Slate roofing in Southern Scotland

I have a very large slate roof to take down in the Scottish Borders.
It's an old cattle court and it's in good shape.
I have men that are used to this work.
However can anyone help me in locating tools specific to the job to
remove, carry, store and stack slates to sell on to a recamation
specialist.
I have access to a teleporter and ladders and scaffolding and emp
insurance and all that.
Scottydog.

Lee...

I'm from Eastern Ontario and that area is full of limestone block
buildings with slate roofs. The house I was raised in (1862) still has
its original slate roof.
I've seen restoration, repairs, and additions to buildings and there
seems to be a common thread in handling slate. Mind you, this could
vary by regions.
Old slate roofs in our area are not attached to the roof, rather they
are 'hung' with copper nails with offset heads (look like a hook). They
are hammered in partially so the tile is hanging from the hook.
Removals I've seen use a large pair of side cutters to clip the head
off the nail and the tile is lifted off. Keep the cuttings and remove
the nail after the tile is lifted with a fence staple remover. Copper
is worth a lot of money.
Smaller tiles are moved stacked flat with a layer of wood slats between.
Very large ones are stacked vertically, tilted at a slight angle,
again with wood slats between.
Actually, a layer of 1 inch polystyrene insulation would work great to
put between tiles. It is cheap and easy to cut!
Good luck on your project.
How about some pictures of it?
Lee in Toronto

scottydog...

I will try and keep you posted. Just looked at the job today. Will try
and get some pics over the week end. It's an old yard next to a ruined
Keep tower, 80-100 feet high where stock were kept and fed actually
which was covered about 100+ years ago. The structure is now somewhat
unsafe and needs removing. The slates are in good condition and well
worth saving. The plan is that it will be used as an open yard to over
winter cattle with plenty protection from the elements from the north
westerly winds which you guys send us !!
P.S. Not sure if copper nails were actually used here. I will find
out.
Thanks for the help.
Scottydog.

Karen Burns...

I have nothing of use to add, but would just like to say that Lee, your
description is fascinating and has made me very interested to see
before/during/after photos of Scottydog's progress!
Thank you for the informative post!

Karen
boring old shingle roof, but still holding up well after 25 or so years, OH

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