Just like in the majority of homes in North America, asphalt shingle roofs are also common in New York City. This type of roofing may comes in a great range of price, reasonable standards, weather and sunlight resistance, low to no maintenance, and satisfactory service life. Aside from being economical, they are also versatile and are compatible with steep-sloped designed roofs; are easy to tailor, cut, and install; and can work well with a variety of other products such as edging and flashing.



But as with every other feature in your New York home, there comes a time when the need to replace your asphalt shingle roof arises. The first consideration would then be, should I do it myself or hire a local roofing contractor?

Hiring a certified roofing contractor to replace your asphalt shingle roof would be the most secure and best decision you could ever take to make the most of this investment. With one, you will be assured of high quality results, very slim risk of mistake and a backjob and less maintenance in the long run.

Your contractor will help you make a very critical decision and that is if your existing set of asphalt shingles should be completely detached or you could replace the asphalt shingle roof by applying new ones over current ones.

If your asphalt shingle roof has only one layer of shingles that lie flat, with the decking in good condition, then this existing layer can be kept to provide additional protection from moisture and other elements. By doing this, you can d away with the hassles of disposing and costs of removal.

After the inspection of the roof substrate or sheathing, the following signs and conditions should tell you that a complete removal of the current roofing is needed:

• if the roofing is composed of more than one layer of asphalt shingles,

• if considerable rotting is revealed;

• if roughness or deformation of the seething members is evident causing and uneven roofing if another layer to be laid out,

• or if the roof droops along the truss lines.

This evaluating stage calls for an experienced roofing contractor as the results of the inspection would largely influence which installation methods is appropriate for the replacing asphalt shingle roof. When done thoroughly, the homeowner can be assured of proper application, flat and level installation, and enough ventilation to let your roof breathe.

There are certain factors that call for appropriate application measures. This includes the temperature, colder climates and higher sloping asphalt shingle roof. The most ideal temperatures when the replacement could efficiently be done plays between 40 F to 85 F. Temperatures exceeding or not reaching this range may cause the shingles to easily get damaged. Proper application procedures are vital to end up with a fully-functional result that can last a long, long time.

So you see, replacing asphalt shingle roof is not even close to easy with the ample expertise and skills needed to make a success out of it. If you do not have any of the two nor the safety equipment and guts to support you in your climb and work while on the steep roof, then you better let the qualified pros handle this for you. Aside from the time that you'll need to squeeze out from your already busy NYC schedule, you have to think of the cost.