NewlyAnnounced.com

Roofing shingles are something that most every homeowner has, but few spend enough time thinking about them. The purpose of roofing shingles are to provide a single layer solution to a leak resistant top for a home or structure. Roofing shingles are generally laid from the bottom of the roof, with each higher row overlapping the row below it. Traditionally shingles were made of wood and were capped at the top with a row of copper or lead sheeting. In modern shingle roofs this is replaced by a row of roofing shingles that includes a plastic underlay.

In the old days wood roofing shingles were considered good. But in time modern materials such as asphalt and asbestos cement replaced wood as common materials. Today fiberglass based asphalt shingles are the most popular roofing shingle used in the United States. The obvious issue with wood is fire, and fire is the reason wood and paper backed shingles are used infrequently in modern construction.

There’s another type of roofing shingle that many people have seen but few would be able to name. This roofing shingle is named a shake, which is a wooden shingle made from split logs. Shake roofs were common with log cabins, and with many wood frame homes. They’re still in use today, most commonly transported by helicopters, but it wasn’t always done that way. Shakes were tied into packs and transported by pack animals, or even people, before helicopters were invented. Often cut in hilly areas, they were carried down the slope with the help of a long line run from the bottom to the top. This line served as a kind of railing so people carrying the shake packs wouldn’t fall.

The main difference between a shingle and a tile is flexibility. Tiles are generally made from ceramic. They’re brittle and ill suited to locations where tree limbs might impact a roof. Shingles are flexible and therefor better able to resist damage from tree limbs. Wood shingles rot, while ceramic tiles don’t, but modern materials such as the asbestos base for most shingles don’t rot. Another difference is the shape. Shingles are flat, while ceramic tiles commonly have an “S” profile to allow them to interlock for strength.

Believe it or not slate is also used for roofing shingles. Because of both cleavage and grain slate can be easily split into thin sheets. Such sheets, the slate roofing shingles, make for an old world look for a roof. Slaters, tradesmen trained to work with slate, cut and install slate roofing shingles. The same qualities that make slate excellent for roofing shingles, it is fireproof and an electric insulator, made it useful for early 20th century switchboards and relay controls on large electric motors. Imagine that, making a phone call on your roofing shingles.

GAF Roofing was founded in 1886 and today is North America’s largest manufacturer of residential and commercial roofing. According to GAF roofing, “GAF is your best and safest choice.” 

Let’s examine the claim by taking a look at GAF’s own explanations. GAF has manufacturing locations across North America – to serve you better. They have a lot of locations but do not sell through large retail merchants such as Home Depot. GAF invented the Timberline shingle which is the #1-selling architectural shingle in North America. If GAF didn’t make good products, people wouldn’t buy them. GAF was Awarded #1 visual brand by Life Magazine, meaning GAF products look as good as they perform.  Buildings magazine named GAF Fireshield roof restoration system “Best Product”. GAF was ranked #1 in shingle quality by home builders and was the winner of the Builder’s Choice award. Home builders named GAF’s Cobra ridge vents # 1 in quality. Of course, which home builders and how many would be natural follow up questions. Leading publications and networks such as HGTV feature GAF products. GAF is the premium designer roofing shingles and is a two time recipient of the Architects Choice For Excellence award. GAF’s Freedom TPO self-adhering roofing systems was chosen Product Of The Year by Commercial Building Products magazine. Modeling contractors named GAF the most-used brand of shingles and roof vents, but again the question is which contractors and how many contractors agreed with this. GAF was named #1 in innovation for shingles and ridge ventilation by home builders, and most-recommended brand by upscale remodelers. Finally, GAF was the 1st company to produce an energy-efficient asphalt shingle available in rich colors, called the Cool Color Series.

Take marketing speak with a grain of salt, but GAF does have a positive reputation in the roofing industry.

The residential brand for GAF roofing is GAF-Elk. This roofing brand includes quality shingles, 100% watertight leak barriers, roof deck protection, low-slope membrane roofing, fiber cement siding, ridge cap shingles, attic ventilation, starter strip shingles and accessory paint. Good Housekeeping awarded GAF-Elk it’s Good Housekeeping Seal, a sign of quality. GAF-Elk products are not carried by large chains such as Home Depot, but they do list distributors on their web site http://www.gaf.com.

GAF Roofing also offers other products such as stones, decking and siding to complete the look of your home. Always compare multiple roofing products before making a choice. No matter how well liked~ the company or how many awards it has, it’s always best to consider a number of options.

Fore more free help on roofing be sure to visit Roofing Help.

TPO Roofing was invented by the chemical company DOW in the early 1990’s. TPO Roofing means “Thermalplastic Olefin” roofing. TPO membranes are a combination of rubber and hot air welded seams made from ethylene propylene rubber. They are highly resistant to ozone, are algae-resistant, environmentally friendly and safe to install. The material is sometimes advertised as a monolithic (seamless) roof. TPO is highly tear resistant, resists impacts, and resists punctures with good flexibility to allow for building movement. TPO’s are available in white, light gray, and black with thicknesses of either 45 mils (.045″) or 60 mils (.060″). The width of the membrane depends on the manufacturer but they usually come in widths of 6 to 6 ½ feet and are 100 feet long.

