Shingle Replacement in Kansas City

Almost every shingle roof we install in this metro now is a laminated architectural shingle. It is built from two mat layers bonded together, which gives it more weight per square, a thicker nailing zone, and a shadow line that reads as texture from the street.

Three-tab is a single layer with cutouts. It is lighter, it is cheaper, and in hail country the cutouts are a weak point because a strike at the tab edge tends to fracture the mat rather than bruise it. You still see three-tab on rental stock and on some 1990s subdivisions here. When one of those roofs comes off, the replacement is nearly always laminated, and the difference in cost is smaller than most people expect once labor and tear-off are in the number.

Color matters less than people fear and more than nothing. A darker shingle runs hotter, which is a ventilation question rather than a shingle question. Pick what you want to look at for twenty years.

Wind ratings on a shingle wrapper assume the shingle was installed exactly the way the manufacturer wrote it down. Around here, three details do most of the work.

First, the nail line. Laminated shingles have a narrow reinforced band, and fasteners have to land in it. High-nailing above that band is the most common installation error in the trade because it is faster and it is invisible once the next course is down. A high-nailed shingle holds by sealant alone, and the first straight-line wind event tests that.

Second, the fastener count. Four nails per shingle is the base spec; six is what most manufacturers require for their enhanced wind coverage and what we use as standard here, because this metro sits where straight-line winds off a collapsing thunderstorm are routine in May and June.

Third, the starter course. A purpose-made starter strip puts an adhesive bead right at the eave and rake edge so the first course has something to seal to. Cutting up field shingles to fake a starter, which we still find on roofs we tear off, leaves that edge unsealed. Edges are where wind gets a grip.

Cap shingles along the hips and ridge take more thermal movement and more direct exposure than anything in the field. Manufactured hip-and-ridge cap is thicker and pre-scored for the bend. Field shingles cut into thirds are the cheap substitute, and on a cold install they crack at the fold.

Ridge vent goes in under that cap where the attic needs exhaust, which means the cap detail and the ventilation plan are the same conversation. If a bid lists a shingle upgrade but says nothing about cap or vent, you are not looking at a complete roof.

Same for the eave and rake metal. Drip edge is code in most jurisdictions in this metro and it is inexpensive, but it gets left off enough that it is worth reading for.

Line them up and look for the things that are missing rather than the things that are listed. Does the bid name the shingle manufacturer and the specific line, or just say architectural? Does it state four nails or six? Is starter strip a line item or is it absent? Is hip-and-ridge cap called out as manufactured cap? Is there a per-sheet decking price, and is the number reasonable for current lumber?

Then check the flashing language. A bid that says reuse existing flashing where serviceable is telling you something. So is one that quotes new pipe boots by count.

Nine times out of ten the spread between two bids is fully explained by that list. Occasionally it is explained by one contractor carrying insurance and the other not, which is worth a phone call to verify with the carrier directly rather than accepting a certificate at face value.