A blue tarp may seem like a simple plastic sheet, but this plastic sheet - it's actually made out of polyethylene - has a myriad of uses.
Popular uses include camping; covering a car, boat, or RV; and as a canopy.
But, in times of a hurricane or intense tropical storm, a tarp can save the inside of your house until a contractor can get to it.
A tarp can serve as a temporary patch on a roof to protect objects from water and debris and to reduce damage and debris considerably.
A tarp will provide temporary coverage on a roof for up to 90 days but after that point, seeking professional help to fix the roof is necessary.
The first rule of thumb to tarp a roof is to never stand on a roof if it is steeply pitched or to stand directly on the tarp.
If you did not know, there are many different kinds of tarps, ranging from heavy-duty polyethylene to canvas.
Both types can be used in a storm.
However, the material should be 100% resistant to water, grease, and dust; should be flexible enough not to get ripped in the wind; and should have a 10x10 weave count, weigh 4.
6 oz.
per square yard, and be 7.
1 mil thick.
Covering a roof with a tarp involves not only a tarp but also several 2x4 pieces of wood, a hammer, and 3.
25 inch nails.
To start, first unroll or unfold enough tarp to cover the leaking section with an additional four feet of tarp on each end.
The tarp should be cut to fit the length of the damage plus the four feet on each end.
One end of the tarp should be wrapped in a 2x4 that is two feet longer than the width of the tarp.
Both the tarp and the 2x4 should be against the roof before nailing down the 2x4.
Another 2x4 should be used to sandwich the tarp, and the two 2x4s should be nailed together.
The loose end of the tarp should now be stretched over the ridge of the roof and down to the other side.
This end should be rolled with a 2x4 and then sandwiched with another 2x4 like the other side.
Both should be nailed down.
For the sides of the tarp, nail down additional wood strips ten inches apart but the tarp does not need to be rolled around these 2x4s.