Asphalt Shingle Roofing in Denver Colorado

Planning Asphalt Shingle Roofing Around Denver Colorado?

APC Roofing lays new courses of strip and laminated products for homes of every age and size.

Reach us at 720-902-6940 and a visit will show what condition everything is in.

How the Pieces Are Made – a Closer View

Each shingle is built on a fiberglass mat for strength, while the asphalt in the sheet makes it waterproof, and mineral granules across the top guard against sun damage.

Lines stacked side by side at a supplier are not always equal, and more heft commonly lets a covering weather more summers. Hue is all a sample chip can show, while published data covers the wind and impact classes.

Traditional and Textured – Weight and Wind

The three-tab type is a single sheet notched twice along the bottom, so the overall look is orderly. An architectural shingle glues a shaped overlay onto a full-width base, and the staggered outline throws shadows that suggest depth.

A laminated bundle holds considerably more asphalt than a strip bundle, and published wind ratings are commonly higher as a result. Nails on a dimensional shingle go through the zone where the plies meet, and the manufacturer's markings set the target.

The Case for Strip Shingles – Narrower Choices

Three-tab commonly goes on a shed, a carport or a covered porch, and new work can blend with existing courses of that kind. Selection has shrunk, since many brands have trimmed that style, so an exact replacement can be hard to find.

Laminated shingles hide small dips in an older deck better, while a thin strip follows every undulation. Either profile sits on the same underlayment and flashings, while the shingle alone sets the two apart.

Mineral Grit and Aging – Early and Late Stages

A recently installed covering lets go of leftover grains for a while, and nothing about it signals a defect. When an older covering sends piles of grit down the spouts, its mineral shield is wearing thin, and exposed asphalt turns brittle and splits.

The sunniest exposures are the southern and western sides, so the black asphalt often shows through there sooner.

Self-Sealing Designs: Resisting Uplift

Each shingle carries a stripe of heat-activated glue, and a stretch of warm, sunny days softens it until the overlying row sticks. Adhesion keeps air from getting under the exposed edge of each course, and the nails stay just as essential for as many years as the covering lasts.

At the colder end of our territory, a covering installed in freezing temperatures can wait months to bond, so a windy day can fold back tabs that have not taken hold. For such work the makers' directions call for asphalt cement under each piece, and a printed diagram marks the spots and their spacing.

Attachment Basics: Height, Depth and Quantity

Roofing nails go into a narrow band marked by the manufacturer, so the shank also grabs the upper margin of the row beneath. A standard shingle gets four fasteners, and six go in where the slope is steep or the wind is strong.

A misplaced high nail leaves the lower course loose, a head pounded too far breaks the mat, and a crooked shank makes a bump that wears through the shingle above it. Published wind ratings assume the manufacturer's pattern was followed exactly, while one misadjusted compressor can spoil every drive on a job.

Under the Underlayment – Older Houses

Flat sheets of plywood or OSB make up the deck, and each shank has to land in solid material. Homes that once wore wood shakes may still have spaced slats up top, and sheathing is nailed over them before shingles go on.

During a tear-off, weak or water-damaged pieces are swapped for sound ones, since a shank in crumbling fibers cannot hold. Panels go down with a narrow space along each joint, as moisture makes the wood expand and ridge up when butted tight.

The Secondary Layer – Types in Use

The deck gets a water-resistant membrane before shingles are laid, and it goes down in horizontal runs that lap downhill. Felt paper has mostly given way to synthetic underlayment, as the modern fabric is tougher and does not ripple after rain.

Rain forced past a loose shingle is shed by the membrane below, though sunlight breaks it down if it stays exposed too long.

Guarding Against Ice Dams – How Far Up

At the colder end of our territory, attic warmth melts snow on the upper slope, and meltwater hardens again once it reaches the cold rim. Pooled water behind the obstruction travels uphill under the courses, where ordinary underlayment lets it through at every nail.

A self-sealing ice barrier goes down along the bottom of each slope where winters freeze, and it continues until it passes the wall line inside the house. In all of our territory, installers also lay it in valleys and around penetrations, since runoff lingers at every such detail.