TPO Roofing is considered a fully-adhered roofing. That means the roofing membrane is already attached to the substrate material with adhesive, thus it forms a strong chemical bond. TPO is highly heat reflective, fire resistant, and energy efficient. It also resists UV rays and dirt. TPO is popular in the automotive industry where it is known for impact resistance. This crosses over into the roofing industry where hail damage to roofs is a common concern.  

roofing contractors and manufacturers love the shift from some lower priced materials like EPDM to pricier TPO materials. Commercial roofing sales were $3.3 billion overall in 2007 with single-ply products being the largest segment. TPO has been taking more of that large share.

Because it’s recyclable TPO is becoming more and more popular as the green movement grows. Not only can it be recycled for roofing materials, but it can be burned as a fuel. TPO will burn extremely clean with no toxic emissions when no flame retardants are present. It therefore has a high potential as a high energy fuel for waste-to-energy programs.

TPO roofs are categorized as “cool roofs.”  A cool roof is defined in many ways by people or by different municipal codes. But basically, a cool roof reflects and emits the sun’s heat back skyward without allowing it to pass into the building or home. The more sun a roof reflects and emits, the cooler the roof. The Cool Roof Rating Council, CRRC, maintains an on line database of cool roof products. Be aware that while some TPO roofs score highly on the scale, some don’t.

TPO roofing is the way to go for many .

The term “roofing supplies” covers a wide range of materials and items necessary for the construction and maintenance of a roof. This includes not only shingles but molding, lumber, pipes and vents, roofing cements, ladders and all the handy tools including roofing nails.  

One of the most important roofing supplies is, of course, the top roofing material. This is generally the roof as people see it and includes wood shingles, ceramic tiles, asbestos shingles, metal roofing sheets and tiles, rubber roofing sheets and shingles and more. The roofing material should be chosen based on location, so that the roof will withstand the local elements and issues that interact with a roof.

Lumber is used in a roof primarily as the support structure or frame. This usually consists of a triangular truss and a lattice of beams. The frame serves as the base for the roof which is laid over the top. Other lumber elements include the cornice, part of the frame that hangs over the wall, the fascia, which is the underside of the cornice, the eave, beam ends of the wood frame that allow water to drip away from the roof, and the soffit, which is the underside of the eave.

Pipes and vents stick up from the roof. They assist in the house breathing and are also the way out for smoke from a fireplace or cooking hood, as well as for hot air from the attic. The bottoms of pipes and vents are generally sealed with a boot, or metal strip, including a lead based or plastic sealant. These pipes and vents have one way shields sealed with rubber so that the air or smoke can escape, but water doesn’t get into the pipe or vent.

Now onto the roofing tools which include the ladder to get to the roof, as well as other tools used for maintenance, installation and removal. These include simple items such as a broom and bucket to hold waste shingles, a slater’s hammer complete with a hammer as well as an ax and blade, a slate cutter to cut through shingles, seaming pliers to hold shingles, and a hip runner to install the ridge cap, the portion of the roof that caps the seams.

Roofing nails must be long enough to go through the shingles and go further to about 3/8 inch below the underside of the shingle. Anything that interferes with the nails biting into the wood might cause the nail to pop out and eventually the loss of shingles. This includes shingles with ridges, some under shingle materials, and of course nails that are too short. A good roofer can drive a roofing nail with one solid hit. A homeowner doing it themselves should be able to drive most roofing nails with one hit within a few minutes of work.

Like a well roofing supplies are a deep subject, but satisfying when you get to the bottom of it.

When a homeowner makes a selection of a roofing material, they should, take the roofing material’s lifespan into account because this determines the overall lifespan of the roof, and that impacts long term cost.

Roofing style, materials, and the climate in the area where the home is located are amongst the factor that affect a roof’s lifespan. Selecting roofing products with nearly the same lifespans will avoid piece by piece repairs over a ten to fifteen year period. In most cases, roofing materials last for about twenty years. That assumes proper maintenance and no significant weather damage. Some materials have a lifespan of up to 50 years while some others last only 10 years. Here are some of the common roofing materials and their lifespans.

A properly maintained asphalt roof will last between 15 and 20 years. Because of the low cost of the materials and the ease of repairs asphalt roofing materials are one of the most common types of roofing materials used throughout the nation.

Fiberglass roofing lasts between 15 and 20 years. Little maintenance is required for fiberglass roofs, and they come in many different styles and colors to match almost any desired look. Roofs made from this material are water resistant and mold resistant.

Wooden shakes and shingles are common in the northeastern United States. These roofing materials will generally last for about 15 to 20 years and could last for as many as 30 years if the shakes and shingles are well maintained.

Slate roofing materials are some of the longest lasting roofing products on the market, with an average lifespan of 40 to 75 years.

Metal roofing lasts nearly 50 years. Metal roofing products come in a wide variety of different colors, finishes, and styles to resemble other types of roofing materials such as tiles or wooden shingles. These roofing products are nearly impervious to weather and can be installed over the current roof.

Rubber roofing is a less known roofing material. It’s easy to install, easy to maintain, and long lasting. It comes as a roll or as individual shingles. The very first rubber roof ever installed was in Wisconsin in 1980. It’s still in service after nearly 30 years.

So you see, there are many different roofing materials each with their own strengths and weaknesses.