Advice From a Professional Roofer
At Sargeant’s Roofing, we are on your side. Contrary to most roofing contractors, we actually want you to end up with a roof that you are satisfied with and will last you years to come. With our business, we believe in a job well done — nothing less. Because of our standards of work, we have no problem telling you what is possible and what would be better for you and your home. We are directly honest and we are also a company that strives to give your home what it needs.
With our honesty comes sound advice when referring to your roofing needs. In fact, we have compiled a list of sound advice from a professional roofing company (us) to a curious customer (you). Whether you take our advice is up to you, however, we have years of experience behind us to back up our claims. Enjoy!
What to Know About Roofing
Roofing can be tricky because you want to ensure you get the best quality, the most skilled installation, the right color, and the right materials. Don’t worry if you’re head is spinning, we are here to help you clear some things up.
Ensure the Best Quality
When you hire cheaply, it is almost a guarantee that you will receive non-durable materials for your roof. Unlike most bargains, you will limit the quality of your roofing services if you try to get a less expensive option. Why? When you have a roof installed incorrectly or with poor materials, you can actually ruin the structure of your roof. This can lead to leaks and overall decay of your roof. Our point is — it is not ideal. You don’t want a poor roof installation, mainly because often that means you will be paying more for repairs or complete re-installation. So take a tip from a professional roofer — hire a professional. When planning to hire a roofer, make sure the company has the experience, is organized, and above all, is a licensed roofer.
Skilled Installation Services
You will normally get a skilled installation if you entrust your roof to a company that has been certified and recognized for their work on other projects. For example, Sargeant’s Roofing is a BP + Malarkey certified roofing company. Sargeant’s Roofing also is the proud owner of an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. It is key when hiring a roofer that you make sure that they have plenty of experience. At Sargeant’s Roofing, we have roofers with more than three decades of experience! With years of performing roof installations and repairs, we are pretty well versed in what needs to be done and what works better for certain houses.
The Right Color
This decision is up to the owner of the house. Depending on what kind of aesthetic they wish to have on their home, this will ultimately determine what color their roof will be. However, after a few years, we have noticed some colors coordinate better with certain climates and residences. For example, when you are considering color, you must consider where you live, the availability of the color in your area, and the overall look of the color with the materials of your home.
At Sargeant’s Roofing, we can install the color you want, but if it is not available in your area, there is not a whole lot that we can do. We can try to order them, but if you want camo-print shingles, odds are the availability for that material and style will be scarce — if not impossible to find.
It is best when choosing shingles for your home that you compliment your shingles with the materials of your home. We have noticed that darker roofing, such as browns and greys, works best with most homes. However, we caution against getting too dark of shingles. When you install dark roofing, they can sometimes prove to be intense heat conductors. If you already live in a hot climate, perhaps lighter materials would suit your home better.
The Right Material
Choosing the right material for your roofing is by far one of the most important decisions of the entire roofing process. The quality and type of roofing you choose will determine the length you will have your roof and the amount of future roof maintenance you will need. We at Sargeant’s Roofing install and repair cedar, asphalt, and rubber roofing. We install these specific types of roofing because we have found that these are more durable, less heat-sensitive, and last for decades.
We warn our customers against clay tiles and metal roofing for four distinct reasons:
• Denting
• Noise
• Maintenance
• Cost
Denting: When you install metal roofing, you can almost guarantee that your roof will see quite a bit of damage. If you live in an area that is prone to heavy rain and hail, you can count on your gorgeous roof eventually having some dents. Metal roofs are a pain to install and are very expensive. If for some reason, a serviceman or you need to be on your roof, there is an increased risk of denting, or worse, causing lasting damage to your roof.
Noise: Metal roofing has no sound barriers. Meaning, that if there is any sort of weather, such as rain, wind, or hail, you will hear every ‘thud’ on your roof. Some customers enjoy the sound of rain, however, the sounds can get irksome over time and normally lead to an eventual replacement for a new, less noisy material.
Maintenance: Clay and metal roofing require a lot of maintenance over time — this is the primary reason why we refuse to install metal roofing. Not only is the roof installation a huge hassle, but maintenance is a recurring issue that never goes away. The material can chip over time and can easily be damaged. To limit damage, roofers will normally install metal roofing in a top-down pattern, so they will not need to step on the materials. The issue with this type of roofing is that you will, eventually, need to have someone on your roof, either for inspections, plumbing, or electrical. Though metal may look sophisticated, the amount of money to install and maintain them is not worth it.
Cost: This is obviously one of the important factors when choosing a roofing material, whether it be metal or something more useful, such as an asphalt roof. Metal roofing costs around $150 to $600 per 100 square feet to install. Depending on the size of your home, this cost could be incredibly expensive.
If you are interested in roof repairs or roof installation service, we are happy to help you with your project. Sargeant’s Roofing is here to help guide you to the roof perfect for you and suitable for where you live. If you would like to use our services, visit us online!
Anatomy of Residential Roofing
Much like the class dissections you had in school, we are going to pick apart your modern roofing system and show you what each piece does and why. Our hope is that by explaining each part of your roof, you can get a better understanding of our processes and why we follow a certain code for our roofing. For example, why we only install cedar, asphalt, and rubber roofing.
The key to completing any task is to have a full understanding of it. Though we don’t expect our customers to grab a staple gun and join us on the roof, we at least want our customers to understand what we do and what structure they live under.
