Here is my story.I started to repair my flat roof.well its almost flat.it slopes about 12 inches over the whole span of 14 feet. This roof is above my second garage.it is attached to the house. Well I removed all the old roll roofing,all the old plywood and I also replaced 3 joists. I laid down all new plywood over the whole roof.I also manage to get 1 layer of #30 felt paper on the plywood. I made the felt paper overlap 12 inches.the felt is attached to the new roof with roofing nails. Here is the big problem. I got hurt at work and I am now on workers comp so I cannot finish the roof until I'm better which probably won't be until after February. I currently have a tarp over that to prevent any water leakage.. well it has been like this for 2 months.(since Ive been hurt). Here are my questions.

1: since I cannot leave the tarp on(apparently a neighbor doesn't like the way it looks and may cause problems) will the 1 layer of felt overlapped by 12 inches be sufficient enough to protect the roof from the elements for a few months throughout the winter? (I live in northeast PA )

2:i did not get a building permit before I started the work.I still do not have one. Should I get one and what does it take to get one?

3: what can a neighbor do if this is not repaired through the winter? I live in a town , not a community where you pay dues and such.
Please help me as I am in a bind and I seriously could use some advice

1. You maybe able to get through the winter as long as all the seams are tightly secured.
Is there any way you can mop coat the roof for the winter?

2. You don't usually need a permit if your replacing an existing roof covering. If in doubt contact your local borough building. They'll tell you if you need one.

3. Your neighbor can't do really anything. If he doesn't like the tarp tell him to change the color of his siding.

What town in NEPA do you live?

I live in honesdale... how would I go about sealing up the seams?. if there is some kind of paint/adhesive I could apply with a brush in between where the paper overlapps? I hope so because that would be doable I think/after a couple of pain killers of course.thanks for the reply.it is greatly appreciated!

You can go to Home Depot and get Henry wet patch roof cement. It will seal the seams then in the spring you can roll roof right over it.

You can apply this with a roofing mop. (a mini looking broom) This "broom" should be right next to the can of wet patch.

This should survive the Wayne county winter.

Does Honsedale have a HD close by or do you have to head down route 6 to Viewmont mall area? (I'm originally from Clarks Summit)

Wow.. small world.. nope.honesdale has a home depot now.it opened about 6 months ago right next to the walmart. Allright ,this is good news then. Thanks a lot for your help. Hey if you happen to need help with a car ide be happy to help you trouble shoot and fix it.I know how ridiculous some mechanic shops can be with their pricing and stuff so don't think twice about emailing me and asking for my help.. [email protected].

In Altoona Pa you generally are told you need building permit to repair a roof, but I was told also that is not true if you repair less than 25% of the roof. This is an example of some of the rules I don't understand, EG I wax told a permit is needed a wall is built but not if it is under 48" high, qlso for plumbing work but not for emegency effort due to a water burst etc. I bought the International Code Council but these things as of yet were not found, city inspectors defer to the state code, and the state code defers to the ICC:

THAT IS HOW THEY DRIVE ME NUTS

In any case I had a question what kind of job is it to replace the joists of a roof re-sheath, and reroof a roof, and as to how replacing joists affects the structure during the replacement process (does removing the joists temporarily affect the structural integrity?

I'm no professional but this is my opinion .there is no structural disadvantage to replacing the joists. Unless of course they are attached incorrectly.just replace one at a time. This is assuming all the roofing (shingles,plywood,ect) has been removed.. if you are trying to replace the joists with the roofing still attached then that is a whole other story

I have a garage with a slight pitch, I striped off rolled tarpaper.Can I just put felt on for the winter and not have any leaks.

Temporary flat roof repairscan come in the form of patch work, but is not a long term solution by far. Considering the current shape of your roof it may not even get you through the winter. I'd call some roof professionals to take a look at it, many of them will provide free inspections, and some will even do a little patch work for free.

As far as your neighbors, I have no idea how to deal with them. Maybe you should try to speak with them directly. You could also get creative and try to paint the tarp to blend in with the rest of your roof.