This four-part series is a focus on asphalt shingles and why they are a bad choice for a house’s roof covering.

• Part one – “A shingle back ground”
• Part two – “storage and transportation of shingles”
• Part three – How shingles are installed”
• Part four – “How shingles wear and why they fail

Standard construction practice is this quote; “I’ve done it this way for 20 year and never had a problem.” Industry standards are quite a bit different. Industry standards are guidelines from the industry that creates the product. For example, there are standards for masonry products like brick and mortar that are used to create walls for a brick home. These standards are established by the masonry manufacturers associations. These standards are not building code. They are the guidelines the masons should follow when using masonry products. The roofing industry is the same. When all the asphalt shingle manufacturers get together they decide how their products should be installed and write this into a “standard guide”. Installation instructions however are a different from these guidelines. The installation instructions are specific requirements that the installer should follow if their customer is going to have a warranty to fall back on. If a shingle roof is installed outside of the instructions, the manufacture can deny a warranty claim.

What does this mean for me? Well, for you homeowner, it means have the company installing your next roof agree to install the roof according to the manufacturer’s installation instructions. If you have them write this into the bid, a binding agreement in most cases, they are entering into a contract with you (see your attorney for legal advice). Once the roof is installed, have it checked out by a home inspector, roofing consultant or take a close look yourself if you feel qualified to access a roof top. If you find out the roof was not installed as agreed, hold back the balance due till a resolution can be agreed upon.

You might not want to start a fight with your roofer unless a fight is founded. Simple discrepancies do not justify holding back final payment. However, serious flaws in the installation do. What is a serious flaw? Fastening and flashing are by far the most important aspects of a good roof installation. If you find that fasteners are over-driven, under-driven, or driven at angles, don’t freak out. As long as there is a minority of this defect, your problems are few. But, if there is a widespread problem, you will have failure of the material well before it wears out. If serious problems are found, have the manufacturer’s representative come out and inspect it. What ever their findings, have them provide you with a letter to back up their findings. Keep in mind that even though I believe the roofing contractor has duty to inform you and make arrangements to deal with the problem, most do not address flashing or decking. Ask them to do this. Have them check out the flashing and decking and agree to pay them to make necessary repairs when found. However, have them show you why the repairs are necessary if it’s not clear. If you have any doubt, rely on your friendly home inspector or roofing consultant to stand firm on your side and defend your interests.

Overall, most roofs are not installed correctly. Expect this to happen. It is extremely important to hire a qualified roofing consultant or home inspector to make this determination.

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Storage and transportation of asphalt shingles.

If you have ever had a roof re-shingled, you have probably noticed what happens when the shingles arrive. We call it loading the ridge. For convenience sake, all the shingles are run up a conveyor belt to the top of the roof. This is done for several reasons. The most important reason is labor time. If all the shingles are staged at the ridge of the roof when its time to start installing the new shingles, they are positioned to be slid down to the installer with the nail gun below. As he works the courses up toward the ridge, the use of gravity does most of the work for the installers. However, when this massive weight is stacked on the ridge, the excessive weight can cause slight damage to the roof structure. When all that weight is stacked on a central point along the ridge, pressure is driving the ridge down and in some cases, the ridge will separate from the rafters. In most cases, the damage is very slight and causes no permanent harm but it can be avoided. In the old days before conveyor belts, we had to huff the packages of shingles up a ladder to the work area. Although this is a best practice, you won’t find any roofers today are willing to do this technique. It is just simply a lot of work. So, that being said, before you load your ridge with thousands of pounds, take a look in the attic and make sure you have roofing components providing support. It might be a good idea to get the roofing contractor to sign a release to transfer the responsibility of loading the ridge to them before the shingles are stacked on the top of the roof.

If shingles are improperly stored, they may become defective when installed. It is a good idea to get a few things in writing when having a new shingles roof installed.

