What Makes Up the Roofing System?

We often talk about the roofing system at Bakeris Roofing. Along with the shingles, there are also many other components that make up the whole system. It’s also the materials such as the nails, felt paper, snow and ice barrier, edge metal, headwall flashing, step flashing, pipe flashings, chimney flashings, and counter flashings. If you take it from there, anything that is touching these products on the roof or attic is part of the roof system.

Two story houses sometimes have a lower level roof that runs into the side of the house, butting into the siding of the second story. We consider that siding part of the roof system. If the siding was not put on properly, it could cause problems with the roof. Let’s say the housewrap behind the siding was not applied properly. It was not brought all the way down over the front of the flashing. There is a good chance that high winds may blow water onto that area, causing a leak.

The first thing many homeowners think when there is a leak is that it is because of the roof itself. There are many other possibilities where it could have been another part of the roof system instead. Maybe they didn’t put the tieback on or didn’t do a proper job of installing the siding.

The attic is also a major component of the roofing system. If it doesn’t have proper ventilation, many problems can arise. Maybe there were not enough roof vents, or there is a ridge vent and soffit vent at the bottom of the roof that is providing intake. Maybe there was never any soffit cut in when the home was built, or maybe the siding was reapplied and they forgot to put new ventilation where the old soffit was covered.

Even a bathroom fan tube is part of the roofing system. When you turn on the fan in your bathroom, it takes all the hot, moist air out of the room. In our area, it is not allowable to vent this air directly into the attic. This practice simply does’t meet code. The air needs to go out through the roof, or at least to the soffit.

There is so much more than just the roof’s shingles when it comes to the entire roofing system. The plywood decking is also part of the roof system. Sometimes people see that their roof appears to be wavy. It could be the shingles themselves, because the bundles were taken out of the package and never laid down properly. Another possible reason would be the ventilation, where the moist air is being sent to the attic. It has begun to warp the plywood or OSB board, and that could be what is causing sagging between the rafters. Maybe the rafters or trusses were never done properly during the construction of the building.

When you become aware of how interconnected all these components are, it becomes very clear that the roofing system is way more than just the shingles.

If you need someone to to make sure that your entire roofing system is in great shape, contact the team at Bakeris Roofing. Joining our Overhead Care Club has many benefits, including periodic routine maintenance.