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Durring a residential roof replacement there can many different materials that are needed to accomplish the job. Your roof is more than just symmetrical shingles hanging on a house, it’s a barrier between you and the nasty natural elements from pouring into your home. A residential roof is an overall combination of several types of roofing materials and certain components that are put together to produce a complete roofing system.
But what exactly are the different materials and what makes them so essential to making a roof function properly? Keep reading to learn more about what makes up the components of a roof and what they are used for.
Every single part of your roof has its very own crucial job to of course like I mentioned before to protect you from natures elements. However, when replacing your roof there are some things that you won’t necessarily have to replace such as: decking and flashing.
But usually when you are replacing your entire roofing system it’s most likely that all of your roofing components and accessories will have to be replaced
1. Roof Decking
Have you ever wondered what exactly makes up the entire framing of your roof? Well you’ll be surprised to know that its the decking. These decking boards are the perfect place for your shingles and other roof components to be installed on.
When you decide to get a whole roof replacement, you may have to consider replacing your roofs entire decking. But you or your roofing contractor won’t have any idea whether or not it will need to be replaced until the entire old roof has been torn off.
If your roofing contractor discovers any rotten boards, then they will most definitely have to replace those rotten boards before they ever begin the process of installing all of the roofing components. However, if when your contractor checks your decking and finds that the decking integrity is sound then you can count on it handling your new asphalt roof just fine.
2. Roof Flashing
Anywhere your shingles butt up against someting, that’s where roof flashing metal is placed. However, if you’re lucky and your flashing is in top notch condition you may not have to worry about having to replace it. As long as your contractor doesn’t notice any rusting of the flashing and integrity of the metal is still reliable and strong then you shouldn’t need to have to replace it.
However, if you have decided to upgrade your roof to a 3-tab to a dimensional asphalt shingle instead then your roof flashing will definitely need to be replaced.
3. Underlayment
To provide additional protection of your decking a contractor will pace an underlayment which is a felt material that can be 15 lb, 30 lb, or synthetic material over your decking. This one thing alone is essentially a crucial component to your new roofing system. So you may expect having new underlayment included in your residential roof replacement.
Your underlayment is an essential part of your roofs system’s last line of defense especially for your overall decking. So you should make sure you take the time to pick out and invest in the best roofing components possible.
4. Drip Edge
To help control the overall flow of water away from your fascia and your other roofing components you need a drip edge which is a metal flashing that’s installed at the very edges of your new roof to help with this. When you get a new asphalt roof its imperative that you replace the drip edge. As a matter of fact it is a mandatory code that you have to have it on your roof.
You could fail a home inspection if the drip edge isn’t installed per code. For an example, if you happen to hire a less than qualified contractor who actually doesn’t install your drip edge on your roof, you will have to find another contractor or do it yourself by putting it on your roof before you can put your house on the market.
5. Ice and Water Shield
In order to keep water flowing in the correct direction down your roof it’s crucial that you install roof valleys. And because of this problem your roof needs something sustainable to protect it from the consistent flow of water that flows down it every time it rains.
That’s where ice and water shield come into play, they are a waterproof membrane that is essentially used to protect your roofing system from the damages that can arise from ice, snow, and water. When you get to a certain point in your new roof replacement you will need to install ice and water directly around your rooof penetrations and not only that but in your roof valleys.
Through thorough roof maintenance it’s absolutely important to keep any and all debris out of your roof valleys. If you decide not to maintan them then it’s absolutely possible for water to run across your shingles and completely saturate through the shield you installed all the way down to the decking which can ultimately cause leaks.
6. Asphalt Shingles
The visible part of your roof is made up of shingles. Which is why in most cases when people start thinking about replacing their roofing system they typically only think about the shingles. Shingles are in fact one of the most important parts of any roof replacement and they will definitely have to be replaced for the new roofing system.
However, if you don’t use the correct roofing techniques to install your shingles you may have a problem on your hands. Make sure your contractor is familiar with the correct roofing techniques so you don’t have to end up calling in a different professional to fix the job.
7. RIdge Capping
You know how theres a point where the two slopes of the roof meet that’s the ridge capping which is trim that is installed at the peak. They are much thicker than your average shingle and they are pre-bent so they can ultimately form the ridges on your new roof.
Ridge capping absolutely has to be replaced during a residential roof replacement. However, you should be cautious about the contractor you choose to hire, ask informative questions about the ridge capping such whether or not they will be using 3-tab asphalt shingles as the ridge capping or not. Because less than qualified contractors like to use this technique to cut down on costs they’ll have to pay.
3-tab asphalt shingles are not designed to work as ridge capping and can ultimately cause your roof to leak and it happens to be one of the most common reasons for roof leaks. So, definitely take a chance to look over your roofing estimate with your contractor to make sure you’re both on the same page overall.