# Should I replace my roof?



## skittlebear (Mar 26, 2010)

Ok..a little background first. I am a female in my 20's and also a new homeowner....so go easy on me, lol. I know nothing about roofing other than what I've researched on the internet. 

The guy I bought my house from told me he replaced the roof himself (he is a contractor) ABOUT 20yrs ago. It is asphalt shingles (I think,lol). It looks as if it is good condition. My fiancee walked on the roof to check it out and said everything looks fine. 

I had an inspector inspect my home before I bought it. He advised that I may need to replace it in the near future but as of right now, it looks great. He didn't actually get on the roof though. :wink:

I just bought my house and am on a tight budget. I don't want to go inexpensive when purchasing a roof. Do you think since it seems to be in good condition that it will last longer than 20yrs? I am hoping so! Or, should I go ahead and fork out the money and purchase a new roof now...maybe I could finance. My mom just told me she wouldn't even worry about it until there is a problem (ie: leaks). Thanks in advance for all who respond.


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## skittlebear (Mar 26, 2010)

Also, I know I would save tons of money if I did it myself...with help from my fiancee and brother. Is this a no-no? Should I hire a professional instead?


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## oberkc (Dec 3, 2009)

Yes, it is possible that a roof can last more than twenty years. Can you inspect the underside of the roof for signs of water damage? This might help decide if it is time to replace the roof. Otherwise, two people inspected and thought it looked good? Barring signs of water intrusion, I would wait.

I consider roofing to be a potential DIY project, but it depends on a lot of factors. Do you have steep roofs? Are there lots of valleys? Flashing? Can you complete it before the next rain? Do you intend to take the old roof off? What are you going to do with the roofing material that is removed? Are you capable of repairing damaged structure, should you find any? Do you have the time? Do you value a warranty?

If it were a relatively small house, without lots of flashing concerns, and a roof where I could easily walk, I would do it myself.


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## Scuba_Dave (Jan 16, 2009)

If it ain't broke....don't fix it
How long it will last depends upon shingles used, ventilation, tree shading to keep summer heat down & other factors

If shingles aren't curling, breaking etc should be OK
And no leaks.....:thumbsup:


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## BamBamm5144 (Oct 6, 2009)

There is a problem with the if it aint broke dont fix it slogan. If your brake pads are shot, do you get new ones or let it go until you also need to buy new rotors for triple the cost?

I assume you would rather be proactive than reactive especially when protecting your big investment.

Have a roof come out and take a look at the roof. I personally, would not trust anything the inspector said since he didnt even go on the roof, and your fiance may not know how things actually do look.

I met with a HO today who was worried about their roof. I told them they can get another 5 years out of it. Then I informed them that within the past 5 years prices of more than doubled. They are being proactive about the problem and re doing it now.


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## Scuba_Dave (Jan 16, 2009)

I'd hardly term brakes pads that are "shot" as "ain't broke" 
20 years can be a long time for a roof
But if I could get 5 more years out of a roof I would as long as it was not leaking


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## skittlebear (Mar 26, 2010)

Thank you so much everyone who has responded. I think I may wait since my roof looks as if it is good condition now. I don't give my fiancee enough credit, lol. He told me he has helped replaced lots of roofs (church volunteer project) in the past. He has lived in an apartment his whole life until he bought this house with me. We are actually going to try and replace the fascia boards as they have some rot present and our gutters as well. I was thinking of going with Asphalt shingles again...but I have done some research and am now leaning toward metal (carbon steele). So much to decide on! 

The thing I do hate is that pine trees are surrounding our house and pine needles of course, fall on our roof which I've learned is very acidic and you want to clean those off regularly. I think I may wait, save up some money, and possibly get a roofing contractor out to help decide. I know most roofers would tell me it just needs replacing since they want to make money. I may try that though and just see what they have to say.


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## AaronB (Jan 29, 2005)

Don't waste the roofers' time. Time is money.

Hire a roofing consultant that doesn't actually contract roofing to give you a totally unbiased professional opinion.


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## Five Arrows (Feb 27, 2010)

*Roof Replacement things to look for:*

I'm a professional contractor. When you got your inspection report and it said "in the near future" You need to realize that the guy was probably covering his rear. What this means is that the roof looked ok to him but he didn't want any liability for making a mistake. 

Get up on your roof yourself and look at the following:

Penetrations:
* Anything that penetrates the roof. You are looking for places that can leak. Tears, rust through, bulges 
* Step all around the edge of anything that penetrates the roof any spongyness is a bad thing.

Shingle surface:
Granule loss: look in the gutters for a lot of granuels 1/4 inch is a lot
Look at the shingles themselves. Curling, lines or tears in the surface of the shingle, broken off tabs or chunks, blisters, visible substrate. Check the web for more things to look for here.
Check the valleys. 

Brittle shingles
Go up to the peak and to an edge and grab a small portion of one of the shingle tabs (1 inch on a corner) and bend it back. if it snaps off before you get to 90 degrees the shingle is brittle. (don't do this in the cold go up when it is warm) Brittle shingles are shingles that are more prone to failure.

Go inside the attic now with a flashlight. It should basically look like new wood only slightly darker, definitely not black. Especially look at anything that penetrates the roof. If there are dark areas poke these with a screwdriver. you should get almost no penetration on good wood.

Outside the house
take a ladder and crawl up to the eves and poke it with your screwdriver.
Test anything that looks suspicious.

If there are no leaks and your surface is acceptable then you can wait to replace it.

If you decide that you want to do this yourself here is some unsolicited advice.


Before you undertake this job:

*Can you walk on the roof and not fall off?
*How long will it take you to do it. This is a combination of things mostly how many things are in the way. If it is a big single plane you are good, if there are skylights, valleys, hips dormers, chimneys these all make the job harder.

*For your first basic roof with a couple of things in the way you should plan 6 hours for every 100 square feet of roof. So that means that if you have 2000 sf of roof that you will need 120 man hours to tear off and reinstall asphalt/ fiberglass shingles. 

* Never step backwards on a roof
* Move what you don't want to fall on
* put down plastic or a tarp on the ground when you tear off. 
* a 2000 sf roof has over 5000 lbs of shingles on it 
* You will need 5-10 cubic yards to put the old shingles into
* You probably need a permit
* Pay the extra money to get roof top delivery. If where you are buying from doesn't have roof top delivery go someplace!
* Check with your insurance agent to see if you can get coverage if there is an accident or it rains while you have the roof off.
* Don't tear off more than you can put on the same day.
* Clean up as you go
* Fix anything that could poke through the roof when you FIRST see it. NEVER leave this for later
* If you make a mistake nailing, tar the nail and renail beside it
* Start at the back of the house and work toward the front. (this gives you more practice before you get to the part of your house everyone sees) It also keeps you from walking over the new roof.
* FOLLOW ALL DIRECTIONS from the shingle manufacturer. These aren't suggestions they are directions. 

Good Luck
Rob


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