It's been atop my garage since I installed it back in '86......functional not decorative. Only got painted maybe once since then and has deteriorated badly and I suspect leaks a little. House was built in '77 and garage added later. Going to keep the upper part with the louvers.....repair and repaint and build a new base with pvc.
Im at the point where I need to do some needed repairs.... dont want to turn the house over to my sons in shabby condition. Wife is concerned about me going up on the roof nowdays......says Im too old......but I've been doing it for fifty years now and still very confident in my abilities......besides who else is going to do it....not my boys....grown men but not roofers. Finishing a loft apartment/room up there over the garage.... my oldest might be coming back home to live with us. Ill put up a few pictures as we make progress.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AJFCJaU_S3hx-RKJV9QldUxqvaNK5vYAf1eS7KzhB6_1Go1A7czElWm4R1aoaaj DBreFiwpMG9VtuXKkhPGFUeZCuxqqZ3DgQ57mgRWrUsSw5rcGT 5eFYb7DOsrfYEbrIraeyxBbsOYFCCE_q-JqWKPmUj1tcZDrkkotWJniGSiBuEwhnXEzBUOd27pgePcA7tWx 5dlRMQ6vpnCKv8OvZRGhZ7ISEtBq_lVR2BtVTVk-NIwVgl89mZhikCS_ImQJ_ExZWsFvOeIJqvKTD2wNBSgsTM3HPh Y2GsZkeFvlu0h2fIcwVgKgdXdKPoSOZE07e2b_rCDL9bRBBQO7 BkPMKO1pHGQJ_6ENEp3CDOI1tM2EAl7XrnydBU0kUhkc29U3ti NJbG6qFhm8RSaRZoMtAogXWYjMyHfOcgqJ1w2AFixhqTO7igK6 1XCQI1kWsbt8VtvZobBfIdAw-fj4KoSlSnGHbBjQ2_AVZpzuU49tn_p3YR8E05e6HZ7SqPkMccu tAguz5r-Z4Y3YAIrhnm7fckez5OXpLJRW9YSMiJ4nRyrYMIKMYyfKRqBJk YitK-m7i_97tJb4g_c8_nbGb751iRPDW1h7jwpEwnBHMGoWecIXTS4F 5WCnd5NhM3yPZ-YZgru4Yd6Zp7anhGpwC2yQBUhhP5BYa8xnHg3_BX9xE_ObWMxo lS1yrHnW2CpMxapz5Ko4kIpA_e7d6IhARqyOxKLvzQME-0gSNpCEsM09gJFEcHgMzdnl-KI-r-WeWMQHzR0wjk_rDAL9RExvUwtqnYoyx2ivTLlZ7Z-4PnbM4e-9VeWo1y8b7Xz47wLCWh2KuxOO1Jr99GASK2PjaK-sjwcIyHxrDGrwNU5BoY68CyacYDaODMuRVuAqIAXo_kZdtXkPv lW0nwMW3SZCwtiEvDGuIO0WT5-ObaFIqawB94ugp68VKVxW1Z4wcaVxfHlCInw=w1622-h749-s-no?authuser=1

Cupola is back in place....new pvc base and the original upper louvered part repaired and repainted....good for another 35 years i figure?
I carried up there solo...two separate pieces...then gave my son the job of placing the weathervane on top.

Cut a hole in the garage ceiling in preparation for a full width stairway....will remove the window later on because the stairs will pass by it.

Nice work. I have rebuilt one that was much larger and heavier on the ground than it appeared up on the garage roof when I took on the job... Bob, did you make it strictly decorative now that you are finishing the apartment?
While you have the chicken hook out, might as well spray that roof with some Wet N Forget.

Nice Job

Years ago at my old house my (now x) wife brought home a vintage whale weathervane and wanted me to install it. Now this was a two story home cut into a hill with a pretty steep roof pitch. I always hate asking neighbors for help if it’s their livelihood but I went to my neighbor, an old school commando carpenter and asked him how I get this thing up there. I’m good with carpentry but do not like heights. He just shook his head and said give it to me. Scampers up the ladder with the screw gun tucked into his jeans and climbs up the gable end with his free hand gripping the edge. Mounts the ridge and zip zip zip done. Must have taken him all of 10 minutes.

