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One of the perks of purchasing our current house is that it came with a wooden playset. Our son has loved it from day one and now our daughter enjoys it as well. Unfortunately, the roof had begun to see far better days. My husband noted last fall that we needed to do something about it. A couple of weeks ago, we finally replaced it and I’m so grateful we did. Some of the boards had rotted to the point they were literally crumbling! That was scary knowing they had been over my kids’ heads.
We started our replacement plan by measuring the existing roof. You know the old saying “measure twice, cut once”? So true.
Measure. Measure again. It never hurts.
Next, we headed to our nearby Lowe’s Home Improvement store to select new lumber and GAF roofing supplies. We were determined to make the roof stronger, longer lasting, and wanted it to look good. GAF Timberline® shingles are the best selling shingle in North America and have excellent video tutorials making them the perfect choice for DIYers like ourselves.
Lowe’s has a GAF Roofing display on one of the endcaps near the lumber section. It includes details on how to install a new roof along with specifications, color options, and sample boards to aid in your selection. We chose Timberline® Natural Shadow® shingles in Charcoal. The shingles, underlayment, and nails were all located in the aisle immediately adjacent to the display making them easy to find and load onto our cart.
We began our project by replacing the roof with new pressure treated lumber to match the original design. Obviously, if your playset roof is in good condition, you could skip that step.
Once the new roof was in place, we started the shingle installation. Here’s how to do-it-yourself:
Supplies
- FeltBuster® High-Traction Synthetic Roofing Felt underlayment
- Timberline® shingles – we used Natural Shadow® in Charcoal
- TimberTex® Premium Ridge Cap Shingles
- Galvanized steel roofing nails
- Round plastic cap roofing nails
- Hammer
- Measuring tape
- Chalk line (optional)
- Metal straight edge (optional)
- Utility knife
- Gloves
- Safety glasses
Instructions
Step 1 Measure your roof area. Roll out your FeltBuster® underlayment and cut to size. Depending on your project, you might be able to do so directly on the roof. Since ours was off the ground a bit, it was easier to do this in our driveway and then carry the pieces of underlayment to the playset.
Step 2 Install the underlayment per manufacturer’s instructions using round cap roofing nails. The printed grid design makes it easy to line it up and see where to place your nails.
Step 3 Add shingles beginning at the bottom of the roof and working to one side. Then move up to the next row following the instructions inside the shingle packaging.
Trim any overhang once you reach the edge. I found it easier to measure the remaining distance and then cut a sheet to fit on the ground. Using a chalkline and metal straight edge made the process simple and quick.
Step 4 Once you have reached the top of the roof, install TimberTex® ridge cap shingles along the top per the manufacturer’s instructions printed on the packaging. Trim the last piece at the roof edge.
That’s it! The roof is done. Time to kick back and watch the kids enjoying their playset.
Are you ready to tackle your own backyard roofing project now?
Find more great ideas on how to refresh your backyard playset here.
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