Big problem ! A friend of mine has had her roof reshingled last week. I know little of roofing but...I have a very uneasy feeling of some of the work done. It looks very shoddy and improper. These are the problem areas...they did not put drip plate on facia boards, so raw wood is open to the elements...they said it doesn't need drip plate...I need to know if a proper job requires one........The line of the shingles do not match up...nothing is plumb......I also want to know what is the proper procedure in placing that first row of shingles...isnt it a double layer or half shingle first? Of course, now I am suspicious of the whole job....What is proper over the sheathing ? What kind of sealant is used now...tar? What about temperature on the date of application...this one fluctuated from 5 to minus 5 by the time they got the job done.The job specs said to use the existing flashings...an estimate was done for the job,my friend expected the "expert" to include items that would be needed for a proper job being done.There is no flashing for water drainage in the now crooked valleys of the roof. The cellophane tapes covering the tar are left on the shingles in numerous places. The job is worth $9,400 and it bothers me that she is not getting, I feel, even minimum standards for that exhorbitant amount.
Answer:
A good system of re-shingling entails removal of all layers of old shingle. Following that, ice & water shield can be installed along the lower edge of each roof panel. This shield has to go up high enough to be at least nine inches past the exterior wall of the house or whatever structure there is under it. Roof decking that may be in need of repair is now addressed. The bottom row of shingles is reversed so the tabs face up the roof and when the finishing row is placed over this, the seams do not line up. The cellophane strips do not have to be removed from the shingles because they have perforations permitting the shingles to seal with them still in place. Black, 15-pound building felt is then installed horizontally on the remainder of the roof to within a couple of inches of the peak before shingles are applied. At the peak, there should be a baffled ridge vent running from gable to gable on straight runs and from the gable back to within a couple of feet of valleys if they exist. In the case of a cottage roof, this system will give you more efficient ventilation than any other. The valleys themselves should also be amply lined with ice & water shield under whatever metal flashings there may be. The chimney, if it needs attention, should be addressed before any of this starts. The twenty-year asphalt shingle is presently the most cost effective product on the market.
