# Forum Home Renovation The Garden Shed  Is It Okay To Punch Holes In Roof Sheets?

## abrogard

I'm laying roof sheets and I find my tek screws slide and slither everywhere so I punch a hole or an indentation for a starter. 
 I've done this before and it seemed to work okay - the roof is still up and working well after many years.  
 But googling around I find suggestions from people who should know that I shouldn't do this. 
 Like here: Steeline - Technical Information 
 Any experienced people can pronounce on this? 
 Or maybe tell me why I can't just drill straight through with my tek screw? Offer some technique that'll enable me to do that?   
  ab   :Smilie:

----------


## Vernonv

I'm no expert, but I've found that if you push down hard enough on the driver, the point of the screw creates a small crater in the roofing sheet and stops the screw from slipping.

----------


## abrogard

Well Vern there's something I'm doing wrong because I find if I push down hard enough as soon as I start the thing it slips across the surface - or it even skids and the screw comes out of the tool  before I start it! 
 Perhaps I need to spend some time trying to master the technique on a piece of scrap.

----------


## Craigoss

I watched the guys install my colorbond roof, all they used was an impact driver and it pushed through. Double check your pushing down with enough force and the driver is perpendicular to the surface.

----------


## Vernonv

I had the occasional slip, but 99% of the time it was great.  
Does the driver bit hold the screw tight, or is it quite sloppy? If it is sloppy then maybe try and find a bit that grips the screw better. The driver/bit/screw must be rigid enough for you to feel comfortable putting a bit of weight on it. The screw would be lucky to do a full rotation or two before it had penetrated the steel.

----------


## abrogard

Yes, it is a bit sloppy. But it's an old one that is not as strongly magnetic as the new ones I bought - they're so magnetic they pick up swarf and then you can't get a screw in there properly. Hopeless. 
 I'll look around for something better. Probably get this job finished before I find something though.  
 Perhaps my whole setup is wrong - the bit sure sticks out a long way, common sense seems to suggest a bit and screw close to the gun would be easier to keep straight and put pressure on than my setup. 
 I'll show you:

----------


## Bedford

You can get a shorter hex bit which might help. 
If you have a battery drill you could take that up with you and drill a pilot hole to help start the screws, once their through the sheet they should be ok. 
One thing I have found is that not all screws are the same, some are sharp enough to pick splinters out, and others you could sit on. :Smilie:

----------


## abrogard

Might make you laugh when I tell you I used to drill pilot holes - but first I had to centre punch else the drill would slip all about!!  
 And my drill was short enough. But maybe the mistake there was I was using a slender drill, very slender, should have gone to something like 5mm I guess. I was frightened to lean on it. 
 I don't have a cordless drill. Wires and double adapters all over the roof. 
 The punch trick I've got now works quite well. Just wondered about the repeated admonishments here and there, usually from sheet manufacturers, not to punch their products. 
 What I finished up doing on that one previous job I did, up north, was take a roofing nail up with me and a pair of pliers, and a lump hammer. Hold the nail with the pliers, thump with the hammer. 
 Because a roofing nail stayed sharp longer than the big bolt looking thing I had.  Same with this 6" long galvanised nail (?) or spike that I've got now. It gets blunt awful quick. 
  The roofing nail thing was handy - could keep a few in my pocket, pliers in there, too, could thump with great confidence seeing it was held in the pliers, and it always did a good job. 
  But I certainly would love to do it in one hit. Just put the tek screw on the crest and bam!   
  I'll look for better bits. 
  But, yes, I've found that out for sure, screws vary wildly in quality. I'm rapidly learning to just chuck it out if it doesn't bite in straight away.  
  A good one bites in and drills down at the slowest revs.  A bad one won't go through whatever revs you use, no matter how hard you  push. I've had 'em grinding away there for yonks - felt like half an hour, must have been maybe a minute or more I guess - and no result. Through the tin after ten minutes (subjectively) and fail utterly to get through the purlin. 
  Those are Stratco screws, folks, as supplied with their kit sheds. 
  This is another one for 'The Inventors', maybe. An attachment to your driver that seats it on the crest and stops it wandering. 
  And - last thought - maybe an impact driver would be better than my driver. I suppose the 'impacts' are significant and not just a meaningless 'feature' or selling point.  And maybe the significance is greatest right there, when starting the screw, maybe it bangs it in straight away. 
  What I should do, maybe, is put the bit in my hammer drill and set it on hammer and see if it goes better.  
  That might be a buzz.     :Smilie:

----------


## Bedford

> That might be a buzz.