1. Have the installer to give you the name of the supplier so you can check the date the lot of shingles were manufactured. Verify the lot number on the shingles are the the shingles the installer is having delivered. The shingles should be no more than 4 months old.
2. Keep one of the paper wrappers that the shingles are packaged in. The installation instructions are printed on this package. When you sign the bid, which is a binding agreement, get the installer to agree to install the shingles according to the manufacturer’s installation instructions and hold them to it. Either hire a real estate inspector or inspect the roof yourself to verify the installation was done according to the instructions. If not, hold back the balance of the payment until you are satisfied.
3. Make sure the property is cleaned up to your satisfaction when the job is complete. Look in trees and around not only your yard but your neighbors for debris. Have them clean up their mess before you finalize the job with the last payment.
4. Keep any left over shingles. If you have wind damage to a few shingles over the next few years, you have extras from the same lot so matching will not be a problem.

Overall, you will probably get a superior installation if you follow these guidelines. Watch for the last two segments of this series for more information on why shingles fail.

This four-part series is a focus on asphalt shingles and why they are a bad choice.

• Part one – “A shingle back ground”
• Part two – “storage and transportation of shingles”
• Part three – How shingles are installed”
• Part four – “How shingles wear and why they fail”
  

A shingle background

How they are made - Asphalt, or composite, roof shingles are made of a few different materials. The primary ingredients are a fiberglass mat saturated in asphalt and then the top is coated in granules that give the shingle it’s color. Organic shingles use an organic felt mat instead of fiberglass. Multiple layers are then coated on top with a granular material to provide color, resistance and protection. Other materials like fly ash or limestone powder are added to create durability and resistance to fire and water.

Types of shingles – The basic and most economical shingle is the standard three-tab composite shingle. There are many levels of a higher quality dimensional or architectural shingles that range in life expectancy from 25 to 40 years. Many shingles are damaged and replaced due to hailstorms or wind damage. In hail prone areas, there should only be one layer of shingles at a time. Overlaying shingles is a practice of adding a layer of shingles over the older worn out layer. In the past, this was done to save time and labor removing the older layer. But the added weight and fastener reliability is compromised.

Why shingles are not sustainable - Asphalt manufacturing creates an enormous carbon footprint. In addition, the lifespan of the basic asphalt shingle is of the lowest of all roofing materials. Asphalt roofing shingles are the number one choice when building or re-roofing a house primarily because of the low cost and ease of installation. However, when you consider how may insurance claims are submitted for hail and wind damage, it becomes more and more clear why our insurance premiums continue to rise. By choosing a sustainable roofing material like metal roofing or concrete tile, we pay more upfront but save the environment as well as our pocketbook over time.

As an business person trying to navigate this new world of social networking, I have a plan. Like the rest of the world, we are all beginning to realize the power of a social network and its ability to spread news like no other media source today. The old days of relying simply on a press release to introduce your company to the world are gone. Today, we must take advantage of the new revolutionary movement which is social networking media. Websites like Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, Youtube, Flicker and any other I may forget to mention here are the new links to the people we want to reach. If you not already aware of the viral method these systems use to spread the “word”, you might want to do a little research. One good source is the Buzzstream blog http://www.buzzstream.com/blog/ .

I figure these social media platforms to be my best resource to not only identify myself with the world but also to use them as a springboard when our next company releases http://www.myhealthyhouse.com which will roll out this December 2008. I have massaged my Linkedin page over the past several months as well as started a Facebook and twitter account. I still need to work on all the other possible social networking sources but time being limited, I have specifically decided to put most of my efforts in Linkedin and Facebook.

In the next few weeks we plan to test the power of our social networking by using them as one of our primary company release cannon shots. Our target is our professional and personal networks. If it ramps up like expected, we will rely on our colleagues and friends to help us virally spread the word and news of our new idea to drive people to our new website.

I’m betting Linkedin to be the best professional accomplishment venue and Facebook the best personal contact venue. I would love to hear what others have to say regarding the other social networks and how they seem them useful specifically as a tool to release a new company.

