The Sloan Family Tree House!

I received a telephone call a few months ago from a very nice woman named Miriam. She was referred to me by someone in her office that I have worked for in the past. She described to me a roofing situation that she assured me "was very unique". I thought to myself, "unique? I've seen everything, nothing can surprise me".

Boy was I wrong!! Her family home, located in beautiful, but relatively isolated Topanga CA, has, Miriam explained, an enormous Oak Tree growing through the roof. Then she e-mailed me some photos to prove it!

Intrigued, I decided to take a look for myself. After making my way down the winding, twisting roads of Topanga CA., I came to the place Miriam and her family affectionately call their "tree house"!

There is indeed an Oak tree growing through the roof! In fact the Oak tree is the dominating feature of the Topanga Canyon home. Its huge branches poke through the roof in five places. Outside, it's 75 ft wide leafy canopy covers their house like a giant umbrella. Estimated at over 300 years old, the tree is the matriarch of a grove of oaks that shade the Old Topanga Canyon Road property. Its gnarled branches have grown so long that some of them rest on a rocky slope behind the house. It is quite a beautiful site.

As bucolic a scene this is, the situation on the roof - well, it was not as pretty. Layers of built up roof cement applied over the past 57 years, plastic sheeting, and assorted attempts at installing metal flashing had left a roofing mess!

I admit, I was a bit flummoxed at first, but since I am a Roofing expert who even has a blog about "ROOFING ANSWERS", how could I not take on this challenge? This situation called for a long term solution that would eliminate leaks without causing any damage to the tree. After speaking with a local tree expert, I let Miriam know that I could fix her problem!

The solution utilized a combination of "old school" techniques and "modern" materials.



Here is our excellent crew, Steve Mills and his son Jarrod, applying the secret ingredients!! We used a water-based, permanently elastomeric, flashing compound. This material never hardens, it remains highly flexible. While this material was wet it was reinforced with a polyester fabric.

The key was creating a folded crease in the fabric. This would allow for further tree growth and more importantly allow for movement when the wind blows without tearing or stressing the fabric. After allowing the first layer to cure, we applied a second layer of reinforcement and a final top coat. Here is the finished results with the proud crew!!



Steve (on the right), a thirty year roofing veteran had this to say about the project, "This was a really fun job. It is not often that I get to work on something so unique. I've always loved Oak trees, so to be involved in such a cool project is really something I can be proud of." `

These days, the tree house is something of a Topanga landmark. Miriam told me that they've actually received mail addressed to "The house with the tree growing through it, Topanga CA"!! A decades-old conservation district plaque records one of the Coastal Live Oak's branches at a circumference of 7 feet, 7 inches. It's more than 8 feet now. Today the family that calls the tree house "home" can look forward to the rainy season!!

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