If you own your own home, or happen to live in a two or three  family home, chances are that the roof over your head is made out of composition, or fiberglass asphalt shingles. Some of the implications of having a composition shingle roof are chipping, cracking, splitting, or tearing of the asphalt shingle due to the aging of the shingle, and exposure to thermal heat of the sun. An older asphalt shingle roof shows signs of wear due to rain washing out the sand granules, which causes roof leaks, and requires roof repairs. These common problems are especially apparent with the thinnest 15 year asphalt shingle, but happen to all asphalt shingle roofing products, and with all roofing manufacturers.

Fun facts about Asphalt Shingle Roofs:

It may come as a surprise to you, but asphalt shingle roofing is not a waterproof product, and it relies on the roof slope to shed the water off from your roof. In many cases asphalt shingle roof failures occur due to shingle exposure to rain, which traps moisture before the installation, and causes premature failures. The tearing of the asphalt shingle often occurs because of a very thin fiberglass mat, an underlay to which asphalt and sand granules are glued. Asphalt typically fails faster in warmer temperatures due to being exposed to the sun, and subjected to temperature changes, which may cause rapid expansion of the roof.

What you should know about Asphalt Shingles Roofing:

What most homeowners do not realize is that today’s asphalt shingle roofing materials have been undergoing a dramatic decline of quality and performance, ever since late 1970′s. Back then, oil embargo and rising costs of asphalt, pushed roofing manufacturers towards shifting production from organic shingles to a thinner and cheaper fiberglass shingle. All of a sudden, asphalt shingles that used to weigh 240 pounds per square of roofing material (100 sq. ft.),  were replaced by a “new” 30 year shingles weighing just mere 190 pounds per square. Additionally, to keep up the weight on asphalt shingles, while keeping down the costs, roof manufactures began to use more stone granules, instead of asphalt. The reduction of asphalt content in fiberglass shingles decreased the lifespan of asphalt shingles from commonly expected 20-25 years of service, down to 10-15 years. The promises of a 30 year limited warranty is nothing more than a marketing gimmick used on unsuspecting consumers. The warranty refers to the fact that asphalt shingle is free of manufacturer’s defects, and not to the actual expected service life.

The results of this roofing industry’s consumer deception are premature failures of asphalt shingle roofs, expensive roof repairs, unappealing looking roofs, and decline in property value if the roof is 10 years or older. Today you will be lucky if your 30 year shingles lasts 15 years.

Only steel, aluminum and copper metal roofing can last some 30, 40, 50 years and longer. This is why I recommend metal roofing systems, and cool flat PVC roofs that easily outperform and outlast conventional EPDM rubber and tar roofs by a factor of three. Metal roofing is a far superior and technologically advanced roofing material that is light years ahead of asphalt shingle roofing, in terms of quality, durability and performance.

Should I roof with asphalt shingle

Should you decide to re roof your existing roof with an asphalt shingle roofing due to the lower cost of initial investment, I recommend that you choose Building Products of Canada, residential asphalt shingle roofing. Canada gets a lot of snowfall, so this Canadian roofing manufacturer uses the thickest grade of asphalt shingle roofing for their residential roofing products. The granules, also, seem to last longer on their asphalt shingle roofing products.

Inexpensive Metal Roofing Alternative

Another inexpensive alternative, to asphalt shingle roofing, would be Kynar coated, energy star rated, galvalume corrugated steel metal roofing system featuring “R” panel design with exposed fasteners. Corrugated metal roofing may outlast asphalt considerably, and provide energy efficient roof replacement solution for your home that is also economical, and environmentally safe.