How Repair Lower Section Of Shingles

Maintaining a sound roof literally tops the list of crucial abode repairs: It keeps you lot and your family warm and dry, along with everything in your house. A new roof is a pricey proposition. These elementary repairs tin keep your existing roof sound for years to come.

How Often Should You Supersede Your Roof Shingles?

Any damage or signs of clothing call for immediate action to keep h2o from seeping under the shingles and rotting the wood sheathing beneath. Ignoring a problem—even what appears to be a modest one—will accelerate the demand to reroof and can add hundreds of dollars to the cost of a new roof.

If your roof is more than 20 years quondam and about of the shingles are damaged or badly worn, information technology's fourth dimension to replace it. Just if your roof is basically audio and is at a relatively shallow pitch that you're comfortable working on, yous tin can probably handle nearly repairs yourself.

Here, we'll have you through the 3 well-nigh-common ones: replacing cobblestone shingles; gluing down a desperately curled shingle; and repairing shingles that have cracked.

1. Replacing Roof Shingles

Person using a pry bar to remove damaged roof shingles. — 1. Slip a flat pry bar under the damaged shingle and press downwardly to pop out the roofing nails.

If function of a shingle is missing, yous'll have to replace the whole thing. Beginning see if you have whatever leftover shingles from the last time the roof was worked on (with any luck, the builder or the roofer who handled the chore left some backside). If not, you'll have to buy a package at a habitation centre or lumberyard ($fifteen to $twenty per square—100 sq. ft.—of standard three-tab shingles). If you can't find a perfect match, choose the closest 1.

Replacing a damaged shingle requires a hammer, a flat pry bar, a utility knife and a handful of xi/4-in. covering nails. Each shingle is initially secured with four nails; when the next shingle class above is installed, however, its nails also pass through the top edge of the shingles in the course below.

Brainstorm removing the first row of nails by sliding the pry bar under the shingle immediately above the damaged one and gently lifting information technology to gratis information technology from the sealer strip. You'll see the first row of nails beneath.

Slip the pry bar under the damaged shingle and pry upwardly. One time the smash pops upward about 1/4 in., remove the pry bar, press the shingle down and pull out the nail. Repeat this procedure for the remaining three nails. Then button the pry bar under the shingle directly in a higher place the damaged one and remove the 2nd row of nails the aforementioned fashion. After yanking all eight nails, pull out the damaged shingle.

2. Prepare Curled Roof Shingle Corners with Caulking

Person installing new roof shingles. — two. Slide the new shingle up into identify. Be sure to align with the shingles of either side.

As asphalt shingles get older, their corners often begin to whorl downwardly or upward. If you notice a shingle starting to curl, you can foreclose the inevitable curling by gluing down the curled section.

Use a caulking gun to utilise a dab of roofing sealant (well-nigh $four per 10-oz. tube) nether the corner. Counterbalance it downward with a brick (correct); get out the weight in place for at least 24 hours until the sealant dries. That's all at that place is to information technology.

3. Cracked Roof Shingles Repair

Person using a hammer to put new roof shingle into place. — 3. Carefully lift the upper shingle and secure the new shingle with roofing nails.

If a shingle is simply cracked or torn, you don't accept to supervene upon it—simply repair information technology. Start by applying a thick dewdrop of roofing sealant under the cleft. Printing the shingle downward and use a second bead of sealant on top of the crack. Then spread the sealant with a putty knife.

The best function of this fix is that no ane has to know you made it. Information technology's piece of cake to camouflage: Check the gutter for an accumulation of colored granules that take washed downward the roof from the shingles. Then gather some into a small cup and sprinkle them over the sealant to mask the repair.