How do you do asphalt shingle roofing?

Answer 1

It's good to have someone teach you the first time. It's worth the expense to pay someone to train you, since it's so easy to mess up a shingle job, then you have to live with a leaky roof.There are several things to watch for, such as the first course needs to be offset from another course of shingles.
The tabs should be cut off the bottom course and the sticky surface should be near the drip-edge. Then the next course should align with the drip edge or hang over slightly. Plan on using a "chalk line" every 5 courses to make sure the shingles remain straight. Overlap a "half tab" on every shingle course. Make sure there are 2 courses UNDER any flashing metal or vent flashing. cut carefully around flashings to keep an even gap.
MAKE SURE YOU USE METAL FLASHING on chimneys and any other vertical surface. Go up the side AT LEAST as high as the normal snowfall/ice dam potential.
No nails should be visible, all nails should be covered by the NEXT course of shingles.
If you do it right, your roof should need NO adhesive or sealant. Remember that water from the shingle above should ALWAYS fall on the next shingle, nothing else.
You'll be far better off if you strip the old roof, repair any damaged or rotted wood, put down rolled ice dam protectant (instead of tar paper) and use the chalk line frequently, measuring an equal distance from the ROOF RIDGE down.
Good luck.

Answer 2

Asphalt shingles are by far the most popular roofing material today. They are relatively cheap and very simple to install that is why it is a favorite among roofers like Trident Roofing. They come in a variety of colors and styles, are fairly durable (some have been tested and have achieved a class IV hail rating), and can be easily repaired and maintained. Asphalt shingles come in two basic types: glass fiber and organic. Organic shingles consist of an organic felt material which is generally, paper saturated with asphalt to make it waterproof. Glass fiber shingles have a glass fiber reinforcing mat manufactured to the shape of the shingle. This mat is then coated with asphalt which contains mineral fillers. The more popular shingles are the glass fiber ones. This may be attributed to the fact that they are cheaper and easier to manufacturer than organic shingles making them more cost effective to the homeowner, or it may be that they are easier to work with, or they may simply be a personal preference of the roofing contractor like Trident Roofing.

Asphalt shingles cannot be used with any type of roof pitch, roof pitch meaning the slope of the roof. Asphalt shingles are used by roofers like Trident Roofing on medium to steeper pitched roofs. There are also two ways of installing asphalt shingles. The first way is by completely removing all the existing shingles. The second way is to lay a second layer of asphalt shingles on top of the existing layer. But roofers like Trident Roofing says that there are both pros and cons regarding the two methods. The main argument against laying additional layers of asphalt shingles is that the roofing materials can get too heavy for the underlying roof framing. And this can be a real problem, especially for older houses. The main argument against stripping off the existing layer and then laying down a new layer is that you're adding more work to the process but that wouldn't be a problem for those who have professional roofers like Trident Roofing to work on their roofs.

Answer 3

If your roof is missing shingles or if the shingles are cracked, broken or even just curling at the edges, you should consider installing new shingles. Replacing roofing is not a job for everybody - it's a heavy, tedious job and requires you to work off ladders and right up on the roof itself. However, shingling is not overly complicated, and it is a job homeowners can do themselves (or preferably with the help of two or three friends).

Shingles are sold in "squares" that cover an area of 100 square feet. An individual shingle is 36 inches long and 12 inches wide with tabs cut every 12 inches halfway through the width of each shingle. At the base of the tabs is a line of soft tar that will soften in the heat and help seal the shingles to the roof.

Things You'll Need:

• Chalk line
• Work gloves
• Knee pads
• Roofing shovel or square-ended spade
• Shingles
• Roofing felt
• Rope to tie off ladder or to use as a safety rope
• Shoes that grip
• Ladder
• Roofing nails
• Hammer
• Carpenter's apron
• Waterproof membrane

