7 ms·

How often are you replacing your roof!?

bradknowles 2y ago
I know our roof is in pretty bad shape, and will need to be replaced in five to ten years. The house was built in the mid-80s, we bought it in 2008, and I know it’s had at least one or two roof replacements in that time. Most roofs aren’t even built to code, which is supposed to be the floor below which building quality cannot go. Instead, they build to whatever they can get away with, and in many places, that is much lower than code because the building inspectors are busy and don’t check, or they’re careless, or they get bribed off. In most single family homes, the more you learn about the construction of your specific house and what standards they were supposed to build to but didn’t, the more horrified you will become. Like the builder leaving out a $2.00 piece of flashing because either they didn’t care, or they thought it was too expensive. Of course, the result of that $2.00 flashing not being there is tens of thousands of dollars of damage that occurs to your house over the next decade-plus, for which your insurance company will pay precisely $0.00, since it’s not the result of a single catastrophic event.
- secondcoming 2y ago
  That’s scandalous. But outside of fraud/incompetence, there’s no way anyone should expect to replace their entire roof even every 40 or 50 years. Repairs sure, but replacement? No chance.
  - hollerith 2y ago
    In Florida, no insurer will sell you home insurance unless your roof is much newer than that though I don't recall the age limit.
  - bradknowles 2y ago
    Sadly, modern production building companies are far beyond just “scandalous” or “fraud” or “incompetence”. The competent and conscientious builder is the rare unicorn these days.
  - s1artibartfast 2y ago
    Average 3tab shingle roof life in California is 20 years or less. This tracks with what I see. A couple houses on my block get their roof replaced every summer
    - ralfd 2y ago
      But why? I’m in Europe and houses here have ceramic shingles which almost last forever.
      - s1artibartfast 2y ago
        Different building philosophy.in Europe, much more is spent on materials and labor and the expectation that it will be used without change for a long time, and pay itself off. The US is geared more towards lower up front cost. Neither is inherently wrong. There are also feedback mechanisms where the most common option becomes cheaper, and the specialty more expensive. Why pay 3x for something that lasts 3x as long? What if it lasts less than 3x as long? I don’t know which actually has a better Long term route. I imagine most of it comes down to price sensitivity and owner demographics. Rich Americans often have ceramics or other roofing, presumably because they can afford it and would rather not deal with it. I’m raising a new building this winter and will certainly go with shingles based on my budget.

I know our roof is in pretty bad shape, and will need to be replaced in five to ten years. The house was built in the mid-80s, we bought it in 2008, and I know it’s had at least one or two roof replacements in that time. Most roofs aren’t even built to code, which is supposed to be the floor below which building quality cannot go. Instead, they build to whatever they can get away with, and in many places, that is much lower than code because the building inspectors are busy and don’t check, or they’re careless, or they get bribed off. In most single family homes, the more you learn about the construction of your specific house and what standards they were supposed to build to but didn’t, the more horrified you will become. Like the builder leaving out a $2.00 piece of flashing because either they didn’t care, or they thought it was too expensive. Of course, the result of that $2.00 flashing not being there is tens of thousands of dollars of damage that occurs to your house over the next decade-plus, for which your insurance company will pay precisely $0.00, since it’s not the result of a single catastrophic event.

secondcoming 2y ago
That’s scandalous. But outside of fraud/incompetence, there’s no way anyone should expect to replace their entire roof even every 40 or 50 years. Repairs sure, but replacement? No chance.
- hollerith 2y ago
  In Florida, no insurer will sell you home insurance unless your roof is much newer than that though I don't recall the age limit.
- bradknowles 2y ago
  Sadly, modern production building companies are far beyond just “scandalous” or “fraud” or “incompetence”. The competent and conscientious builder is the rare unicorn these days.
- s1artibartfast 2y ago
  Average 3tab shingle roof life in California is 20 years or less. This tracks with what I see. A couple houses on my block get their roof replaced every summer
  - ralfd 2y ago
    But why? I’m in Europe and houses here have ceramic shingles which almost last forever.
    - s1artibartfast 2y ago
      Different building philosophy.in Europe, much more is spent on materials and labor and the expectation that it will be used without change for a long time, and pay itself off. The US is geared more towards lower up front cost. Neither is inherently wrong. There are also feedback mechanisms where the most common option becomes cheaper, and the specialty more expensive. Why pay 3x for something that lasts 3x as long? What if it lasts less than 3x as long? I don’t know which actually has a better Long term route. I imagine most of it comes down to price sensitivity and owner demographics. Rich Americans often have ceramics or other roofing, presumably because they can afford it and would rather not deal with it. I’m raising a new building this winter and will certainly go with shingles based on my budget.