Took out a ceiling and found 3 layers of old shingles hiding up there

I was tearing down a dropped ceiling in my 1950s ranch house last weekend and discovered the previous owners just drywalled over an old roof. There were three full layers of asphalt shingles still nailed to the rafters above the living room. That can't be safe for weight or fire risk, right? Has anyone else pulled open a ceiling and found something this ridiculous hiding in their attic space?

2 comments

2 Comments

paul_lane8012d ago

Used to think old houses were built tougher and could handle anything, but seeing three layers of shingles just sitting up there above your living room changes that real quick lol. That's basically a hundred year old fire hazard plus a ton of extra weight the rafters were never meant to hold. I get why people did it back then to save time and money, but man that's scary to think about in a fire or even a bad storm.

reed.ray12d ago

Saw the exact same thing in a house I almost bought, totally agree!