How to Replace Plywood on My Patio Roof

Remove the patio roof covering using the appropriate tool, such as a shingle scraper for asphalt shingles or a screw gun to remove fasteners that secure metal paneling. Rip off the felt paper to expose the plywood sheathing.

Locate the nails along the outer edge of the plywood sheathing. Place the nail claw's sharp points next to the nails that secure the plywood sheathing into place. Hit the back of the nail claw with a hammer to dig the tips into the plywood and underneath the nails. Pull back on the nail claw's handle to pry the nail out. Repeat the process for each nail.

Find the nails that secure the inside face of the plywood sheathing to the roof trusses. Remove the nails with the nail claw and hammer. Slip the flat end of a pry bar along the outer edge and pry the plywood sheathing out from the truss.

Lay a new sheet of plywood into the hole. Place two nails between the bottom edge of the new sheathing and the course below it so that there is a 1/16- to 1/8-inch gap. Hammer 2- or 3-inch galvanized ring shank nails every 8 inches apart along the outside edges.

Locate the roof trusses underneath the face of the sheathing and hammer 2- to 3-inch galvanized ring shank nails every 8 inches.

Repeat the process with each sheet of plywood. Replace each sheet that you remove with a new one to minimize exposed areas that can be potential fall hazards.