07/07/2026
Day 6 — Seamil Garage Conversion (North Ayrshire)
Today we moved onto the toilet roof. We originally planned to replace a rafter affected by woodworm, but ongoing leaks were holding us back. The roofer had tried a few times to fix it, but water was still getting in, stopping our progress.
The client mentioned he planned to have the roof re‑slated, but his roofer was too busy to say when it could be done. So we proposed a solution: we’d strip the slate, replace the rotten sarking and the damaged rafter, then fit a breathable membrane to make the roof watertight. That way the roofer can re‑slate it whenever he’s free, and we can keep the job moving. The client was over the moon and told us to go ahead.
We stripped the slate — with Lucas (9) helping and stacking them perfectly — and exposed the sarking, which was far worse than expected. It was so rotten I nearly went through it. We stripped it in about 15 minutes; hardly any nails left from rust and decay. This revealed more rot in the rafters, so we proposed replacing them all while we had the roof open.
We cleaned everything up, de‑nailed the roof and wall plate, and treated the remaining timbers for woodworm and rot. Then Conner, my 1st‑year apprentice, marked out and cut his first ever cut roof under my supervision — not many apprentices get that experience nowadays, never mind a first year.
Rafters fitted perfectly, dwangs installed, and the three of us got the new sarking on in record time. Finished off with a breathable membrane felt, overlapped and tucked under the top row of slates to keep it watertight until the roofer arrives.
I’m a joiner, not a roofer — but it does exactly what it needs to do.
