During a rainstorm, it’s difficult to permanently fix a roof leak, but you can temporarily stop, or catch, the flow of water into your home. Because it’s difficult to tell where the leak is originating, often the best and fastest solution is to completely tarp the leaking section of roof until the weather clears.

Here is how to make an emergency cover for your leaking roof from plastic sheeting and 2 by 4s:

 1) Partially unroll or unfold enough heavy (6-mil) polyethylene sheeting to cover the leaking section of roof, from eaves to peak; add about 4 feet extra, and cut it with a utility knife. Wrap one end around a 2 by 4 that is as long as the plastic’s width; staple the plastic along the 2 by 4. Sandwich the assembly with a second 2 by 4, and nail the boards together with three or four 3-inch or 3 1/4-inch common nails.

2) Place the sandwiched end of the plastic along the eaves. Stretch the sheeting from eaves to ridge, running it over the top of the ridge and down the other side a few feet.

3) Sandwich the top end of the sheeting with another pair of 2 by 4s so the wind will not carry it away. Do not nail any part of this assembly to the roof.

For safety’s sake, don’t go onto a roof that is steeply pitched, don’t step on the plastic sheeting (particularly if it’s wet), and never go onto the roof during a thunderstorm.

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