ASPHALT (Composition)
ROOFING SHINGLES
In the past, Tacoma
Roof Brokers have recommended asphalt roofing
shingles as an appropriate short-term
roofing solution. And, while modern (fiberglass)
asphalt roofing can still be viewed as the most
cost effective
roofing option - when the intention is to sell a home
within 8 to 10 years - because of the recent and
current
class action lawsuits against major asphalt
manufacturers for selling "defective" asphalt
roofing, responsible
roofing consultants must now advise consumers to give
careful consideration to the effect of trying to
market
their home with defective roofing... Defective roofing
must be disclosed to all potential home buyers!
To learn more about
recent and current class action lawsuits for
defective asphalt shingles - Click Here
The common perception, promoted by roof
manufacturers and roofing contractors, is the
modern (fiberglass)
asphalt roofing shingle marketed today is vastly
superior to the traditional (organic) asphalt
roofing design.
These new shingles MUST be better because they
come with 50 year warranties! In fact, the
opposite is true.
The History of Asphalt Roofing Shingles
From the early 1900's until the 1970's, roofing
shingles were manufactured by saturating
a thick organic mat
(cotton, waste paper and wood fiber) with
asphalt and then covering the shingle with a
protective stone coating.
These "organic" roofing shingles came with 15
year and 20 year warranties - but would often
last over 30 years.
With the 1974 oil embargo increasing costs,
manufacturers sought to produce roofing shingles
with less asphalt
and began converting to a "fiberglass"
reinforced roofing mat that was layered
with asphalt and a stone coating.
At that time, asphalt content was further
reduced in fiberglass roofing by adding
filler materials to the asphalt.
With the addition of filler materials and
multiple layers over limited areas
It is no longer possible to determine shingle
quality by weight
In the 1990's, to enhance sales, roofing
manufacturers started to offer limited
"manufacturing defect" warranties
of 30, 40 and eventually 50 year periods.
Roofing manufacturers insisted the warranties
DID NOT provide any
assurance or coverage for durability, only that
the roofing shingle met their own internal
production specifications.
In fact, roofing manufacturers admitted that
product warranties were only "marketing tools"
and openly joked (in major trade magazines) of
providing 150 year warranties if it would help
sell product.
Initially, roofing contractors were upset with
the limited durability of fiberglass roofing
shingles because, at that time,
it was customary for roofing contractors to
provide a personal 20 year guarantee on the
product being installed.
Roofing manufacturers responded to these initial
contractor complaints by explaining that lower
cost roofing was
their primary concern and, if any roofing
contractors were afraid to stand behind the
(cheap) shingles, they should
not guarantee the durability of the roofing
product but, instead, only guarantee their own
workmanship / installation.
That is why, today, buyers of asphalt roofing
can receive a 50 year "limited" product warranty
but only a 5 year or 10 year contractor
"workmanship" guarantee.
To be sure, when confronted with the truth about
fiberglass roofing shingles, many roofing
contractors will respond
with assurances that the "new" fiberglass
roofing shingles are better products than those
made a few years ago.
They will offer no evidence or proof to those
claims, only point to the vast crowd of fellow
roofing contractors
that have no problem sleeping at night - after
selling some poor soul a "50 year" or "lifetime"
asphalt roof.
Imagine, the cheapest roofing product on the
planet
with the same durability as metal roofing or
concrete roofing!
There are also those wishful thinkers that
insist the "multi-layered" roofing product they
purchased will really last
because it is so very thick (at the bottom
edge). Unfortunately, their roofing
contractor never showed them the
back side of the roofing shingle, so they could
see how much of the shingle consist of only one
thin layer...
and a roofing shingle is only as strong as the
weakest link.
Most people do not want to hear that cheap
shingles are just cheap... and will not last
long.
And this wishful thinking is promoted by
everyone dependent on selling cheap roofing.
But truth is never determined by popular opinion
or deceptive salesmanship and
a THIN LAYER of asphalt does not wear like
metal, concrete or slate roofing
In fact, roof manufacturers and roofing
contractors are currently selling asphalt
shingles without disclosing any
information about recent (and current) CLASS
ACTION LAWSUITS for "defective" asphalt
shingles - Click Here
If you want to hear the truth on roofing
products
Contact Us for a FREE
Consultation
Roofing Shingles
in Tacoma
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