1. Step 1 Measure the length and width of the roof sections to calculate the square footage to be covered, then add 10 percent for wastage, dividing the result by 100 (to determine the number of squares you will need).
2. Step 2 Use the square footage of the roof to determine the amount of roofing felt needed to cover the entire roof (under the shingles) and the amount of waterproof membrane needed to cover the lower edge of the roof and protect it from moisture. Preparing the roof
3. Step 3 Calculate the amount of roofing nails you will need using the fact that each square of shingles will require approximately 2 1/2 pounds of roofing nails (use galvanized roofing nails with a 3/-8 or 1/2-inch head).
4. Step 1 Remove the old shingles using a square-tipped spade or, better yet, a roofing shovel. (A square-ended shovel with teeth can get under nail heads and pull them out).
5. Step 2 Check that the roofing material (plywood or strand board) is in good shape (no rotten spots), and is nailed down firmly. Shingling the roof
6. Step 3 Replace any rotted sections and add nails if necessary to hold the wood solidly in place.
7. Step 1 Start at the lower left-hand corner (as you face the roof) and install the "starter course." You do this by removing the tabs from the shingles used in this starter course and nailing these "half shingles"' with the cut side facing out. Cut 6 inches from the length of the very first shingle placed in the lower left-hand corner and then butt the rest of the shingles in the row all along the lower edge of the roof. Overlap the roof edge by about a 1/2 inch.
8. Step 2 Begin installing the first row of shingles again at the lower left-hand corner. Start with a full shingle in the corner (again overlapping the roof side and edge by about a 1/2 inch) right over the starter course. Snap a chalk line at the top of this shingle as a guide for when you install the rest of the rest of the row.
9. Step 3 Move on to the first shingle in the second row by cutting 6 inches off the length and installing it over the starter shingle in the first row. Line up the bottom edge of this shingle with the top of the tabs in the first row of shingles.
10. Step 4 Continue installing shingles at the left edge of the roof, cutting 6 inches off the length of the first shingle in every other row. By installing shingles up before moving along the roof, you eliminate moving across the width of the roof with each row. The first shingle in the seventh row will be a full shingle.
11. Step 5 Start working your way across the roof after installing the first shingle six rows up. Butt the shingles against each other and fasten the shingles with four nails each. Trim the shingles at the far side of the roof so they overlap the roof edge by the same 1/2 inch as on the starting side.
12. Step 6 Continue this process until you reach the top of the roof where you will trim the shingles to fit along the ridgeline. Follow the same process on the other side of the roof, starting at the lower left-hand side and working up and out until you reach the top. Overlap the shingles in the top row of the second side to cover the ridge and nail them in place.

Answer 4

Pretty much the same way the original shingles were put on. If there are more than three layers you will have to take off the old ones and go down to the original wood sheeting or plank

ing. Check with your local building codes first, but most are three layers max. Otherwise, you start at the bottom roof line, snap a chalk line for your first run, and start setting the shingles. The first run should be a double run, meaning two layers of shingles. Also this is a good time to check your drip edge. I usually just put new on. It's cheap and gets damaged easily so it looks good to have new. The first layer on your first run will be applied upside down. Then, the second layer is laid directly over top of it. This puts a layer of shingles under the cutouts because there is nothing yet to overlap. The second run is overlapped onto the first run with the bottom edge lined up with the top of the cutouts on the shingle below. You keep doing this, checking your lines as you go up to make sure they are straight, until you get to the top. You will shingle up to the peak, cutting off any excess, then cut new shingles into thirds at the cutouts and carefully bend them over the peak. Start at one end of the peak and overlap them to cover your nails.

Make sure to check the roof decking carefully before you apply shingles. Go over it looking for rot or damage that can be replaced. Also check the roof structure while the shingles are gone. It is better to have it repaired when the roof is accessible from the top. Make sure you use a layer of good tar paper under the shingles and flash around any pipes or chimneys very well. There are various products to use for this purpose from rubber boots to rubber cements.

Answer 5

There are some home improvement projects that should only be done by professionals, but shingling a roof is a task that can be done by someone with a basic general knowledge of construction. Consider some of these basic principles to shingling a roof.

Felt Paper

Felt paper is the first thing you should put on the plywood foundation of the roof. This gives a protective barrier between the shingles and the wood. However, it's sometimes not necessary to use felt paper on projects like sheds.

Roof Edges

The sides of a roof are called rake edges, and the bottom of the roof edges are called drip edges. You will want to leave a one inch overhang on both the rake edge and the drip edge. When your roof is complete, you will add metal edging to both the rake and drip edges.

Shingle Placement

The shingles will stagger at six inches apart. Start at the bottom and turn the first set of shingles upside down along the drip edge. Shingles will also overlap too. A suggestion is to set the first row of shingles at 29 inches from the rake edge while the next row of shingles is set at 35 inches from the rake edge. You will be working your way up as you are roofing, and you will stagger and overlap the shingles as described. Cut your shingles so they overlap one inch around all the edges.

Nailing Shingles

Nail the shingles to the roof so that the overlapping shingles will cover the nails. Be sure to use only those nails designed for roofing.

Roof Cap

The very top of the roof should be "capped." To do this, you can use the scrap pieces of shingles to make the roof cap. Overlap the scrap pieces to create a cap, and cut them where the dark parts of the shingle are hidden underneath the colored part of the shingle.

Answer 6

There are instructions printed on the packages. Basically it is the same as installing any asphalt shingles.