Roofing a dome. The Jerome way.
In 2011 we hired Jerome to roof our shop dome. We saw his name mentioned on several dome sites. He has roofed many domes in many places. We were so impressed with his system for roofing domes that we sought him out again to roof our cabin dome. He did not disappoint.
​​Don't use wimpy 15 lb felt. Why would you when 30 lb gives you more protection for a small extra cost?
Next. Hand nail. With hot dipped galvanized nails. Why? Because hand nailing doesn't blow nails through roofing leaving questionable attachment and because electroplated nails rust. It doesn't make sense to attach 30, 40, or 50 year shingles with 10 year nails.
Next is the flashing. Galvanized is preferred over painted. 4x4 for around dormers and cupola or where it goes up a wall under siding. 4X6 for around chimney chases and places the flashing goes up under shingles. Most home centers carry 3x5 so look around.
First you'll need to decide on what roofing shingles will be used.(with considerations to style and money)
Then, how about 2000 pieces of step flashing? OK a lot of domes may not need that much but ours did. It depends on how many extra elements need to be flashed around. Don't wimp out now, your dome needs a good roof.
This is a roofed uppie. Starting on the flashing of the eyebrow dormer and step flashed to the top.
Black goo is added and the edge shingles attached.
The edge shingle gives a nice uniform edge to the triangle and gives nice triangle definition to the roof.
As the felt is added the triangle edges become trickier to find.
Now lets go through the steps.
Uppies get step flashed. Sometimes uppies are more horizontal than vertical but they are still uppies.​
Step flashing is flashing squares nailed over the lower shingle then another shingle is nailed over the flashing.
More flashing.
More flashing.
Trimming the edge shingle of an upper triangle.
Another shingle added and trimmed.
More flashing.
Another shingle.
Shingle trimmed.
Snap a chalk line.
Add the goo.
Attach the edge shingle.
Start the downie.
Trim.
Next shingle. Keep 'em level.
Trim. Don't cut the shingles below.
Work your way up.
Trim.
Adding felt.
Tuck it in. Working around the dome the felt often protrudes out from the sides of triangles and gets out of order, but you can tuck it and get your overlaps going the right direction.
Starting the bottom of the next uppie.
Trim the shingle to the triangle edge.
Add a shingle.
Trim the corner.
Add flashing.
Now you're starting the top right side of a pentagon.
Add a shingle.
Trim.
Flash.
Flash.
Shingle.
Trim.
Shingle.
Shingle & trim.
Flash. (seeing the pattern:)
Shingle.
Flash.
The pentagons have two adjoining uppies, the first side gets flashed up both sides. The second side gets flashed up the outside and trimmed to the other pentagon uppie.
Move your staging up the dome.
Keep shingling and trimming.
Keep flashing.
You're almost there.
Trim.
At the top of the triangle.
Add the goo.
And the edge shingles.
And trim.

Now repeat and repeat and repeat.​​
A completed pentagon.
A completed hexagon.
Flashing and shingling around extra elements.
How it all comes together.
Jerome says our dome has been his most difficult dome to roof. The eyebrow dormers make it so a ladder can't be leaned against the dome, the diamond chimney chases were a bear to flash, the dormers span multiple triangles needing extra attention, and the cupola is higher than most making getting on and off its' roof more difficult.
The eyebrow dormers have been a challenge every step of the way, but we love how they have turned out.
Mother Nature testing our roof. Besides what blew in through the open doorways there was not a drop inside. But then I knew there wouldn't be. We don't just have a dome roof we have a Jerome roof!
I'm glad I took the opportunity to watch and photograph some of the process. I found it almost mesmerizing to watch. Jerome never had to stop and try to figure out where to go next. He just packed, shingled, cut, flashed, repositioned, and moved around the dome with much more ease than you would think a 72 year old could.
THANKS JEROME!
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Kinda mesmerizing.
P.S.
Now Dan can stop singing "who'll stop the rain" but will he?