With a newly constructed home, you have a clean slate from top to bottom. You can finish the interior and exterior to suit your personal taste, and you’ll be the home’s first occupant. Not only are the finishes brand new, but the structural elements are as well – and this includes the roof.
Differences With New Home Roof Construction
Roofing a new home is different than replacing the roof on an existing home. First, the underlying structure of the roof is constructed with sturdy new joists, trusses, and rafters according to code. Then, essentials like drip edge, ice and water shield, and underlayment are installed. Finally, your chosen shingles are installed, and flashing, vents and ridge caps are added to craft a durable roof system.
Having a roof installed on a newly constructed home allows you to avoid many problems you might encounter when re-roofing an older home. You won’t have to worry about:
- Structural weakness. When your home is newly built with a quality roof installed, there’s no chance of structural weakness caused by age and deterioration. With our Michigan winters, this means there’s less risk of your weakened roof collapsing under the weight of snow and ice.
- Multiple layers of shingles. Our local building code allows only a maximum of two layers of shingles. If you’re replacing the roof on an existing home with two layers already in place, all those old shingles must be removed beforehand. When you have a home built, you’ll know your shingles are being secured onto virgin underlayment and decking.
- Mess and expense. When you avoid the need to get old shingles scrapped off and hauled away, you save on mess and extra expense. You won’t have an ugly dumpster parked in your driveway. Plus, you won’t have to deal with bits of broken shingles and nails marring your yard and landscaping.
- Hidden damage. A newly constructed roof on a brand new home is a sound structure with no prior damage from storms and long-term exposure to the elements. With an existing roof, there’s a real likelihood hidden roof flaws have already caused structural or interior water damage. You may have to fix decayed decking, rotted trusses, deteriorated fascia/trim, ruined attic insulation or water-stained ceiling drywall along with installing new roofing.
If you’re building a new home in the Grand Rapids area, contact us at Moore & Sons Roofing for quality, certified roofing services.