Asphalt shingles and why they fail (part 3)

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.

Asphalt shingles and why they fail (part 2)

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.

Asphalt shingles and why they 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.