  Depends on where you put it  :Biggrin:  I still think at this stage, your best to take the time and drill a pilot hole, 
I'm not sure if the drill in your pic is variable speed or even if it will accept an ordinary drill bit, but if not get a second drill and make pilot holes, at least this will help stabilise the screw whilst it's grinding into the purlin. 
Make sure you keep measuring towards the end so you can adjust sheets as necessary. :Smilie:

----------


## abrogard

Oh, okay. So what you're saying is that I'd be better drilling holes rather than punching a dent or a hole? 
 Okay. I might have to still punch first, as I was saying - the drill slips with me, too. Or it did. I suggested I might have better luck with a bigger drill bit. I might. 
 My drill (not pictured - that's my tek screwdriver pictured) is variable speed. It is a hammer drill, too. 
 The pictured screwdriver IS variable speed, too.  I find it drives tek screws best at slow speed, IF it is a decent screw.

----------


## Bedford

> My drill (not pictured - that's my tek screwdriver pictured) is variable speed. It is a hammer drill, too.

  Ok I would use your other drill ( not the Tek gun) and start real slow keeping the drill perpendicular to the sheet with a 1/8 (3.2mm) bit, this should give you a pilot hole, and once your through the the sheet with the screw , with  the Tek gun, let her rip! :Smilie:

----------


## Earlybird

If you are going to drill a pilot hole why not make a jig with a piece of ply and two or more pieces beading. With a larger jig you could set it to drill a number of holes at a time.

----------


## abrogard

I'm going to give it all a big try tomorrow.  I've got a bit of corrugate to practice on and I'll sacrifice a few of these screws. 
 I'll try just tek gunning, with a better bit if I can get one, shorter, better grip. 
 I'll try tek screws in the hammer drill.  On hammer and on plain drill. 
 I'll try drilling pilot holes without a punch first - on a 1/8th bit starting slow. 
 And I'll try to make a jig, maybe. I like the sound of that. 
 If necessary. If I find I can't drill pilot holes without hassles.  
 But all of this seems to suggest that everyone agrees, though no one exactly comes out and says so:  I shouldn't be banging punches through the roof!  So why not? What's the problem? What does it do?    :Smilie:

----------


## Bedford

> I 
>  But all of this seems to suggest that everyone agrees, though no one exactly comes out and says so:  I shouldn't be banging punches through the roof!  So why not? What's the problem? What does it do?

  Buggered if i know  :Biggrin:  :Smilie:

----------


## pastrychef

Hi guys has anyone heard of the Jigolo attachment for your drill for drilling your roofing screws I am about to do my pergola and am very interested in it helping me out  :2thumbsup: What do you reckon????? 
Check out this video on YouTube: 
[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6Xt8JhiCs8&feature=youtube_gdata"]YouTube- Broadcast Yourself.[/ame]  
Cheers
mike

----------


## watson

> Buggered if i know

   :What he said:  
I think the clue is where you say "punching holes *through*"
Totally  not required.
Little dent is the way to go...although that's two extra tools up there to do this.
I like the Youtube video thingo also....posted by pastrychef.

----------


## abrogard

Well  how about that !  They've already done it. 
 It looks like just the thing. But he wants $70 for it.  Bit much I think. Here: Inline Building 
 But it looks great. It even keeps the roof iron down and stops it riding up the screw and destroying the washer. 
  Or it seems to. There's not a good enough look to see how it is working. I suppose there must be a sliding sleeve and a spring arrangement. If the spring is too weak it wouldn't keep the tin down. If it were too strong you wouldn't be  able to push the thing. 
 But that's an aside. Mainly it is setting and drilling the screw perfectly by looks of it.  
 You're right, Watson, two extra tools and a whole extra operation. When I was doing the whole thing I had three operations: punch, drill, screw and three extra tools:  punch, hammer, drill. 
 I got the satisfaction of doing a good job on every screw but it sure was slow and painstaking.  But maybe painstaking is the way to satisfaction. 
 But if I had a good technique I could have painstaking satisfaction from a 'one shot', 'one tool' approach, yes?   :Smilie:  
  p.s.  Now I need the invention that allows you to move freely on the roof without creasing the tin. I already put two dents in the roof yesterday. First day I got on it. I did the other side off ladders. I can't do this side that way and I can't finish that way. 
  I walk on the purlins, I try to cover two or more crests with every step - but I'm clumsy or something. 
  I used to have a sheet of tin up there with me on that other job I did. I'm going to try that again today. Lay a sheet of tin down and walk on it.  It worked well on that flat roof.  Hopefully it'll work here on a gable roof, without sliding off and bringing me tobogganing down off the roof.   :Smilie:  
 p.s.  'little dent'. Yes. Well if that's the case that's fine.  
 Steeline on their web page say:  
"Do not use punches to form holes for fasteners. Holes are to be drilled or self drilling fasteners are to be used." 
Seems to support the idea.  "Do not use... to form holes".  Says nothing about guide dents. 
In fact nearly every punch is just a little dent. Only when the tool is at its sharpest and the tin is already held firmly does it punch through. My other roof I'm forever referring to has been up about ten years now and it hasn't rusted through at the screw holes that I know of, or anything else.

----------