Your feedback is appreciated.

We have created a new logo for our company “My Healthy House”. You can see it at http://doylewilliamson.wordpress.com/my-healthy-house/ where we would love to hear any comments you may have.

As we move into the fall of 2008, we are blessed with the recent cooler temperatures. A sure break from the summer heat and a welcome change, fall brings with it rain in most cases, but so far not this season. As weather changes, pests that once enjoyed the great outdoors are now acting from their strong instinct to head for shelter. Rodents as well as bugs are looking for warm homes to occupy to survive the impending cold and freezing weather.

If you are under a pest control contract, you’ll likely have another quarterly service this year. Because pests are on the move now, most people are experiencing a more active bug problem than in recent weeks. Again, if you are using pesticides, consider closing up the gaps in your home to prevent pest access instead of toxic pesticides. See Pest Lock for more information. Make sure to check your garage for critters as well. They tend to sneak in around the bottom garage door seal or the open corners. Rodents will sneak into your garage and attic to hang out. They get into your attic through damaged screening or open roof lines. Rodents only need an opening large enough to fit their skull into and their whole fat body will follow. They can squeeze into a hole not much larger than 1/4″.

In addition to pest being on the move with intent to infest our homes, the cooler weather brings with it drops in atmospheric pressures. When a front moves in, the pressure changes which effects double pane windows sometimes by breaking the seal and fogging between the panes. If you notice this fog effect, the pane is ruined and will need to be replaced. You might also notice in the colder months accumulation of moisture inside the window and on the frames. This moisture will often pool on the sill so make sure the sill is painted and sealed to prevent damage. The moisture comes from the very cold aluminum window frame condensing like the outside of a soda can. Hot on one side and cold on the other side attracts the moisture.

If you house was built before 2002, your double pane windows are probably lacking high efficient low E (E=emission) large dark solar screens. Now is a good time to remove these screens to allow the extra heat load from sunlight to warm the house over the cold winter months. Store your screens away in the garage or attic in a safe location to avoid damage. If your screens are screwed on, make sure to mark their location since they will only fit that particular window. When spring arrives, you can pull them out, clean the up and put them back on the windows till next fall.

Now is also a good time to check your door weather stripping for leaks and seal the outlets and switches on all your exterior walls. Doing this will help reduce air loss and lower your heating bills over the winter. however, remember that Pest Lock does all this for you.

Enjoy the nice weather and remember to conserve energy.

Ah water. It makes up most of our human body so without it, we die. Drought and contamination are serious considerations when it comes to thinking about water and how we will use it in the future. This year in Austin, rainfall has been very low. Area lakes like Lake Travis provide very important power, recreation and water to our community.

To put rainfall into perspective, Austin’s total rainfall for 2007 was around 43 inches or almost 11 inches over the annual average. Our average rainfall for Austin is 31.88 inches. To the date (11-01-08) the total rainfall for 2008 has only been 12.94 inches or almost 18.95 inches below the annual average. In 2006 our beloved Lake Travis was at a 42 year low of 25 feet below normal levels. The last time it was this low was 1964. At the time of this post the level of Lake Travis is 23.92 feet below the full level.

The importance of the low modern-day levels is the simple fact that the local population today is substantially greater than 1964. In addition, this natural resource has been in an emergency state two of the last three years.

Any of the following things can be done to contribute to conservation of this precious and limited resource:

• Low flow or dual flush commodes
• Low flow shower heads – available from the City of Austin
• Turn off your lawn irrigation system till springtime
• Turn off the water as your brush your teeth or shave
• Hand wash dishes
• Monitor your laundry load and wash only what is necessary

Conserve water now and lower your household cost of this resource. You will also reduce the enormous amount of green house gases and the chemical additives that go into the production of our water supply.