Nice work. I have rebuilt one that was much larger and heavier on the ground than it appeared up on the garage roof when I took on the job... Bob, did you make it strictly decorative now that you are finishing the apartment?
While you have the chicken hook out, might as well spray that roof with some Wet N Forget.


Thanks Ross......I thought about patching the hole in the roof where the cupola sits and then reinstalling it just as a decoration ....but it serves an important function....I have no gable end vents or ridge vent and have seen what can happen to unvented areas like this. I think the leak was really just wind blown snow coming through the louvers and then melting.

Good suggestion about the wet and forget....never tried it....I have gone up and scrubbed off moss and scaling once in a while but will have to try that stuff next time.


Son and I are spending our saturdays working on this room that is intended for him to occupy sometime in the future.......he just turned forty and has lived alone and on his own for the last twenty years. Im thinking that as my wife and I are getting older it will be a good thing to have him here with us....but in his own separate living space.
The more time i spend up there the more i like it.... for the peace and quiet it provides. I already have my cot up there for napping :uhuh:

Years ago at my old house my (now x) wife brought home a vintage whale weathervane and wanted me to install it. Now this was a two story home cut into a hill with a pretty steep roof pitch. I always hate asking neighbors for help if it’s their livelihood but I went to my neighbor, an old school commando carpenter and asked him how I get this thing up there. I’m good with carpentry but do not like heights. He just shook his head and said give it to me. Scampers up the ladder with the screw gun tucked into his jeans and climbs up the gable end with his free hand gripping the edge. Mounts the ridge and zip zip zip done. Must have taken him all of 10 minutes.


Thanks for chiming in Spence......Having spent most of my life framing and roofing houses.... Im right at home and am totally comfortable on any roof. Guys on the jobsite dubbed me spiderman long ago and it still fits.
I love being up here!

Nice Job


Thanks Paul.....we have a very small budget for this project and are doing it piecemeal.... $100 worth of materials a week doesnt get us too far!:fury:

Hanging and taping the drywall ourselves....going to be a half bath only...and a kitchenette.... with a small sink, countertop, and under counter mini fridge.

view looking towards my workshop from the garage loft widow.https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/pw/AJFCJaUX9InGEu5SwwT0DEndL7mRw9WfOiyNozoE0LQAukIjZw a3IxyB7znx2_0nEYds99WVS1QiETPi8StHo6L1RBGjKMbPunMx 8Gtp6icrWeOVbUcEraYIGHtBxtEPfn7Dr1jAwGF9SRdqztvDQG R9RoAKPu2kov6Cf8INSCt25vs2Jjs9asQ2OlVYHp4FahdLGQqu YBKqhpibC1orwEhJ31A2ekpzVcgG8yH8u434HZLV_0KM98Zpzr SZe6xWn4KGytZcIL3LKc6sLCKPK03474C-51JwaGfVrQ-8agA4IT98ti02rvuaG_6YMPZZ8j6xeahjCWLvhUN4HiDz0vNBB QhgGjyP9KvnIheyLxL148eILrfG9JeF05KUfG6Wo1zMvvs-4eaJot4xwAYflHie3jIwspHwaAkq8NDSKBbx9rUY0bqY53CMLP umzcuOVEjspUTBw6a9XoHUFXLrjPp6dtPJE51RvpYsYkeHF5Md lD3Y4pK6HYbv5080RG7wtLn_m7i9o2lSLWeupHIg53RVZ02Qym tJecFscdsETYTXuqN0kC_gW2H7WPPR_ZXFLXYMi7kKrBMze3a-o6oUMjdMVnGHWeDx59wSZ1M-U-a-ewO7bDov2q1cUHEVMP-5APvvNFDPh5ST0o7uc_PQyhUBuvlFSmGayBI9oAa6_lAVEB4-il792YtCSno_WlNp17L-Ur2unYni7rS9OL2vUJUWCbFarU01Pr5g3dYQUQL01BvqihnyoD ORBosQz5JhOE04X_Y4R9maYDD_0fJ-0sEr22OTE5Ax7xoo3q-MjoR9YoqIIWr2hujFo_mwUeaKxtVYH9srIoDkIcF7PJQn9YsRP 7iLlWCe7XzHyRQQx-lj9VgGqe57pCGXLt-8OiLOWrF192E-OlQgkHkUs1GSX0opilzBC42PHcvCZtNoexa-FpL4CAZbk1gNsepoAu12ic0=w1662-h768-s-no?authuser=1