Special projects

Paul Saunders Roofing has worked with many contractors and homeowners in the state of Virginia to produce some of the most interesting roofing enterprises in the state. Our range extends from small repair jobs on metal, slate, tile, shingle, and flat roof systems through all areas of Richmond, Charlottesville, Fredericksburg and Petersburg. Some of the most notable undertakings we have completed are as follows:

• The U. Va. Chapel Roof
  
• Fairweather Hall, U. Va.
  
• Fulton House, U. Va
  
• Mr. & Mrs. Crawford’s residence, Richmond, VA
  
• Tuscan Villas Condominiums, Richmond, VA
  
• Presswood Condominiums, Franklin Street, Richmond, VA
  
• Confederate Chapel (behind the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts), Richmond, VA

We are equally as proud of our lesser-known assignments. These include many Spanish tile, slate, Terne metal, and shingle roofing material projects that we have performed in the Richmond area. The list is too long for this web page.

The U.Va. Chapel Roof
On this job, we removed the existing 150-year-old slate roof down to the wooden deck. This roof had been installed using nails hand-made on the Monticello estate. We worked diligently with the University of Virginia to design and install this roof using new Buckingham slate to match the existing slate, working with the U.Va. architects (Bruce Thornson). Every slate installed on this roof was hand-rung, which is a process of sounding the slate to ensure that no flaws exist in the slate, itself, prior to installing. We cut rows of decorative slate to match the existing roof and lead-coated copper flashing details. The University of Virginia gave us a 98% rating on the completion of this project, with 1 being the poorest and 100 being the best possible score.

Fairweather Hall, U.Va.
This building is the Arts center for U.Va., and an historic monument. We removed the slate roofing and replaced it with new Buckingham slate to match the existing. We installed new Terne Metal built-in gutter systems, including new wooden crown moldings, dental blocks, egg and dart molding, etc., working with Bruce Wardell Architect, PC of Charlottesville, VA. The gutter was specially milled to match the original 150-year-old woodwork on this building. For this job we received a 96% rating from U.Va.

Fulton House, U.Va.
We re-roofed the Fulton house at U.Va. This, again, is a national historic monument. At this building, we removed the slate and metal roofing, working with John Taylor of Ben John’s Architects in Richmond. We removed and replaced the built-in gutter, which had a 23-piece wood and stainless steel system. We replaced the slates with new Buckingham slates, and installed a flat-seam extended steel roof over the rear porch. On this venture, we received a 93% rating.

Mr. & Mrs. Crawford’s residence, Richmond, VA.
This house is located on Massie Road in Windsor Farms, Virginia. We removed the existing slate roof and replaced it with a new Buckingham slate roof. The new roof was a random size and thickness of slate: 38 different sizes and thicknesses of slate were used on this roof, making it a complicated roof to lay out and plan. The slates varied from 1-inch to 3/16ths, and from 14 x 24-inch slates at the eaves to 6-inch x 12-inch at 3/16ths thickness at the ridge. Copper flashing details were installed around valleys and chimneys, etc. This project was unique in that the owner did not want any foot traffic over the garden; therefore, the roof was scaffolded around the building. All the slate removed and installed was walked along the scaffold boards installed over a 50-foot front pathway to the street.

Tuscan Villa Condominiums in Richmond, VA.
On this site, we removed Spanish-style Ludowici red clay tile. We repaired rotten roof deck and replaced the new tile with flashing details. This project is one city block long, all roofed in tile. We also installed new gutters and downspouts.

Prestwould Condominiums
Franklin Street, Richmond, VA. On this project, we removed the existing slate roof and decking (approximately 15 stories above the ground). We used crane companies to erect the largest crane possible to remove the existing slate and laid the roof with new slates. We installed the new slate to stringent architectural specifications, including all new flashings and details. This roof is a 12/12 pitch, which made it harder to work at these heights. The job was finished on schedule, and with no problems.

Confederate Chapel Richmond, VA. (behind the Museum of Fine Arts)
On this job, we removed the 150-year-old Terne metal roof and repaired the eave details, making some modifications to framing and structure around the eaves to better support the roof deck. We installed a new material in the industry: pre-patinaed copper. This roof was a 20-oz. copper sheet, which we formed into roofing pans. The metal is pre-patinaed using an acid at the factory. The roof was designed by Ben John Architects and was installed to reproduce the existing roof as closely as possible, but enhancing and improving the design aspects of the main roof and the steeple. This project is another fine example of our work in Richmond.