For more information click on the LCRA site

The methodology behind Pest Lock is to mechanically control structural invading pests from entering a house or building. This is done through the installation of the Pest Lock exclusion system. A properly installed Pest Lock system physically prevents pests from accessing to the structure. With Pest Lock installed, exterior control of pests becomes easier and requires dramatically less pesticide application. Pest Lock will accomplish the same goal as conventional pest control but in a much safer way.

Structural pest control has historically been accomplished by the application of toxic pesticides. Generally, these pesticides are broadcast over large areas around the exterior as well as target areas of the interior of a home. In some cases, broad application of pesticides are done on the interior of the home. Ultimately, toxic pesticides are being continually applied where we sleep, eat and raise our families increasing health concerns by increasing the frequency of exposure.

Pesticides work as toxins. As pests come in contact with the applied products, they die. However, due to products designed to rapidly degrade, newly hatched eggs may not be effected by products applied on the last quarterly application. Ongoing application of pesticides is usually required to kill the young larva as well as adult insects that live & breed in the walls or find there way into the structure from the outside. At best, pesticides can be used to control infestations by limiting colony sizes in a structure but an ongoing application schedule is necessary. The problem with ongoing application is the potential for pests to become resistance to products. More importantly, there is a growing concern regarding the overall environmental impact that pesticides have on our home, neighborhood and our world.

Over the history of pest control, few solutions have been developed to control pests from entering a structure. Unfortunately, homes are build with openings and gaps. Some of these openings are on purpose but most are not. Construction practices do not focus on preventing pest access. When a Pest Lock system is properly evaluated and installed on new or older houses, openings in the building perimeter envelope are narrowed down no larger than 1/8th inch. The primary concern is to create obstructions where systems of the house must breath and seal areas that do not require ventilation. Weep holes, or the gaps between the bricks that sit on the slab, are a good example of a system that should not be sealed and must ventilate.

See pest lock for more details.

OK, now that I have come to the frightening conclusion that this economy has come to a screeching halt, I am looking for ways to get my utility bills from “WHAT THE *#%@” to “Not so bad”

My real estate inspection business has been slow all year with no signs of recovery. My pest control business hasn’t grown enough to pay back my initial start up costs and I typically don’t pay myself for the work I do on a start-up till its in the black. Yes, as painful as it is, I am realizing that I can no longer deny the position I am in. So the other day I started thinking about how I can cut my bills since I’m not bringing in the funds like I used to. Having our family income cut to more than 50% this year and the fact that we are finding ourselves locked into most of our financial obligations, I really don’t have many areas I can voluntarily cut expenses.

The utility bill for my house a couple of months ago was over $800. Yes thats right over $800. This particular bill was twice an average summer utility bill. Did that freak me out? Not really. I’ve been living in denial I guess. Now I’m freaked out. So, I’m looking for ways to just lower my electric bill and I’ve come up with several things I am implementing now.

First and foremost, anything that is plugged in to an electrical socket that has a power supply (computers, Wii, TV, reciever, etc.) will be turned completely off and unplugged. Appliances that can go into stand by mode still draw current and use electricity when not in use. This energy is called “vampire” or “phantom” energy and runs up the electrical meter without our knowledge. Another interesting consideration is that the more electricity you use, the higher you step up to the next rate and pay more at each level. The more you use, the more expensive it gets.

In addition to controlling vampire current, any light bulb that is not being used by someone in the house at that moment, is turned off. Night lights left on in the middle of the night are turned off as soon as we get out of bed. And if it gets any worse, the night lights will be put in a drawer and not used at all. Dishes are washed by hand and dried on the dishwasher racks. The dishwasher is not used at all. Clothes are hung back up if they are not dirty and worn again if possible to reduce our washing and drying load. The A/C thermostat has been programmed for 82 degrees F in the day time and thank God its getting cool outside.

Yes, with kids, this new implementation is much more difficult but we’ve been talking a lot about where water and electricity comes from and that we indeed have to pay for it with money. My 6 and 8 year old are getting it and they are helping us to stay vigelent and keep our bills down. I also helps to tell them when we have money again, we can buy treats again.