I have just finished a cupola on the roof of a former church building. The cupola was the base of a steeple. The steeple portion was removed because of its deteriorating condition, and the base was converted into the cupola. It now has a pyramid shaped roof structure that is covered with eastern white cedar shingles. As the church’s roof pitch is quite steep and the cupola is quite tall, I want to do everything I can to make sure I will never have to go up to the roof of the cupola again. Is there some treatment I can make on a one-time basis that will extend or enhance the life of the cedar shingles?
Or is there something that may be applied that will preserve its looks and avoid the sometimes weird colors that cedar shingles can turn. We are not near salt water so we wouldn’t get that nice weathered gray that one sees in so many marine settings.
Thank you.
Replies
it depends on how old you are
JLC had an excellent article on cedar roofing a few years back. Here it is:
http://www.gifford-park-assoc.org/cedar_shingle_roofing_JLC.pdf
If your goal was to "do everything I can to make sure I will never have to go up to the roof of the cupola again", then you probably missed the boat. I say this because white cedar may not have been your best choice of material...and pre-treatment would have been a better bet than considering this step after installation.