Sometimes your roofing system becomes compromised and in need of a new set of shingles. While there are many different shingle materials available, we at P.J. Fitzpatrick recommend asphalt shingles for durability and for easy installation. If you have a decent amount of home improvement experience and want to know how to re-shingle a roof on your own, here’s a general guide on how to do so:

Start by removing your old roofing shingles.

1. Beginning at the peak of your roof and wearing your safety gloves and goggles, use your notched roofing shovel to pry up your ridge caps.
2. After that, pry up your old roofing shingles. Work down your roof in a 2 foot or 3 foot-wide section and dispose of your unwanted materials in the trash can.
3. After each section is complete, go back and remove any protruding nails with your hammer.
4. When you get to areas of flashing, evaluate them to see if they’re still in good shape. If they are, leave them. If not, remove to make way for new flashing.
5. After all of your roofing shingles are removed, sweep your roof clean and prepare it with a new sheet of roof felt, moisture barrier, and roofing edge.

Next, you’ll want to install your new shingles.

1. Begin by installing your roofing starter strip to help simplify your installation.
2. Next, snap chalk lines along your roof to ensure that your shingles will be straight.
3. Starting at the right edge of your roof, lay down your first shingle and secure it into place with nails and your nail gun.
4. Place the next shingle so that it’s flush with the first shingle and secure into place.
5. Continue shingling across the length of your roof.
6. For the second layer of shingles, make sure you off-set them from the first to avoid a stacked pattern.
7. Place the first second-layer shingle in between the first two shingles on the bottom layer and secure.
8. Continue shingling across the length of your roof.
9. Once you’re done, use your snips to cut pieces of shingles to fill in any open areas.
10. Finish the installation with new flashing, rakes, ridges, hips, and valleys.