What is the Right Roof?

I had a friend in Maine who was in love with red clay tile roofs so when he built his new home he decided to use this type of roofing. As he was a framing contractor he made the trusses extra strong for the weight but he never counted on the snow sticking to the tile. The roof deck sagged in one place and several of his clay tiles cracked. Moisture got into the cracks and the freeze-thaw cycle went to work on them and extended the cracks. Water got in and, as he did not see the need for an underlayment of asphalt felt, the water ran down one of his interior walls. In the end he had a crew take the tile from the roof and he replaced it with asphalt shingles. That was 10 years ago and the roof hasn’t given him any problems.

As much as he loved the Spanish look his part of Maine was not the place for tile shingles. Now, if had lived further south or in a dryer area it might have worked out fine. Because even if he had an underlay material water still would have come in under the shingles in bigger quantities and might have shattered more shingles or the expensive edging near the gutters.

Conversely, northern manufactured asphalt shingles can melt right to the roof deck necessitating the whole deck be replaced. And in areas of extreme snow conditions, where you want the snow off your roof before it piles up, metal works the best.

The point is that roofs are successful in certain areas of the country, not because of intense scientific experimentation. It’s because the also-rans could not handle the weather conditions. Just like animals hav adapted to the situations of their specific climate so did building standards which includes roofing.

Tar Paper Under Roof Shingles

If you drive around an area where there is new construction look up at the roofers. If they are putting down asphalt shingles there is a good chance that they are not using roofing felt, commonly called tar paper. There are a couple of reasons for this. One is that the manufacturers claim that it is not needed. And the second reason is that it slows down the roofing crews.

In any home water is the greatest enemy. Water leaking into the home not only makes things wet it creates mold, promotes rot and provides insects a place to breed. These maladies not only are unhealthy but can cause structural damage leading to thousands of dollars of repair. The fact that water can ruin a home is not in question. It’s that many roofing professionals do not do all in their power to prevent water damage at the source.

Roofing is the first line of defense against water. Without a sound roof nothing else matters: siding, interior design, etc. Water will ruin all of this. So roof specialists use water-prevention products like ice shield, a thick, wide membrane that goes along the edges and gables to prevent wind-driven rain from going up under the eaves. Then there is drip edge, a lip that goes around the entire edge of the roof to guide water away from the fascia. Flashing is the tine or zinc sheet that goes around chimneys, vent pipes and lines the valleys to channel water away from theses openings to the home. Felt is actually tarred paper which is rolled over the naked roof boards to prevent leaks from shingles from getting on the wood and into the home. It is, in effect, a second line of defense.

Some manufacturers claim that felt seals in heat and promotes warping and rot to the wood. In their eyes, after the shingle tabs seal there is no way for water to get up inside and leak into the home. Some will even void the warranty unless placed directly on the boards. However, wind-driven rain can get up inside and produce enough water to cause problems.

The rule of thumb for roofing is to put the drip edge on first and then install the ice and water shield. Others may reverse this but this is matter of preference. The is the stage where the felt is rolled down and it starts at the bottom over the ice shield, being rolled horizontally and then stapled down. The next row is overlapped by around 5″ and this carries on to the peak. The shingles then go over the felt.

By doing this the homeowner is protected against those times when rain or ice is pushed up under the drip edge. The water will find its way down to the eave and gutter instead of into the home or rotting out a portion of the roof. In the cases where there is a heavy windstorm and shingles are ripped off the roof there is a sold protection against the elements until the roof can be fixed.

A certified roofing contractor can answer these and questions about the protection of your home.