Because a hip roof is shaped differently than a traditional gable roof, it means shingling it can be more difficult. At P.J. Fitzpatrick, we recommend letting our roofing installation experts handle the job, but if you’re set on doing it yourself, here’s how to shingle a hip roof:

Installing the Shingles

1. First, wear heavy-duty gloves and place your ladder against the side of your home.
2. Begin by installing flashing on your ridges, edges, vents, and chimney area. Use your hammer and roofing nails to secure the pieces to create a barrier between your roofing structure and water.
3. Next, beginning at one end of your roof, locate the bottom edge of your roof and place a shingle over it so that the bottom of the shingle is even with the edge.
4. Using a utility knife, trim the right or left sides of your shingle (depending on the end you started at) so that it fits the angle of the roof.
5. After that, line the shingle up with the roof and drive two nails through the top corners and one in the center to fasten it in place. (If you live in a windy place, our roof installation experts recommend driving a second nail through the center of the shingle.)
6. Place your second shingle down next to the first one and fasten it in place the same way.

Continuing the Installation

1. Continue to line the bottom of your roof with shingles. When you get to the end, use your utility knife to trim the last shingle to fit your roof angle.
2. Next, continue layering your shingles, row by row.
3. For each row, make sure your shingles overlap the row underneath by 2/3 of the total length.
4. Also make sure each shingle is on the center of the seam of the two shingles beneath it to create a staggered pattern.
5. Once you get to the last (top) row of shingles, fasten them down with both nails and roofing cement to keep them and the rows below them in place.
6. Finish your roof by installing ridge cap shingles to join together the peaks of your roof. These will help further your roof’s water protection.