When I was deciding what to use on the roof of the Carabane, I quickly arrived at the conclusion that corrugated aluminum panels would be best. For multiple reasons:
-They are light (3kg/m2)
-I preferred using large panels over small elements such as tiles, because I would need to anchor each tile individually. I felt that large panels was a more secure option.
-They are pretty much foolproof in terms of rainwater shedding, as long as you overlap them properly.
-I can use screws to anchor them directly into strapping- no hooks or special anchors needed
-I could order them pre-curved with the radius I needed.
The manufacturer had certain requirements for the curving radius and the minimum/maximum length of panels. So after a few back-and-forth e-mails with the technician, I came up with my order:
The width of the panels was fixed at 1m6, with a corrugation every 7.6cm. I adjusted my design so that the roof would be a whole number of corrugations, so I wouldn't end up with one edge with the wave pointing up and the other edge with the wave pointing down.
So the roof ended up being 2 whole panels wide + 5 extra corrugations. This meant I needed to cut some panels in half lengthwise. The manufacturer said they could be cut with a circular saw. I had never cut aluminum before. The first time I tried, it made a lot of sparks and burned the edge. But I just had to set the blade a bit deeper and the cut was much cleaner. I made a kind of ladder so I could rest the saw guide parallel to the corrugations.
In case you're wondering, that blue colour is a plastic film that protects the surface from scratches. It was kind of annoying to pull it off (and created a lot of waste!) but probably it avoided a lot of scuff marks.
Next step: install! Like all roofing, it's important (and simply common sense) to start with the bottom and work up, that way the overlap is always in the right direction to shed rainwater.
The manufacturer recommended to install the panels on strapping that is at least 6cm deep. I cheated a bit and had strapping at 4cm- I didn't really want the extra weight or depth.
I am glad I chose 'natural aluminum' as a colour, because the screws sold specially for the installation of these panels are the same colour. The screws have a little rubber pad + a metal cap to ensure that no water gets into the hole.
Lying on the roof to screw in the last panels!
Now the Carabane is outside, and the shiny roof is visible from far away! (Ok, well, I'm helping you out here with an arrow)
-They are light (3kg/m2)
-I preferred using large panels over small elements such as tiles, because I would need to anchor each tile individually. I felt that large panels was a more secure option.
-They are pretty much foolproof in terms of rainwater shedding, as long as you overlap them properly.
-I can use screws to anchor them directly into strapping- no hooks or special anchors needed
-I could order them pre-curved with the radius I needed.
The manufacturer had certain requirements for the curving radius and the minimum/maximum length of panels. So after a few back-and-forth e-mails with the technician, I came up with my order:
The width of the panels was fixed at 1m6, with a corrugation every 7.6cm. I adjusted my design so that the roof would be a whole number of corrugations, so I wouldn't end up with one edge with the wave pointing up and the other edge with the wave pointing down.
So the roof ended up being 2 whole panels wide + 5 extra corrugations. This meant I needed to cut some panels in half lengthwise. The manufacturer said they could be cut with a circular saw. I had never cut aluminum before. The first time I tried, it made a lot of sparks and burned the edge. But I just had to set the blade a bit deeper and the cut was much cleaner. I made a kind of ladder so I could rest the saw guide parallel to the corrugations.
In case you're wondering, that blue colour is a plastic film that protects the surface from scratches. It was kind of annoying to pull it off (and created a lot of waste!) but probably it avoided a lot of scuff marks.
Next step: install! Like all roofing, it's important (and simply common sense) to start with the bottom and work up, that way the overlap is always in the right direction to shed rainwater.
The manufacturer recommended to install the panels on strapping that is at least 6cm deep. I cheated a bit and had strapping at 4cm- I didn't really want the extra weight or depth.
Now the Carabane is outside, and the shiny roof is visible from far away! (Ok, well, I'm helping you out here with an arrow)
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