What should I use for my new roof?

MrGriz said:

This may sound like a silly question, but I have to replace my roof and I'm wondering if there is a better alternative to asphalt shingles.

Griz, how old is the roof presently on your home? Honestly bang for buck wise, shingles is the way to go. GAF has what they call a lifetime warranty shingle. But read the fine print. Its pro rated after so many years. As Elk stated they range from 20 yr to 50yr shingles nowadays. I haven't seen a 15 or 20 year in quite some time.
Most supply houses in this area start at 25 yr three tab and run up from there. If you go with a 30, 40, or 50 year dimensional (architectual) shingle, I think you will be very pleased. You can even go to some of the manufacturer's web siters and they have programs where you can ssee a home and change the shingle, siding etc colors and so forth. To get a feel for what you like. Best bet is go to some supply houses and ask for sample boards, then before finalizing a color, pick 2 or 3 and ask for one or a few shingles of the colors you have in mind. That will give you a much better idea of the true color, blend of colors etc. Takem home and lay them on the roof or next to the siding. Never go by the small color samples they give you, because they do not show the blends that each shingle color has. Most shingles have several colors blended in to make the main color. Only a few full singles will give you a true idea of what the blend looks like.

In my days of roofing, I saw a few shingle batches go bad on some of the jobs. Rarely, but it did happen in late 80's early 90's. The manufacturer was Certainteed I beleive & possibly Tamko. They came and looked and tried to blame the prematurely weathered color grit and delamination of the shingles on improperly installed shingles as they put it (Not a roof I shingled, but the company I worked for did the job). Fact of the matter was the shingles were defective when made, and the manufacturer tried to void the warranty because every nail was not perfectly on their installation line. In the end, they ate sheet, and had to pay for the new shingles, but not for the installation. Keep in mind I have not heard of this problem for some years now. But EVERY warranty has the potential for loopholes for the manufacturer to weasel out of their warranty. All in all bang for buck, dimensional shingles are the way to go.

I am in southeastern Wisconsin, so we get hit with all the elements and I want something that will stand up to Mother Nature well. My house is a tri-level, with a roof pitch that is not too steep. On 1/2 of the house the ridge runs one way and it's perpendicular on the other 1/2 (hope that makes sense). There is currently one layer of asphalt shingles on the roof. Whatever material goes on, I am planning to do a tear off of the existing roofing and I know I need to add some venting.

In PA. you are allowed to have 2 layers of roofing max. Meaning you can go over existing once. One thing to keep in mind is 1/2 the cost of a new roof with tear off is the tear off itself. Its a majority of the labor plus the cost of a dumpster, rippers etc. Not trying to say leave the old roof on, just explaining where cost lays.
As far as venting, no venting does kill a roof prematurely, and also in some cases can allow mold to grow on the underside of the decking. Usually see this in cathedral ceiling roofs with the insulation right up to the bottom of the deck. But no venting also allows the shingle to age prematurely from the heat trapped under which also causes the shingles as a whole to be hotter throughout.
Venting can be done in a few ways. Soffit vents along with a ridge vent. They make a few nice ridge vents that have shingle caps over top, and are best for keeping insects, bats etc. out. There is a cheaper aluminum type that just nails over top the opening at the ridge. The nails almost always back out and the vent becomes loose and/or blows off. They are not that eye pleasing either, higher profile than the shingle over type.
You can install one or several roof fans. Requires electrical & cutting hole(s) in the roof. They work well but again eye pleasing is not their strong point, plus added electrical useage. Plus you should strategically plan where placed, as they generally work an area, and further areas get less air movement from them.

There are also gable fans (side of house just under the peak). Also work well, same aesthetics as roof fans. But need cros breeze of air. Meaning fan on one end of house, vent on other. Does not work as well on a "L" shapped or house.

I suggest soffit vents in any situation, as it allows cooler air in at bottom to replace hot air at ridge. But without a ridge vent or fans, soffit will not perform as best as it can. Its all about air flow & replacing hot with cool from below.

