Roofing
Composition Shingles
You'll hear standard asphalt shingles referred to as three-tab, because
they come in a strip with notches that create what appears to be three
separate shingles. Premium products are called "architectural" or
"dimensional" shingles. These thicker, often laminated shingles cast
shadow lines like a thick wood shake. The result is a rich, textured
appearance rather than the flat surface of standard three-tab shingles.
All asphalt shingles are coated with a layer of mineral granules that
protect the shingle from sunlight, add color and, in some cases, help
resist algae and fungus growth. Manufacturers can discourage unwanted
plant life by adding copper or zinc to the granule mix. If you live in
a hot, humid climate, look for algae-resistant shingles.
Cedar shake shingles
Distinctive roofing patterns exist in various regions of North America that were settled by the English, Dutch, Germans, and Scandinavians. These patterns and features include the size, shape and exposure length of shingles, special treatments such as swept valleys, combed ridges, and decorative butt end or long side-lapped beveled handsplit shingles. Such features impart a special character to each building.
Modern wooden shingles, both sawn and split, continue to be made, but they differ from the historic ones. Modern commercially available shakes are generally thicker than the historic handsplit counterpart and are usually left "undressed" with a rough, corrugated surface. The rough-surface shake is often considered to be more "rustic" and "historic", but in fact this is a modern fashion.
Asphalt shingles
Roof shingles are a roof covering consisting of individual overlapping elements. These elements are normally flat rectangular shapes that are laid in rows without the side edges overlapping, a double layer is used to ensure a waterproof result. Shingles are laid from the bottom edge of the roof up, with the bottom edge of each row overlapping the previous row by about half its length. At the roof ridge there was a cap consisting of copper or lead sheeting which has been substituted by shingles with a PVC underlay.
Shingles have been made of various materials such as wood shingle, slate shingle, asbestos-cement, bitumen-soaked paper covered with aggregate (asphalt shingle) or ceramic. Due to increased fire hazard, wood shingles and paper-based asphalt shingles have become less common than fiberglass-based asphalt shingles. In the United States, fiberglass-based asphalt shingles are by far the most common roofing material used for residential roofing applications.
Call us for free estimate on your Roofing needs today. |
