Installers can drive fasteners while standing up without fatigue
When you’re installing metal roofing, you need a tool that will allow you or your team to get the job done precisely and quickly. A key feature of auto-feed screw driving systems is the ergonomic advantage to installers of being able to stand and drive fasteners. This benefit reduces worker fatigue, is easier on backs and knees, and saves time.
Improved Fastening
It’s for those reasons⎯and more⎯that collated-screw fastening tools are fast becoming the installer’s tool of choice. These tools are replacing traditional hand drive screws for their speed, reliability and power. Auto-feed screw driving systems are easy to use, durable and designed for a wide variety of fastening applications, including agricultural postframe buildings and new and replacement residential roofing projects.
They are ideal for metal roofing and siding because fastener strips provide for hands-free screw advancement and virtually eliminate fastener waste. Another benefit of an auto-feed system is it eliminates the need to handle individual screws, allowing installers to work faster (there are no dropped screws that can scratch or dimple panels) and reduce costs.
There are tools that are specifically designed for fastening metal roofing and siding. Pleasanton, Calif.-based Simpson Strong-Tie’s Quik Drive BGP300 auto-feed screw driving system by, for example, is designed to install collated hex-head metal roofing and siding screws. When you’re evaluating auto-feed screw driving systems, key features to look for include:
• An advancement mechanism that prevents skipped screws and allows a greater percentage of the collated screws to be driving.
• A collated-fastener belt that provide bi-directional loading for easier operation.
• Locking depth control to provide proper seating of the washer on every fastener driven.
• A removable side handle that provides leverage on vertical applications.
• Quick-loading coupling to help make it easier to assemble and break down.
The tool should also have multiple profile guides to match a variety of panel profiles. Because every roof is different, these guides allow installers to quickly position the fastener in the ideal location, including the center of the rib. The tool’s locking depth control also ensures a proper fastener seal and prevents overdriving that can damage metal roofing and siding.
Important Features
Another important feature is belt collation, which means the feeder senses when a screw is present and will not advance the belt until that screw is driven. It is designed for easy loading, which keeps work moving.
An auto-feed system is also beneficial for standing seam metal roofs. An autofeed screw driving system’s nosepiece can enable fast, precise placement of collated screws in standing seam panel clips. This enables installers to fasten panels in about half the time of traditional fastening methods.
Key features to look for in an auto-feed system for standing seam metal roofing include:
• A nosepiece shaped to make it easy for the operator to find the hole in the panel clip with the tip of the tool. This enables installers to drive the screw in the right place every time.
• Hands-free screw advancement so there is no need to handle individual screws.
• Collated fastener strips that are easy to load and virtually eliminate fastener waste.
For metal roofing, manufacturers offer installers a full range of galvanized or stainless steel screws as well as color-matched, powder-coated screws to coordinate with metal roofing and siding. Some manufacturers also offer a lifetime warranty on their tools.
The reality is, the more rapidly a roof can be installed, the lower the labor costs and the sooner installers can move on to the next job. Whatever metal roofing job you’re working on, auto-feed screw driving systems can save you a significant amount of time as well as result in considerable savings to your bottom line.
Galen Longley is product manager for fasteners at Simpson Strong-Tie Co. Inc., Pleasanton, Calif. For more information, call
(800) 999-5099 or visit www.strongtie.com.
