Frequently Asked Questions

Spaced sheathing (or skip sheathing). Spaced sheathing commonly consists of 1”x6” or 1”x8” boards which run parallel with the roofs eaves and over and perpendicular to the rafters or trusses. These boards usually have a 6-8” space in between each row, hence the name spaced sheathing.

In order to install an asphalt composition shingle roof, the roof deck will need to be solid sheathed, meaning no spaces. The most cost-effective way to remedy this is for a roofing contractor to install OSB (oriented sand board) plywood of the spaced sheathing. This will create a uniform, solid, workable deck for your new dimensional shingles.

Side note, some people use sheathing and sheeting interchangeably but actually sheathing is a verb which means to encase with a protective layer, i.e. sheathing a roof. sheet is a noun which refers to a sheet or 4’x8’ piece of OSB plywood. So, the correct way to use the terms would be to say, “the roofer is sheathing the roof with sheets of plywood”.

The second type of roof sheathing is solid sheathed. On older homes (roughly pre-1980’s) the solid sheathing was achieved by using 1” x 8” boards and butting them tight together as to leave no large gaps. This type of sheathing is acceptable to install a new composition shingle roof over, but the roofing contractor must make sure there are no large gaps. A common issue with 1x boards used for solid sheathing is that they would dry out and crack over the years, they would also have large knot holes that would fall out that could result in large holes in the roof deck. These areas need to be changed out with new boards before composition shingles can be installed.

Another type of solid sheathing is traditional plywood or the more popular OSB, oriented strand board. Plywood as a solid sheathed roof deck is usually the optimal working surface. The large sheets provide a uniform surface and they don’t shrink and crack like timber boards. If, after roof removal, a solid sheathed roof deck exists then the roofing contractor will just have to do a visual inspection for dry rot.

A “nailing inspection” this is when an inspector from your local city ensures that the plywood was nailed off with the correct size nails and in the right nailing pattern. Once the inspection is signed off the roofing contractor can move on to the dimensional comp roofing stage. Most cities will require a “nailing inspection”, but we handle all the scheduling, and all the details for you.

The first step to installing an asphalt based composition roofing system is to install felt underlayment. A common issue with traditional roof systems is that asphalt-based roofing felt is used. This felt is notorious for absorbing moisture and failing before the roofing shingles in some cases.

As a standard we use synthetic felt weaved with fiberglass strands. This synthetic felt is many times stronger than traditional felt and it wicks water away rather than absorbing it. For example, traditional felt may last through one or two rains before it begins to buckle and curl up, after a few weeks of bad weather the felt will most likely need to be replaced. Synthetic felt can be exposed to bad weather for up to 6 months with no alteration in appearance or structural integrity.

Synthetic felt is a key component to our total protection roofing system designed by Owens Corning.

Felt is basically a rolled asphalt-based construction paper that is installed over your plywood roofing deck before the tile is installed. Roofing felt, by nature, will shed water for a period of time but if water is directly contacting the felt for a long period of time (multiple months) then the felt will begin to deteriorate and ultimately the water will seep into the plywood deck causing dry rot in the plywood.

So now you can see why one cracked tile, or missing shingle can lead to a much more extensive roofing repair if left uncorrected for a long enough period of time. The best way to combat this issue is to have regular roof inspections, maybe every 1-2 years.

Dry rot is found at the overhang edges of the roof more often than any other area. Other common dry rot locations include around chimneys and around pipe penetrations. Our company has noted this common issue and we came up with a way to combat it.

These particular areas take what is referred to as a “flashing”. A flashing is usually a piece of metal that is fabricated to go around roof penetrations to help prevent water intrusion into your roof system. The building code and city require a minimum size of flashing for each area of the roof.

The problem is most contractors just include the bare minimum that is required by code and install it on your roof without ever discussing potential dry rot issues with the customer. Our solution is to include oversized metal flashings as a standard line item. We would rather be proactive about protecting our customers and have to justify the extra cost rather than delivering the lowest possible price with the cheapest materials.

For example, as stated earlier, the most common dry rot area is along the edge of the roof overhangs. Building and most city code requires a 1.5”x1.5” metal flashing (referred to as a nosing) along this overhang area. Our standard flashing for this area is a 2”x3” pre-painted nosing. This means that you have 3” of flashing metal going onto the roof deck under the roofing shingle, that’s double the required minimum.

The same goes for all other areas that require flashing. We use oversized metal flashing at all penetrations and roof chimneys. We don’t just go out and slap down some roof shingles, we have instituted a complete roof system that works as one unit to help reduce the risk premature failure and to help protect your investment over a long period of time.

Yes. Another common issue with new shingle roof installation is at the roof valleys. The roof valley can be weaved with composition shingles kind of like a basket. Sometimes these valleys are not weaved correctly, and it becomes a shingle leak area.

As a standard we include valley metal in all valleys and then the shingles are roofed up to the valley. This valley laps underneath the composition shingles and provides superior protection against water intrusion.

This is by far the optimal way to go.

A penetration in a roof system refers to anything that penetrates up and out of the roof system such as abs vent pipes, roof vents, hot water heater exhaust pipes, etc. Many times, these penetrations are sealed with a low-grade silicone or even asphalt-based mastic. This method of sealing tends to hold up for roughly 10-15 years before it begins to crack and split. These cracks allow water to follow the pipes down into the walls of the home and eventually lead to interior drywall damage. The best way to prevent this is to use a construction grade sealant with a long manufacturer warranty, i.e. a 50-year manufacturer warrantied roof sealant.

Some things to look out for while having a roofing contractor install your new shingle roof; make sure the roofer installs preformed ridge trim shingles. These shingles are formed at an angle in the factory and they are designed to be bent without cracking.

All too often roofing contractors take the regular shingles themselves, cut pieces out of the field shingle and install them at the peak of the roof as a ridge trim. We have seen countless cases where the proper ridge shingle was not used, and all of the ridge is cracked and split open as early as 10 years after installation.

Missing shingles are a sign of some potential issues with the roofing system. It's generally a sign that the shingles are losing their tar seal. It's a good idea to have the roof inspected by a professional to determine the overall condition of the roof.

Missing granular is generally a sign that the shingles are coming to the end of their life. The granular keeps the shingles from drying out and cracking. Exposed shingles will start to dry out and crack, giving water a place to enter your roof system. It's definitely time to have the roof inspected.