Tips and Tricks about Roofing
How to get the most out of your existing shingle roof.
The main thing that causes a shorter life span on a roof is the lack of maintenance. Yes a shingles lifespan can be up to 50 years but the sealant around your flashings, vent pipes, and chimney normally fail within 8-10 years causing water damage which leads to more damage. Maintenance is key to making sure you get maximum life out of your roof. Here is a link to more information on roofing maintenance. https://www.greatdayimprovements.com/10-roofing-maintenance-tips.aspx
How to choose the right contractor to do your roof.
Choosing the right contractor for your roof can be easy or sometimes difficult depending on what type of person you are. The main things you should do is,
1. Make sure they are licensed & Insured.
2. Check some references or research on reviews for the company.
3. You should feel comfortable with the right contractor, honesty and trust makes the best business.
Here are some more tips on choosing the right contractor for the job.
https://nulookhomedesign.com/10-tips-for-choosing-the-right-roofing-contractor/
Some of the many reasons to not double layer your roof.
Alot of people like to believe that getting a second layer of roofing will be less costly and it will last just as long as a tear off. Thats not the case! Us at McDaniel Roofing refuse to double layer a roof because,
1. It voids all of your warranties.
2. They always end up leaking, even after being properly installed. All the fingers point at the contractor.
3. If their is any rotted wood, it can't be replaced without tearing the old roof off.
These were just a few reasons not to double layer your roof, here is the pros and cons to double layering a roof.
4. It also puts ALOT of extra weight on your home with having two layers of heavy shingles on your roof.
https://wernerroofing.com/blog/new-roofing-tear-off-vs-overlay/
The Ridge Vent System.
We at McDaniel Roofing highly recommend a Ridge Vent system, with rising heat temperatures in Virginia they definitely make a huge difference. They have been proven to help the roof and attic breath, and keeps the inside of your home cooler. Here is some more information on ridge vent systems.
https://www.finehomebuilding.com/2013/09/03/does-a-roof-need-a-ridge-vent
Tips on keeping your roof clean.
We have so many people ask us how to keep their roof from getting algae on it or how to get the algae off. There a few different ways like using some algae killer and a low pressure rinse, some people have zinc strips installed. The shingles we install do not grow algae because we only use AR shingles. AR means that they are algae resistant. They look like normal shingles but they are infused with copper granules which essentially keeps the roof from getting black streaks on it, or growing any algae. Here is some more information on AR shingles.
Choosing the best shingle brand.
The 3 most popular shingle brands we try to steer our customers towards are GAF, Certainteed, and IKO. We have used those brands for many, many years and have had great reviews. Check out this link to compare the many shingle brands.