Marine grade ply vs OSB for garage roof

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Hi,

I am getting quoes to re roof a felt garage. The garage has metal trusses that run between the two walls. On top of this is OSB board which is then covered in felt. The felt is leaking something awful and as such the OSB boards are rotten and bending. The roof has been leaking for a very long time! The boards and the felt all need replaced.

I had a local guy round today to have a look at in order to give me a quote. He suggested replacing the OSB with ply and at one point suggested marine grade ply. TBH this kinda set alarm bells ringing as I don't really see the need to use this and feel it would be expensive overkill.

Having said this, I am not a roofer and perhaps the guy was looking to make sure the job he did would last long (ie if the felt failed, the boards would last until it was repaired, but then again isn't OSB designed to be used outside- I'm thinking boarded up shop windows etc).

Anyhoo, your thoughts would be much appreciated on this.

Cheers :D
 
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OSB 3 all the way. Marine ply is sometimes used by these rogue traders to bump a price or as you say "overkill" a price. Although some roofers who've been in the game a long time will still use and recommend ply, but OSB 3 is what I'd choose. (make sure it's OSB3 not OSB2)
 
nice one, thanks for the help guys!

Not sure whether to use him now given the marine ply suggestion, but then again he is a local guy who was recommended to me and has supposedly done a lot of work about here. I'm in two minds.

When he phones back to give me the quote I'll ask him why he had suggested marine ply to suss out whether he made an attempt to rip me off or if it was a genuine reason.

Many thanks again :)
 
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The roofer probably suggested marine ply because a lot of customer see Osb boards as deluxe chipboard. Marine ply is superior to standard ply boards which can bow and separate. We used osb when it first came out but after a few issues we went back to marine ply. Now osb 3 is out we have gone back to using it mainly on costs. Perhaps your roofer has had issues with Osb in the past and has not tried the latest osb boards?
 
OSB3 or WBP Ply will be fine, Marine ply is probably his description of WBP but they are entirely different, on both cost and quality.
 
Thanks for the replies guys.

He was recommended to me and what you've said on here has re-assured me.

Only thing though is he was meant to phone me with a quote yesterday and to date still hasn't called. Might have to phone someone else.

Thanks again for the help:)
 
Thanks Andy, will do. I always ask tradesmen for a breakdown too. I.e how much for parts/materials, specification of parts/materials and how much I'm paying for labour. Sometimes their not too keen on it but at the end of the day I want to know what I'm getting for my hard earned cash.

Cheers again :)
 
i'd go along with what xenon said... probably a loose description of the product.. Either way funny that the guy is being pilloried for mentioning the use of a high quality product... hardly makes him a criminal. one wonders if we should quote using flash band instead of lead for flashings!!
 
I think sometimes the customer hates to think that a roofer can earn more than him.

The customer never sees the hidden costs of running a professional
Company.
 
I'm not really sure where he is 'pilloried'. I was merely asking for people's professional opinion on something I wasn't sure about. I quite clearly state that I am not a roofer and proposed that he suggested marine ply as he wanted to do the best job possible.

As for earning more than me, it never crossed my mind. I'm concerned with getting a good job done for a competitive price. If he makes a good living out of it then good on him. Why would it concern me?
 

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