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www.doityourself.com
Asphalt Shingles

Applying Asphalt Shingles

Composite (asphalt) or fiberglass shingles is the most common roofing now in use. It is composed of asphalt impregnated paper with mineral granules coating the exposed surface. Numerous colors and styles are available to enhance the design of your garage. Shingles are easy to install, require little maintenance and are easy to repair. Wind sealed shingles have an added dab of roofing cement under the bottom edge of each shingle. After these are installed and the roof is heated by the sun, the cement melts and sticks to the shingle below, increasing their effectiveness in high wind areas or on shallow sloped roofs.

Most Common Mistakes

      1.      Leaving out the starter strip.
2.      Not keeping shingles aligned.
3.      Not overhanging shingles at eaves and rakes.
4.      Neglecting to stagger joints.
5.      Installing ridge shingles before hip shingles.
6.      Neglecting to keep hip and ridge shingles in a straight line.

Construction

1. If you are using a drip edge, the starter course goes on TOP of the drip edge at the eaves (bottom) and UNDER the drip edge at the rakes (sides). The starter course applied at the eaves is a standard row of composite asphalt shingles with three inches cut off the tab (bottom) ends. [You could also use a 9-inch wide strip of roll flooring.] These are installed in an inverted position. The tabs face the ridge, the wind seal is down, and the mineral surface is exposed to the weather. 
2. Overhang the eave by 1/2 inch and leave a space of 1/16 inch between each shingle. Nail each starter shingle with four 12  galvanized roofing nails placed three inches above the eaves - one inch and twelve inches from each end of the shingle.
3. The first full size course of shingles is installed DIRECTLY ON TOP of the starter course but with the tabs facing down towards the eaves.  Nail the first and subsequent courses using four nails per shingle, placed 5 and 5/8 inches above the butt or bottom line (5/8" above the top of each cutout). Again, drive a nail one inch and 12 inches from each end.
4. To prevent the shingles from buckling, begin nailing each shingle from the end next to the previously laid shingle. Leave a gap of 1/16" between shingles. For the remaining courses, we recommend popping a vertical chalk line on the roofing felt every 36 inches and a horizontal chalk line every 10 inches. This will enable you to align the top and side edges of each shingle along a straight line.
5. The joints between the tabs must continue to be staggered. This means the joints (cutouts) must not be aligned in adjacent courses.
6. To do this, cut 6 inches off the first shingle of the second course at the rake (side) of the slope. Cut 12 inches (one full tab) off the third course, 18 inches off the fourth course, 24 inches (2 full tabs) off the fifth course, and begin the sixth course with just a 6 inch length of shingle.  Repeat this sequence beginning with a full length shingle on the 7th course.
7. Once the flat planes of the roof have been shingled, you will need to apply the hip shingles, if you have a hip roof, which will be overlapped by the ridge shingles. Gable roofs will only have ridge shingles. These can be purchased prefabricated or can be cut from standard shingles - one 12 inch tab from a standard shingle, folded in the middle as shown in.
8. Pop chalk lines 6 inches on each side of the hip and/or ridge centerlines. These will be the guidelines for the edges of the shingles.
9. Start at the eaves of the hip, with a double layer of shingles, and work your way up to the ridge using the standard 5 inch exposure. Nail once on each side, 5 and 1/2 inches above the butt of each shingle. Where the hip intersects at the ridge, cut 4 inches up the center of a tab and nail this so that the uncut portion is nailed to the ridge and the 4 inch slit overlaps and is nailed to the top of the hip, covering the last of the hip shingles.
10. Begin applying the ridge shingles at the ends, working each end toward the center nailing a saddle tab where they meet. Nail the saddle in all four corners.
11. Cover any exposed nails with roofing cement and you are finished.

www.toolbase.org
High Wind Shingles

Between 1991 and 1995, wind and hail resulted in an average of $8 billion in insurance payouts each year, and wind and hail damage to roofs comprises a significant portion of this cost. Hail damage to asphalt shingles may include severe granule loss, material loss at shingle edges, and penetration. Wind can also create serious roof damage-it is documented that roof material failure was the most widespread type of damage from Hurricane Hugo (Manning, Billy R. and Gary G. Nichols. 1991. "Hugo Lessons Learned." In Hurricane Hugo One Year Later, Benjamin A. Sill and Peter R. Sparks, Editors. New York: American Society of Civil Engineers).

New shingle products are designed to resist damage from impact and high winds. They meet the most stringent standards for impact resistance (Class 4) set by Underwriters Laboratories (UL), and wind resistance set by UL and the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM International).

Several manufacturers offer asphalt shingles designed to resist the effects of severe weather such as wind and impact from flying debris or hail. Different proprietary methods are used to keep granules attached to the shingle, to prevent shingle breaking during impact, and to keep shingles attached to the sheathing during high winds.

UL 2218 classifies the resistance of roofing products to impact damage. In the test, steel balls are directed at roof samples, and damage is observed. Products that receive a Class 4 rating from UL 2218 are the most resistive to hail damage. Some major insurance companies are offering homeowner premium discounts for the use of roofing products that receive a Class 4 rating.

Atlas Roofing - Your Source for Roof Insulation, Tapered Insulation,
Atlas's residential/light commercial line of roof shingles, architectural shingles, and underlayment.

Hometime - How-To - Project Help - Roofing
Laminated shingles have gained a lot of popularity recently. Designed to add character, color and depth to the roof.

Can asphalt roof shingles be recycled?
For more information, NAHB publishes an informative booklet entitled From Roofs to Roads: Recycling Asphalt Roof Shingles into Paving Materials.

Installing Asphalt Roof Shingles
Installing asphalt roof shingles.

Asphalt Fiberglass Roof Shingles
Asphalt Fiberglass Roof Shingles Asphalt roof shingles are the most common covering used on residential properties in North America.

Welcome to TAMKO® Roofing Products, Inc.
Roll roofing products.

Hometime - How-To - Project Help - Roofing

IKO Corporate home page
Organic and glass fibre-based shingles, roofing felts, and modified bitumen systems. Offers a warranty.

GAF Materials Corp - Residential and Commercial Roofing

Roofing At A Glance
Owens Corning roof shingles are part of a complete Roofing System for building & remodeling.
 

From buying my first home, to building my first home, I've had questions about things like doors, siding, windows, lumber, Air Conditioning, Duct work, Furnaces, and more.  I've also found myself looking at remodeling - kitchen remodeling and bathroom remodeling in particular.  I have also had lots of questions about landscaping, sprinklers, and roofing.
So, this section of the site is designed to help you with your construction and home questions, no matter what they may be.
Check out the sites below for more information about roof shingles