I’ve inspeced many homes in our area and many of the 70+ year old homes originally had a cedar shake roof. I always explain to our clients that the gaps in the lap boards were very important to ventilate the attic and allow the shingles to dry out.
Ususally, when there is a re-roof, I see three different methods. Some roofers will do a tear-off and leave the cedar shingles, lay down tar paper, and install the composit shingles over the top. Other times, I will see a full tear-off and 1x’s will be nailed to the rafters ro fill the gaps and then the new roof installed. Lastly, I will see a full tear-off and OSB installed over the oringinal deck and then installation of composite shingles (the best IMO).
Please take a look at the pictures attached. I would like to know if this is a defect or not. The roof is approx 3 yrs old but I think the workmanship is very poor. There was a full tear off but the roofer did not fill the spaces in the original roof deck (built around 1900). What do you think?
Greg, I see roofing nails coming through the shingles where there is no wood to nail(the original gaps on the planking). What is supposed to hold those shingles in place during high winds? I would call it out as unprofessional at the very least. I am sure over threee years they have held up, but you never know. I would say that if they suffered any wind damage, and the manufacturer found them to be installed in this fashion( missing the planks, and nailed to nothing) they would not want to cover that.
Here’s my oringinal note:
“There are gaps in the roof deck that should have been filled or a new deck should have been installed prior to the installation of the new roof. There are shingles where the nails do not properly penetrate the deck and could eventually work loose. These gaps were very important with a cedar roof but this will not properly support composite shingles. Recommend consulting with a professional, licensed roofer for further advice.”
I just want to have other opinions before I call this out as a defect. As you know, being correct is most important. Who knows, maybe the roofer suggested to do it right and the seller refused?
(NRCA) National Roofing Contractors Association recommends that asphalt shingles be applied over continuous or closely spaced wood plank decking or wood decking. **The planks currently in place are spaced to far apart. As a result parts of your roof covering are not attached properly to the roof deck and can easily be destroyed by unfavorable weather conditions. **The most common materials used for roof decks are plywood or oriented strand board (OSB). When plywood is used, NRCA recommends the use of a minimum 15/32 thick or ½ inch nominal exterior-grade plywood for 16-inch rafter spacings and 5/8 inch nominal thickness for 24-inch rafter spacings. For OSB, NRCA recommends using a minimum 15/32 inch thick or ½ inch nominal exterior-grade OSB for 16-inch rafter spacings.
Caution should be exercised when roof decks are constructed out of the following materials:
Oriented strand board (OSB): NRCA is concerned with potential fastener-holding problems and dimensional stability because of the effects of moisture where OSB and other nonveneer products are used as roof decking.
Preservative-treated wood: Many roofing material manufacturers recommend wood roof decks be constructed with wood that has been treated with a nonoil preservative pressure treatment or with nontreated air- or kiln-dried lumber.
Fire-retardant-treated wood: Because of the deterioration of some fire-retardant-treated wood panels caused by chemical reaction, special care should be given to investigate the use of fire-retardant-treated wood panel decks.
Consult with a qualified roof contractor to discuss options for repair.
I would scratch on your original narrative where you call for a roofer to reinspect what you already inspected. Call them out for repair not reinspection.
I think you to should get twogether and figure it out. Sometimes it would be all to helpful if our inspection software did some sort of grammar checking. I’m sure I’ve made grammatical mistakes too our clients but all reports pass the spell check!!! LOL This is getting two far off track!
Spaced boards (such as you have here) should be covered with an acceptable solid decking. Also wide boards (i.e., 6 inches and wider) are prone to causing buckling of the the shingles with changes in humidity and temp.
This installation is improper and would not be covered by the manufacturer’s warranty.
Billy might write this up as “Two wide a gap between the to boards too conform with the manufacturer’s warranty…”
Unless I’m missing something.
