Roof Plywood Buckling

Plywood and osb roof sheathing are the most popular roof sheathing materials in the u s.

Roof plywood buckling.

If the adhesive side is not laid properly and not applied flat it will surely show its buckling through the roof shingles. But they must be installed correctly. Call your builder and have him fix the buckled plywood. If the wood structural panels are tightly butted there is no room for expansion and buckling can occur.

They are easy to work with readily available and perform the job well. This happens most often in hot and humid climates. Less likely as a cause of a buckled roof is poor attic ventilation. Ripples or waves on the roof surface are a sure sign that the shingles or decking has probably buckled.

That can mean costly time consuming callbacks. These ventilating systems work in conjunction with adequate soffit ventilation. For a good reason. Your roof decking is the plywood sheets that cover your home.

When plywood or osb sheathing picks up moisture it expands. Apa recommends a 1 8 inch space between panel edge and end joints. Occasionally the buckling is caused by poor workmanship wrong materials or possibly by a problem with the structure itself. Such buckling may occur between supports or between nails along supports.

Buckling of wood structural panel sheathing such as plywood or oriented strand board osb occasionally results when increased moisture conditions cause the wood to expand. On occasion poor attic ventilation can cause the sheathing to become warped from underneath. Continuous roof vents stationary roof vents turbine vents and power attic ventilators are just a few. The most common cause appears to be movement in the roof sheathing with changes in moisture levels.

However warped plywood sheathing means the entire roof has to be replaced immediately or it may collapse. Your builder is responsible for providing adequate soffit ventilation. Plywood and oriented strand board osb like all wood products will expand or shrink slightly with changes in moisture content. If the sheathing is properly gapped then the gaps can close causing the shingles spanning the gap to buckle.

Roofs buckle because either the roofing underlayment has wrinkled or the wood deck itself has shifted for some reason.