Short ladder on roof?

firsthomegal

There are a couple of areas on my house that I am not going to be able to reach from a ladder on the ground. One is above my front porch. The other is a spot above a shed, formally the back entrance to the house now cut off after remodeling and used for garden storage.

The front porch has asphalt shingles. The shed has cedar shingles original to the house (90 years old). They are in pretty bad condition, but wood under is solid and not spongy.

I can reach all but 6 ft by simply standing on the roofs. But I can't reach the peaks.

How do the pros deal with areas like this?

slickshift

It depends
I'll use a ladder on a roof if it's safe to do so
I have found this tool to be useful

firsthomegal

Is it possible that one of those is rentable? What's it called? I could just use an extension pole to paint, but it looks like there's some scrapping up there. The area is also shingles, not wood siding like the lower part of the house, and one shingle is missing and will need replacing.

(FYI The pitch on the roof is much less than that in the picture; however, the slope is away from the wall, not against it.)

Once I get up there to do the lower part, I'll decide whether it's a do it myselfer or whether I should hire someone to tackle those areas.

slickshift

I'm not sure if it's rent-able
It should be...could be a liability thing though...like ladders
I'd try a Contractor's Rent- All Type Place, or maybe a Paint Store

I've heard it called a Pivot Tool most often

Workaholic

A pivot tool or a wedge, i do believe that i saw them in a rental place before. I could be wrong though.

firsthomegal

I finally got up on the roof today, and now realize that I should be able to do everything I need with a fairly short extension pole. I think. I am also thinking of getting a contractor to do some of these high, risky spots. Do painting contractors do small jobs? Or is this something I'd hire a "handyman" for? (Am I getting the award for the most inane first time home owner questions?).

Anyway, related question. I didn't proceed with working after I got up the roof because it was awefully slippery. In fact, I didn't even stand up. I got off the ladder and sat on the roof, testing the surface by pressing my boots to the shingles. I was pretty sure I would have skied right off if I stood up.

It had rained the night before, so the shingles still may have been wet. But I also think it was my boots. They are fairly hard-soled. What is the recommended foot wear for walking around on asphalt shingles? I just had this roof shingled this week, and the guys were stomping all over it. I should have surveyed their boots.

slickshift

You can always ask about the high spots
There might be a minimum charge from either a painting service or handyman service, but a smaller company might do it

I use my work boots, but I've been told that sneakers with some bite are more in order

Or, as it's usually expressed to me when this comes up: "It's all in the kicks"