. Back then, the lead sheets used in roofing were manufactured in various weights. Those weights were represented with code numbers which indicated their thickness. For example, code 7 is traditionally used for larger sheets of lead roofing and for repairing the roofs of historic homes as well. The number 7 is used to indicate that the lead has been rolled to a thickness which makes it weigh seven pounds per square foot.

For installations where a thinner type of lead is needed, a code number of 4 or 5 might be more appropriate. For instance, code 4 and 5 lead roofing products are often used for flashings.

Of course the weight of the lead used in lead roofing has important safety and health implications, and it is important to consider the safety measures needed when working with a historic lead roof. The weight of a lead roof means that the sheets need to be moved by hand, and it is important for those doing the work to carefully follow the established safety guidelines for working with lead roofing.

Lead roofing is of course on of the most durable of all roofing installations, and many lead roofs have been in place for many generations. As with all roofing materials, however, some deterioration is inevitable, and with a lead roof it is even more important to be on the lookout for signs of wear. This wear is most likely to take place at junctions and joints, but over a long period of time, especially during times of repeated heating and cooling, the large sheets of lead roofing can begin to move down the slope of the roof.

Sometimes lead roofs will begin to deteriorate from underneath and not from below. In many cases moisture and condensation lie at the root of the problem, and it is important to take the appropriate measures to prevent moisture from damaging the roof.

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