[TheForge] Update [OT - Asphalt shingle rot? (Lichen)]

[Bruce Freeman]

Not a bad idea, but I'm a little dubious the stuff would stay put
unless it stuck firmly to the roof.  However, a paint brush and a can
of tar could make a sticky strip for the copper to stick to.  That
might work for pennies as well, but I'm not sure.

Now the problem is how to make those copper filings cheaply and
efficiently.  Shearing short pieces of wire (especially multistrand
wire) might be a lot easier.

On Thu, Jul 8, 2010 at 9:47 AM, Paul <forge at wi.rr.com> wrote:
>
>>>> Before dropping $60+ on copper flashing, I did some more Web-research.
>>>>   Turns out that those of you who spoke up are apparently right --
>>>> copper OR zinc cations will kill lichens.
>>>>
>>>> So, what's the cheapest source of copper AND zinc metals?  You guessed
>>>> it -- "copper" pennies.  So now, if you look real close, you'll see
>>>> pennies scattered on the north-facing side of my roof, mostly near the
>>>> peak.  I had only about $5 worth of pennies around when I did this, so
>>>> might go buy another $10 worth for the effort.  I figure with rain and
>>>> winds, these will tend to wash down the roof, but I'll cross that
>>>> bridge when I come to it.
>>>>
>>>> Meanwhile, I haven't given up on the notion of spraying the roof with
>>>> copper sulfate, but I've been trying to figure how and how much.
>>>> Seems to me that if a strip of copper foil across the roof will
>>>> protect the roof for 30 years or more (so claims that manufacturer),
>>>> then the concentration of copper needed could NOT be very high.  I
>>>> haven't actually worked out a number, but it must be vanishingly
>>>> small.
>>>>
>>>> So I envision doing something like putting a half-teaspoon (if that
>>>> much) copper sulfate, dissolved in water, in a sprayer and spraying
>>>> the roof with it.  The problem with this is that I do NOT want to
>>>> inhale the stuff.  So I could use goggles and mask and wait till the
>>>> wind is right, or I could come up with an alternative way.  I could
>>>> possibly roll it on like paint, and if I did that I wouldn't even need
>>>> to cover the whole roof, as it will wash down from the peak to the
>>>> rest of the roof.
>>>>
>>>> Still thinking on it.
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> Bruce
>>>>
> I cleaned out my metal cutting saw the other day and that brought to
> mind another possible scenario for copper 'salting'.
>  If you clean out your saw, mine is a Hitachi with a toothed blade BTW,
> and saw up a bunch of copper scrap, collect the saw 'dust' and cast that
> upon the roof there is a good chance that on a hot day it might just
> melt into the shingles.
>  If nothing else, the small particles might lodge into the shingles and
> stay near the peak. The particles would be small enough that they would
> not likely be disturbed by the wind... at least it wouldn't require much
> work to place them.
>
> --
> Paul
> WB9HCO
> My Grandfather WAS a blacksmith...
> and it didn't do me one damn bit of good.
> All opinions are the personal beliefs of the author, and are based on decades of experience... so use your best judgement, I'm just a lowly crafstman.
>  "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." -Albert Einstein
> "Life is hard...it's harder if you're stupid" John Wayne - Sands of Iwo Jima
>
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-- 
Bruce
NJ