Your roof is compiled of these following parts:
• Rafters
• Sheathing
• Underlayment
• Shingles
• Flashing
• Rafters
You depend on your roof for protection from the elements and harsh climates, so it would make sense that you would want your roof made properly and with all the necessary parts. When your home is built, the rafters of the roof are the basic supports that hold the rest of the roof up. The rafters are diagonal pieces of wood that come together and are held by a ridge board. The ridge board, as well as ceiling joists, are attached to the rafters in order to keep them together. To add more stability and strength to the roof, trusses are added in between the rafters to help support the weight of the materials of the roofs, such as shakes or shingles. Trusses are typically seen in more modern roofing systems, as a way to provide more integrity to your roof.
Sheathing
Sheathing (sometimes called “decking”) comes into play when referring to creating the foundation of your roof. This step is normally seen when pieces of plywood are laid down across your roof on the rafters or trusses. When applying sheathing to the roof, roofing companies don’t typically lay down wood, staple it and then call it a day; actually, roofers must strategically place the wood on the roof and give each piece enough room apart from each other. This spacing, in the roofing world, is called an air gap. Air gaps are used in a roofing system in order to give the wood of the roof enough room to expand and contract. These motions normally occur during hot and cold seasons, or when there is added moisture in the air.
Underlayment
Underlayment is used to coat the plywood of the roof. To cover the roof, typically, tar paper is used. The material is rolled onto the sheathing as yet another layer of protection for the roof.
Shingles
Shingles are the final part of your roof. Shingles can come in many different forms and colors. At Sargeant’s Roofing, we install cedar, asphalt, and rubber shingles. Applying shingles to the roof requires careful attention to detail. When your roofer lays down each shingle, they must be lined up with the top ridge of your roof and carefully made sure each shingle is overlapping the others. Typically shingles are placed on a house from bottom-to-top. However, some styles of roofing require that you lay down the pieces of your roof top-down.
Flashing
Flashing is an important step of your roofing because it keeps water from getting through any cracks where your shingles meet a protruding part of your roof, such as a chimney or vent pipe. Obviously, this could prove problematic, especially if the water were to mold, weigh down, or eat away at roofing materials. Flashing is typically fashioned at the base of your chimney stack or alongside the corners of your roofing.
When installing a roof, you want to make sure your roof is well insulated and protected. Your roof tends to accumulate heat, whether from UV rays from the sun or the rising heat from those who live inside the house. This accumulation of heat can be dangerous, so it is important that when installing your roof, you make sure that you do not only have an airflow duct within your roof, but some sort of fan or vent to ensure proper flow throughout the day.
When deciding to build your roof, keep in mind that the type of material you want to install might affect any of these parts of your roof. When installing a roof or replacing an old roof, it is a better, safer option to pick a material that will last. Shingles, made with either cedar, asphalt, or rubber, are the best sort of shingles to install because they are durable and help with insulation. These sorts of materials are also easier to install and less expensive than most other materials. If you value your roof and want a quality job done that doesn’t break your bank, you might want to consider Sargeant’s Roofing. Visit us online today for a free quote for our roofing services.
Cedar Roofs and Asphalt Roofs
There is no competition between cedar or asphalt roofs; it really depends on the style of your home and which colors you have incorporated in the visible materials. As stated previously, a darker roof is ideal for a home, but not always necessary. Whether you choose a cedar roof or an asphalt roof, it is completely up to you — however, we have compiled some facts about these roofs that you might want to explore.
Cedar Roofs
Wood roofing is a very diverse material, in that it can come in all kinds of shades — not to mention styles. Wood roofing comes in two types of roofing genres: shingles and shakes. Wood shakes are split from logs and have a more rugged look to them. On the other hand, you have the option of using wood shingles for your roof. Much of the difference between these two types of roofing is that wood shingles are cut into much more uniform angles. Shingles are a more modern take on shakes, which is why they are more popular when installed in current-day homes.
Asphalt Roofs
A desirable factor of asphalt roofs is that they come in many different color options. If you want to add a pop of color to your home, applying asphalt shingles would be the way to do it! Asphalt roofing is typically made with organic materials and fiberglass. 95 percent of asphalt shingles feature fiberglass felt. This material is great for the protection of your house and is extremely durable against weather and occasional foot traffic.
Durability
Both cedar and asphalt roofs are extremely durable, especially against insects and heat. The main difference between the materials is their ability to withstand large quantities of water. For example, cedar roofs are better suited for climates that don’t take on a lot of rainfall during the year. Though occasional instances of rain won’t completely compromise your roof, too much rainfall is never ideal to repeatedly come into contact with wooden shingles. However, though asphalt can handle large quantities of water, it is not completely exempt from natural wear and tear. This, of course, will eventually require you to restore or replace your roof shingles.
The important thing to remember is that asphalt shingles and cedar shingles are two of the most durable materials you can place on your roof. Though they have certain durability issues, they are by far the most trustworthy materials to invest in.
Costs
The cost of installing, repairing, and replacing either cedar or asphalt shingles is completely dependent on how much surface area needs to be covered. Pricing between cedar roofs and asphalt roofs differ by a few dollars per square foot. In the instance of cedar shakes or shingles, each square foot of shakes is about six to nine dollars. This equates to about anywhere from $600-900 for 100 square feet. For cedar shingles, the pricing is a little less, at only $400-700 for 100 feet.
Asphalt roofing costs less to install, depending on the number of shingles needed to cover the entirety of our roof. Typically, pricing for an asphalt roof can range anywhere from $250-$400 per square.
Either type of roofing will work and look spectacular on your roof. At Sargeant’s Roofing, we can provide you with incredible service and an even better installation job. If you are interested in repairing, maintaining, or even installing a roof, you can help! Call us today and one of our representatives can help you with any further questions you might have.