If you go with fans, they can be solar, but I have not tried any of those.
Also you are in Wisconsin, so the soffit and ridge vents should be plenty for that area.

I was planning to use a dimensional shingle, but I started thinking that there might be some better products out there. I know metal roofs are very popular in some areas, but I'm not sure what the trade off is in additional cost and if it is worth it or not.

Metal roofs are nice, last long and are expensive. If you go with metal, go with aluminum with a Kynar baked on finish or equivalent.
The painted steel will rust in time, every where they cut the ends to fit etc. Cuts the protective finish also.
If you walk on the metal roof, you chance kinking, warping or oil canning the panels. Use a chicken ladder for access & maintenance on this type of roof.

Cedar & Slate also last probably the longest, but will cost prolly 4x or more the cost of shingles.

I have also seen rubber roofing out on homes with "A" roofs, But it looks like crap, and not sure the local folks or township would care for it.


Only my opinion, but a good 40-50yr dimensional shingles is the most economical, cost effective way to go. And they look nice also. I would not go with a 3 tab, they are out dated, cheap and just a "builder's grade" alternative.

Sorry for rambling on, hope this helps.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

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MrGriz said:

Thanks for the replies. Hogwildz, that was some great insight.

I believe the current roof is the original, which would put it at 28 years. When you look at it that way, why mess with something that performed that well. Besides, I'm sure the dimensional shingles that are made today are even an improvement over what's up there now.

That was the point I was getting to, and if those shingles were a "3 tab" type, they were prolly a 15 yr shingle, maybe 20. That does attest to their reliability & dependability. Shingles today are much improved technology as many things are over the years. Shingle manufacturers do not want to end up paying for things that are ruined due to a faulty manufatured product. As you can guess with the few time I described with a badly produced product.

I do have soffit vents, but I don't think there is adequate ventilation. I would like to put a ridge vent in just to "complete" the loop of venting hot air out the top and bringing cooler air in through the soffits. This just seems to make sense.

Put the shingle cap covered low profile type on, they look nice, but don't stick out like a sore thumb. Cobra vent comes to mind. Comes in rolls. Cut a 1" strip off the decking at the top of the ridge (make sure you get an open space, some ridge pole in older places are true thickness and you may have to rip down a lil more decking to get a gap. Do a small test cut in a spot. BE VERY CAREFUL NOT to cut too much off, ad the ridge vent will not cover it then, and you will have to patch in the decking.
Once you find the needed amount to cut off, pop a chalk line across and go to town. Just keep track as you go along.. The venting is about 12" wide, the ridge pole is 1-1/2" if newer lumber, and maybe be 2" if older true lumber + the 1" from each side taken off is already 3-1/2" to 4", that would leave about 4" ridge vent coverage each side onto the existing decking, also less a lil bit for the angle of roof. Thats fine. I was taught to leave 1' on each end uncut, that way your last few caps shingles taper down off the ridge vent to the deck on each end. I don't know why, that what I was taught many years ago. Might not make a difference. I am guessing it keep blowing rain out as it does not face down as each side does, and rain might blow sideways into it. Also make sure you shingle you main field up to the top before ridge vent installation, I have seen guys think they were far enough up only to have the uncolored top of the shingles showing, or not double layer coverage, leaving a small vertical seem in between each shingle with only deck under neath. The ridge vent usually comes with 2" or 3" roofing nails, no need to buy more for it. The Cobra vent is like a plastic spaghetti in a long roll, it has a fabric on one face & the sides, that side goes down. Its a good idea to lay an old tarp, plastic, or old sheets in the attic during the roofing project, it will save you alot of cleanup afterwards. Unless the attic is closed off, the don't worry about it.
To not see the seams in the ridge cap shingles, run them starting in the direction furthest from the direction you will be looking at house (from road, driveway etc.)
For instance, if you have your driveway on the left side of house run the ridge cap shingles starting from the right, that way the seams will be facing right and hot show as much. Really doesn't matter, just aesthetics. Also nail the cap shingles at about the tar line, that way each nail will be covered by the next cap.

