Pros of Tear Off Jobs
When you choose to replace your entire roof, it means everything is going to be new. The roofers will be getting the full picture of your roof and be able to take care of any high-risk areas. It will be just like when you first had your home built and that has a lot of benefits. By avoiding overlay jobs, and by taking everything off the roofers can remove any rotted decking, damaged flashing and torn underlayment, thus eliminating any chances for leaks. The whole process is going to make your roof last longer than overlay jobs would.
Adding an entirely new roof to your home can also add to the home’s resale value if you’re thinking of selling in the next few years.
Problems With Overlay Jobs
Just as the name implies, overlay jobs mean you will be putting a new layer of shingles on top of the older shingles, adding another layer of weight to your roof. If your home is older, it may not have the structural integrity to support another layer of shingles. Generally speaking, when you put more shingles on top of older shingles it’s going to hold in extra heat which is going to deteriorate the new shingles faster. When you dip into overlay jobs, your roofers aren’t going to be able to get the full view of possible problems with your roof because they won’t be able to get underneath to see if there is any rotting or leaks. It will also become more difficult in the future to locate where the leak originates from with the extra layers of roofing to look through, making patch jobs more trouble than before.
Since your roof has seen years of exposure to the elements it probably has some signs of wear and tear. By putting new shingles on the old ones, it isn’t going to look as new. If you’re thinking of selling your home in a few years, then this isn’t going to be a good point for your resell value.
These overlay jobs are going to have to be replaced eventually and it will make even more work for your roofers to go through two layers instead of just a single one. It will mean a lot of extra debris to haul and additional labor costs. So, in the long run, overlay roof jobs are going to cost you more than just having your roof replaced the first time.