Properly Driving A Roof Nail

Properly driving a roof nail is essential in securing the structure of your home.  If improperly driven, nails can cause shingle damage, leaks and a poor appearance.  Nails need to be placed within ½” of the nail line on three-tab shingles or ¼” on other shingles.  If you accidentally drive the nail incorrectly, it is not necessary to remove the nail completely.  The best option, under these circumstances, would be to correctly drive a nail neighboring the faulty one.  If the faulty nail is not completely driven, simply finish it with a hammer.

Properly Driving A Roof Nail Instructions:

After properly driving a roof nail, the nail should be straight and not too far into the structure but, at the same time, not under driven either.  An under driven nail is one that has not been completely installed and is the nail head is still raised above the surface.  A nail that has been overdriven would give the appearance of being sunk into the structure.  If this occurs, it will likely cause cosmetic damage by barely cracking the immediate structure around the nail.  The nail head is larger than the rest of the nail and, if it gets driven into a structure, it will be noticeable right away.  A crooked nail, which has been driven improperly, is also visually obvious.  You may not even realize that the nail is crooked until you are almost finished driving it.  When one end of the nail head reaches the surface of the structure and the other is protruding upward, the nail has been driven incorrectly and is crooked.  This is likely to cause a small crack in the area that the nail head has punctured.

Tips On Avoiding Mistakes:

When driving nails, take extra care not to drive the nail too far.  This results in an overdriven nail and, in some cases, one that is crooked.  If a nail is overdriven, it cannot provide the same security as one that is done correctly.  The same is true with an under driven nail which, the majority of times, can be fixed with a hammer in a matter of moments.  It’s not a good idea to have an under driven nail sticking out as they can be harmful and certainly do not enhance the appearance of a home.  If a nail is under driven, just tap it with the hammer a few more times until the nail head reaches the surface of the structure.  Be careful to tap lightly because, if you hit too hard, it will likely go into the structure and end up being overdriven.

A Few Final Tips:

When working with nails, always use work gloves to protect your hands.  Hold the nail into place on the structure and give it a tap with your hammer.  Be careful not to hit the nail too hard, but rather with only enough force to drive it slightly into the surface.  Once the nail is in place, tap while guiding the nail with your hand until it is properly secured.