Jesse Gonzalez joins Bob at the Punta Gorda storm-ready home to explain the roofing process. The crew has already nailed on the 30 pound asphalt-impregnated felt paper. They are now hot mopping 90 pound roll roofing with asphalt adhesive to make it adhere to the felt paper below. Gonzalez shows Bob the decorative wood dormers on the front of the house that are wrapped in house paper to protect against water intrusion. Bob remarks on the decorative arches above the front entry porch and the front window. They mirror each other as design elements and will both feature decorative columns. Around the back of the house the crew is completing a section of roof deck. They are using 5/8-inch plywood sheathing for a stiffer, more wind-resistant roof deck. The crew uses metal plywood clips to align the plywood and keep it even for nailing.

Bob and Chris Vila meet with David and Jed Walentas from Two Trees Development, the developers of the waterfront warehouse rehab, on the top of a nearby building to get some ideas for the project building's roof deck. In this example, the roof below the deck is a double-ply rubber membrane. Portions of the deck are made with pressure treated timbers and a renewable hardwood decking called ipe, although the majority of the surface area is concrete pavers. New York City building codes will be a major consideration in the construction of the Pepper Factory's roof configuration. Jed Walentas highlights some of the major factors, including the height of the safety railing and the percentage of combustible materials that can be used in rooftop construction.

Bob talks with Leslie Chapman-Henderson from the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH) about the technologies involved in securing a roof. Chapman-Henderson explains the importance of keeping a roof secure in high-wind situations. Uplift force is explained as wind is that pulls on a roof, with a force that can tear the roof right off the home, causing catastrophic building failure. Keeping a roof secure involves affixing the roof decking, the plywood, so no new holes are created during a storm that would allow more wind to come in. FLASH standards specify plywood of a certain thickness, 5/8" minimum thickness with 6" inch nailing pattern, securely nailing into the trusses. Pneumatic nail guns, employed in a hurry to save costs, often miss the underlying truss. Simpson StrongTie straps are used to secure the truss to the structure. Tie-downs secure the roof vertically and horizontally. Bob and Chapman-Henderson review the Punta Gorda storm-ready project completed last season. The house in Punta Gorda was a monlithic concrete structure, poured in one solid pour with steel reinforcing bars embedded throughout. Steel fastenerstied directly to the exposed rebar to secure the roof. The roof decking and tie-down followed FLASH's Blueprint for Safety, just as the current roof does. Chapman-Henderson presents Bob with an award from the Governor's Hurricane Conference for his work to increase awareness of the need for storm-resistant homes. According to Chapman-Henderson reviews the governor's program that makes $250 million in Florida funds and $100 million from HUD to help people in Florida retrofit their homes to bring them up to code and make them storm resistant. The My Safe Florida Home is available to low- and modest-income residents. Eligible viewers are encouraged to call the 800 number or go to mysafefloridahome.com to begin the process.

Bob is back in the penthouse apartment, this time in the main hallway that has the Marmorino wall finish that flows into the lavatory, which features a thyme green semi-gloss paint from the Bob Vila Signature Collection. The warm green walls highlight the stark white plumbing fixtures from Toto USA's Mercer collection. Bob takes a quick jaunt up to the ipe wood roof deck.

Bart Cox of Hanson Roof Tile and Dave Peck of D. Peck Roofing explain the roof covering system to Bob as they tour the Punta Gorda storm-ready site. Cox explains how Hanson Roof Tile has improved their design and now manufactures extruded cement barrel tiles at four plants in Florida. The tiles are made of cement, sand, and pigment, and are extruded, cut, and pre-drilled for fasteners at the factory. Cox explains that tiles were once laid directly on top of the roof paper with no fastener or adhesive. In Florida, high winds later forced roofers to apply cement adhesive to the tiles. When fabrication shifted to a less-permeable cement product, the tiles no longer adhered to the cement. Now they are mechanically fastened into the roof decking through the pre-drilled holes. Dave Peck, who has been roofing for the past 15 years, explains a system that has evolved over the years in response to hurricanes, water, and wind damage. Their crews now mechanically attach the 30 pound felt paper, then hot mop each course of 90 pound roll roofing with asphalt and nail it in place along the upper edge of each course. At the final point of susceptibility, the hip or ridge line, the roofers now use a metal hip and ridge nailer board. The cap tiles are nailed to the board with additional foam adhesive underneath to keep them in place. Experience has taught the roofers that hip and ridge tiles must be firmly affixed to prevent blow-off and damge to field tiles and other property.

House three of the Elmwood project. Bob tours the next project the Castle of Elmwood. The goal is to reinforce an old sundeck for building a deck with a hot tub.

Bob makes his fourth visit to the home in Norwell, Massachusetts, where an addition is being put on a Colonial home. The project has involved the use of insulated concrete forms, also known as ICFs, to construct the shell of the addition. ICFs are essentially foam building blocks that are filled with rebar and concrete to form the walls and the first-floor deck. Next the second floor deck was framed and sheathed with Georgia-Pacific Plytanium DryPly. The roof was sheathed with Georgia-Pacific Plytanium and faced with Deck-Armor as a breathable underlayment over the roof deck. The roof was put on the house in cold weather and there was concern about adhesion between the StormGuard and the roof deck. Deck-Armor eliminates the possibility of frost damage. The StormGuard was placed over the Deck-Armor and nailed into place. Metal roofing was purchased from MetalRoofingWholesalers.com and installed on the addition by a professional. Hal Martin of The Metal Men explains the features of the metal roof being installed. The roof is made of steel with an aluminum mix known as Gavalume. This roofing material offers stronger protection against rust, especially at the ends of the roof line. Galvalume is available in any size up to 40 feet. A ridge cap is put over the top of the installed panels to prevent rain and moisture from getting into the roof cap. Care must be taken installing the Galvalume panels because they are large, unwieldy, can bend and be scratched.

In this segment Bob meets Eddie Fisher, the master electrician on the Brooklyn project's infrastructure team. The team of five electricians from AC/DC Electric is rewiring the building from basement to roof deck. Fisher's team is pre-wiring the building for telephones, computer and cable TV. New York City building codes often require the use of materials and techniques not often seen in residential construction. Codes enacted in the summer of 2003 in New York City require a separate power line from the main electrical box to each GFI (Ground Fault Interrupt) circuit. Also required by code in this building is the use of BX, or metal-shielded, cable. BX is a rigid, flexible metal conduit with a wire bundle, consisting of individually insulated conductors covered by a flexible spiral-wound layer of metal. BX will typically last longer than vinyl-clad cable and may prevent some inadvertent damage in the future.

The crew is on the new roof deck to apply a rubber roofing material. A thin layer if adheasive is applied and allowed to set up before the the rubber is rolled into place. Bob also deiscusses the flashing rubber that will be installed around the raliing posts.

Steve Easley previews a few of the energy-efficient building materials planned for the EnergyWise House.