Where the Deck Ends – A Code Item

Prefinished drip edge follows each eave and each rake, and a flange throws runoff away from the fascia. Down low, the flashing is installed before the underlayment, but on the gable sides the order reverses.

Current codes in many places make edge metal mandatory along every border of a shingled plane, as water tends to wrap under an unprotected rim.

Beginning at the Gutter – No Substitutes

Under the first visible course lies a starter strip, so the sealant is positioned right at the lip. A rotated field piece strands the adhesive several inches up, so nothing but nails holds the lowest border down.

Most instruction sheets extend starter up both rakes, because suction acts along the outer rims.

Where Slopes Meet – Keeping Nails Clear

A valley can be built open, with a metal channel left exposed down its center, while in the closed-cut type one side crosses over and the opposite side is trimmed neatly. Interlacing rows from each plane suits single-layer products, whereas two-ply shingles do not bend well enough.

Fasteners stay out of the center of the channel, while a self-sealing sheet runs beneath from top to bottom. Needles and grit gathered in a valley act like a dam, so runoff may be forced beneath the cut side.

Tie-Ins to the Structure: Steering Water Past

Every course that meets a wall gets its own folded step flashing, while the exterior finish overlaps the upright flange. The corner where the eave reaches the house takes a kickout, because otherwise rain soaks the framing.

Around a chimney, step pieces line the sides, an apron covers the front and counterflashing is set into the masonry, and a wide stack also needs a cricket upslope to split the flow.

Holes for Plumbing – Sequence and Laps

Standard boots join a flat metal or plastic plate to a rubber sleeve, and ultraviolet exposure dries the gasket out and cracks it. The flange slips under the courses higher up, so the lower edge sheds onto the shingles beneath.

Neoprene collars regularly fail well before the field shingles do, and a tear-off is the natural time to change every boot.

The Topmost Seams – Fastener Length

Cap shingles straddle the ridge and run down every hip, and a dimensional line comes with its own heavier companion product. Tabs cut from single-layer shingles make a thinner substitute, and at the colder end of our territory they can crack along the fold in freezing weather.

The caps often conceal a vent along the peak, and longer nails are needed to reach through it into the deck.

Circulation Upstairs – Heat and Moisture

Intake openings in the soffits let cool air in near the bottom, and a ridge exhaust lets it out. Loose-fill insulation piled into the corners can smother the flow, so a baffle in each rafter bay keeps the way clear.

An attic holding in heat warms the deck from underneath, and it traps humidity that drifts up from the living space. On frigid nights at the colder end of our territory, condensation freezes on the nail tips, and the melt soaks the insulation by afternoon. Mixing a ridge vent with gable louvers or a powered fan can short-circuit the flow, because suction then draws from the nearest opening instead of the soffits.

Local Extremes – Humidity and Wind

Our markets take in mountain snow in one place and tropical heat in another, and each setting wears on asphalt differently. At the coastal end of our territory, a hurricane can drive powerful gusts for many hours, so a high-wind pattern with more nails is specified. Long seasons of strong sun dry out the oils in the coating, while damp air in the humid markets feeds algae.

At the colder end of our territory, water that seeps into a crack freezes and widens it, while snow cover keeps the eaves cold for weeks at a time.

Balls of Ice – Reading the Strikes

At the colder end of our territory, hail arrives most years with the thunderstorms, and several makers build shingles meant to take the hits. A strike scatters the grit from a small round area, and a violent one can split the reinforcement beneath.

The impact class on a bundle comes from a standard drop test with steel balls, and the better lines survive rough treatment more often. Certain makers blend a rubbery polymer into the coating, so the surface gives a little under a strike.

Strong Gusts – Replace or Reseal

The border of a roof and its corners see the greatest upward force, and a loose shingle rises and slaps back down. A tab folded back far enough creases along its width, and the damage leaves it permanently weakened. A shingle in that condition gets replaced, but a piece that simply came unstuck can be glued down by hand.

