Education Archives

Snow Retention Systems: Why, Where and How to Install

By Tom Stortz | December 5, 2016 |

[et_pb_section bb_built=”1″][et_pb_row][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.3.1″ text_font_size=”18px”] This is a post written by Tim Underhill of the National Slate Association In areas where heavy snow is common, a metal snow pan is built into the roof. Snow-retention, for obvious reasons, is regionally influenced. The overall picture is, historically at least, a lot of snow in the North,…

What solder should you use for your job?

By Tom Stortz | November 10, 2016 |

Whether you have been soldering for quite some time or you’re a complete novice, having a basic understanding of the types of solder commonly used for roofing is important to make sure you achieve your best installation every time. NOTE: This blog can serve as a guide for a better understanding of the process.…

How Important Is Safety to Your Slate Roofing Business?

By Tom Stortz | August 31, 2016 |

Are you tired of setting up roof brackets for simple repairs? Let the Slator save you time AND make your life easier. The SLATOR, invented in 2015 by an SRCA member and Stortz client, is a single plane anchoring system designed to support a ladder quickly and easily on steep roofs to provide tradesmen quick,…

6 Roofing Tricks Your Competition Is Using That You Aren’t

By Tom Stortz | June 10, 2016 |

1) Snips with non-serrated (smooth) blades should be used when cutting natural metals such as Copper, Zinc, and Aluminum. Serrations in the blades will give the user a bite or grip on the metal when starting a cut. This is advantageous to reduce the snips tendency to “slip” off of the metal. However, the serrations…

Stortz Logo by Orion Jenkins

By Tom Stortz | March 29, 2016 |

Orion Jenkins, from Jenkins Slate Masters, put in a great deal of effort to create the Stortz logo out of slate and copper. This extremely cool time-lapse video shows the process. I welcome anyone who is interested in ornamental slate and sheet metal to contact Orion ([email protected]) for further info. Here is a link to Jenkins…

Ornamental Slate Art

By Tom Stortz | February 11, 2016 |

If you enjoy ornamental slate work, you should follow Hans Peter-Koennecke on Facebook. He is the head of the Master Roofers school in Cologne, Germany and posts tremendous pictures of awesome roofs and slate art. I’m blown away by the detail of these pieces and applaud the hard work. I know not everyone in the US follows…

Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

By Tom Stortz | January 25, 2016 |

This post will outline a few questions that we get asked on a fairly regular basis. My Express soldering iron is not running as hot, or gas flow seems weak, as it once did, what’s wrong? Most likely, the gas nozzle is clogged. After many months or years of soldering, the impurities from soldering will…

Improve Your Metal Roofing Skills

By Tom Stortz | December 16, 2015 |

Metal Roof to Wall Transition – Using an angle bisector to create a “dogs ear” or “bread pan” fold to an exact roof pitch has advantages. No soldered or sealant joint to weaken or leak over time Determining and bending at the correct angle alleviates unnecessary stress on the metal fold This is a traditional forming…

Roofing Soldering Iron Buying Guide 2015

By Tom Stortz | December 1, 2015 |

Whether you are a home owner looking to solder half round copper gutters or a roofing contractor who solders flat lock every day, you’ll want the right soldering iron for the job. This post will outline some thoughts to consider with regard to the 3 main types (propane, acetylene, and electric) and varying brands of soldering…

8 Roofing Materials & How to Solder Them

By Tom Stortz | November 27, 2015 |

Soldering has been common practice in the metal roofing trade to ensure water tight joints and to strengthen seams. While some purists may frown upon using solder to mend together two pieces of metal, there is one thing for sure…the practice of soldering isn’t going anywhere in our trade. While very common, soldering can be…

Teach Me How To Roof

By Tom Stortz | October 16, 2015 |

I googled “how do I become a roofing contractor” and this was the advice of the first option: Instructions Know how to roof. I laughed. I started looking around for trade schools that focused on roofing and, although there were a few, ones that focused on Slate and Sheet Metal were limited. Seemingly,…

Does My Soldering Iron Need a Quick Connect?

By Tom Stortz | September 8, 2015 |

We field calls from roofers looking to replace the hose of their soldering iron and when they receive it, the fittings don’t connect correctly. How does this happen? It’s important to understand that many irons that are shipped in the United States have come here from Europe. European irons have European fittings. If you have…

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