As far as the tear off is concerned, by code I can go up to two layers but I'm not convinced that it's a good idea. I can call in a few favors and do the tear off myself (I've had plenty of practice on friends houses already). So that brings the cost of the tear off down to the dumpster rental and some beer and steaks for after the work is done. With the tear off done, I can give the decking a good inspection and install ice and water shield. Besides, even though we plan to stay here for a good long time, when we do sell I think a single layer roof will be more attractive to a buyer than two.

How many square is the roof? You really want to try and order no more dumpster than needed, unless you have other crap around the house to get rid of. They can be expensive, and no sense paying for space that won't be used. Depending on your neighborhood, you may want to cover it with a tarp if near the road, I have come to jobs only to find the dumpster full of the entire neighborhoods discarded crap. Also, if you are planning on getting rid of household junk in it also, ask the dumpster provider is its ok to mix the shingle construction debris, with household stuff. Alot do not allow as they may be restricted as to what they are dumping & where its dumped. Or bury that crap in the bottom and cover with shingle tear offs. Make sure you leave enough room for the shingles. Not that a Neanderthal like myself would ever condone such an act *grins*.

TMoniter, that was interesting information you found. I do have a number of trees in close proximity that are taller than the house, which should take care of that potential problem.

Hmmm I remember someone pointing that out earlier, hmmm

Now all I have to do is find the time to get this done before the snow comes. I'm thinking that the cooler weather in late September or early October is prime roofing time...

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Don't wait too long, last thing u want is the roof opened up and rain or snow hitting. Do a side or section at a time, keep a new large enough tarp & some 1" x 3" laths along with some long say 12penny mails around, just in case If you do get caught in rain, TAKE YOUR TIME grab tarp cover ripped off section, nail the laths over the tarp along the preimeter and spread out over the middle, naile right through the lath & tarp. run all the lathe but the top vertical, and the bottom ones run diagonal. this will keep you dry and shouldn't blow off. But TAKE your time YDon't get all freaked and at that point unsafe, it takes much longer than you thing for rain to get into the house & do any serious damage. The small amount you get while covering is nominal. Better safe than sorry. Wet things can dry or be replaced, you might not be.

elkimmeg said:

Hog most asphalt shingles today are made to be mold resistant much less of an issue now.

I know they sell a specific mold/moss resistant shingle, not sure what the chemicals are if any in them, not sure how long the chemical or additive lasts. IMO any house with a shady side &/or trees shading roof, especially in a wet climate will accumulate moss etc. My fathers home has same problem, but its minimal, so left alone.

70 lbs 3 tab shingle 90 on the designer wood shake types per bundle on you shoulder up a ladder that 20 lbs is noticeable.
Completely agreed, very noticeable.e

What i do is setup a platform with pipe staging and have the shingles delivered with a lift boom truck and stacked as high as possible to lessen any lifting and ladder climbing
I do the same thing, I either pre tear off, felt in then pop my chalk lines, then nail 2"x4"s across the roof in horizontal strips just enough & above the courses worth below, and lay the shingle bundles out all ready to be slid down for the course needed below as shingling. If I cannot tear off the old before new shingles arrive, I build a similar platform along the peak in several areas for large jobs. Also effective is making a platform out of the shingle bundles themselves, usually step stacking on each side of peak, until they stack even with the peak to form a platform at the peak which includes the peak for support. Works very well.

If it can be rerached stack the ridge a lot easier to pull them down than lifting.
I usually order a boom truck as the paddle trucks do not reach the peak usually.

I call the designer shingle idiot proof shingles, almost impossible to install them wrong Practically self aglining. I use full and half shingles to keep joint separation to the maxium

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