Where a tab has blown away, the underlayment beneath lies open to the sun, and ultraviolet rays wear it down fast.

Living Things Up Top: Shade and Damp

Algae is what paints the long black marks on many slopes, which feeds on crushed limestone mixed into the product. At the humid end of our territory, shaded north-facing roof planes grow it fastest, though the color change is mainly cosmetic.

Moss is a different matter, since it holds water against the surface, and as clumps thicken they wedge the tabs upward. A pressure washer blasts granules off along with the growth, so a gentle rinse with a cleaner made for roofing is the safer route. Copper-bearing mineral is blended into algae-resistant lines, and a zinc strip near the crest slows the streaks' return.

Color on the Slope – Blends and Batches

Deep tones take in more solar warmth and reach higher surface temperatures, while light ones reflect much of the light skyward. A few lines carry special granules that keep even a mid-tone from getting as hot, and their performance is published as a reflectance value.

Shingles from separate production runs may not match exactly, so instructions call for pulling from several bundles as the work goes. Multicolored designs keep slight differences from showing, whereas a single flat shade gives them away.

Standing on a Slope: Care Underfoot

A sun-baked covering loses its firmness, and a twisting heel tears the mineral layer. At the colder end of our territory, icy mornings leave the tabs ready to crack underfoot, and a skin of frost leaves the pitch slick.

Owners do best to stay off the ladder altogether, since binoculars reveal nearly everything worth seeing.

Laying Over the Old Covering – Weight and Nails

A re-roof over a prior roof is legal in many towns, provided there is only one and nothing beneath is rotted. The current shingles stay on top of the decking throughout the job, and damaged sheets end up sealed beneath the added material.

An uneven base gives the new shingles a wavy face, and flashing past its prime is usually kept. Stacking one covering on another adds mass that the framing must bear, and every nail must travel through the old material before it grips.

Clues to Notice: Outside and In

• Grit collects at the foot of a downspout, and more arrives after every heavy rain.
• Pieces are missing and bare underlayment peeks through, so wind has broken the bond.
• The lower margins cup into a shallow dish, because the material has lost its flexibility.
• Fractures cross the exposed face, and water can reach the mat through them.
• Parts of a slope look darker and slick, because the granules there are gone.
• A flue or vent collar has turned brittle and torn, and rain slips through into the house.
• Counterflashing at a chimney has worked out of its joint, which lets wind-driven rain in behind it.
• A brown ring shows on a ceiling, but the place moisture enters may lie higher up.

How APC Roofing Works on Asphalt Shingle Roofing in Denver Colorado: Our Method

An inspection first covers every slope on foot, and the flashings, valleys, vents and edges get a close look along the way. The attic is checked from inside for stains and light coming through, since discolored sheathing shows where water has traveled.

Trouble of any kind is photographed, and damage is measured where size matters. The results are put in writing in everyday words, with a reason beside every recommendation. A modest problem is presented as modest, while a covering at the end of its life is called that. The final say rests with the owner, from a single repair to a full replacement.

Asphalt Shingle Roofing for Homes in Denver Colorado – Help From People Who Know the Details

Dial 720-902-6940 to arrange a visit.

Mending or Starting Over: Where the Line Falls

Trouble at a boot, a flashing or a few scattered tabs is normally dealt with by a repair, and the remaining shingles are untouched. A replacement piece looks brighter than the aged ones around it, while the exact style may no longer be made.

On a worn covering, tabs are brittle and crack when lifted to reach the nails, and the damage around the work zone grows. If hard, curled courses run from eave to ridge, a full tear-off is the honest recommendation.

Useful Lifetime: Care Along the Way

Strip products tend to give fifteen to twenty years, while architectural lines can go well beyond that. Heat, ventilation and fastening all push the number up or down, while one bad storm can end the run early.

Checking the flashings and pipe seals now and then is sensible upkeep, because minor gaps closed promptly spare the sheathing.

When you are weighing Asphalt Shingle Roofing in Denver Colorado, reach APC Roofing at 720-902-6940. Each slope is walked and every detail checked, and the findings reach you in writing so the decision stays yours.