Takeoff & estimating
What a roof replacement actually costs
Installed cost per square by material, what moves the number, and a worked takeoff.
11 min
Roofing guides
23 guides. Every figure on them is read from a primary source and stamped with the date it was read.
Takeoff & estimating
4 guides
Takeoff & estimating
Roof pitch chart: pitch, angle and multiplier
Every common pitch from 1/12 to 12/12 with its angle, area multiplier and walkability.
7 min
Takeoff & estimating
What is a roof square?
The trade's only unit: 100 square feet, and how squares become bundles and dollars.
6 min
Takeoff & estimating
Roofing labour cost per square
Crew production rates and what pitch, storey height and tear-off do to the labour line.
8 min
Roofing materials
6 guides
Roofing materials
Asphalt shingle cost per square
Material-only and installed cost for 3-tab, architectural and designer shingles.
9 min
Roofing materials
Metal roof cost by panel type
Exposed-fastener, standing seam and stone-coated steel against installed cost per square.
10 min
Roofing materials
Standing seam metal roof cost
Panel width, clip type and site-formed versus shop-formed, and what each does to the bid.
8 min
Roofing materials
Slate roof cost: natural and synthetic
Per-square installed cost, the structural load question, and where synthetic pays.
8 min
Roofing materials
How long asphalt shingles actually last
Rated life against observed life, and the four things that shorten it most.
7 min
Roofing materials
Roof underlayment types
Felt, synthetic and ice-and-water membrane — where code requires each one.
7 min
Repair, leaks & storm damage
7 guides
Repair & storm damage
Roof repair cost by defect
What each common repair costs, and where repair stops paying and replacement starts.
9 min
Repair & storm damage
Repair & storm damage
Roof flashing types and where each fails
Step, counter, apron, valley and pitch-transition flashing, drawn and explained.
8 min
Repair & storm damage
Chimney flashing repair cost
Reflash against patch, the reglet cut, the cricket, and what masonry work adds.
7 min
Repair & storm damage
Roof decking replacement cost
Sheathing per sheet, tear-off, and the signs a deck has to come off with the shingles.
7 min
Repair & storm damage
Ice dam prevention
Why dams form, and the ventilation, insulation and membrane fixes that stop them.
8 min
Repair & storm damage
Storm damage roof inspection
Reading hail and wind damage on the roof, tiered from cosmetic to structural.
9 min
Bids, contracts & the job
6 guides
Bids & the job
Asphalt shingle installation, course by course
Deck, underlayment, starter, field, ridge — the sequence and the nail pattern.
10 min
Bids & the job
Drip edge installation
Eave before underlayment, rake after — the order, the overhang and the code behind it.
6 min
Bids & the job
How much does a roofer make?
Federal wage data by percentile and state, and how crew pay is actually structured.
8 min
Bids & the job
Roofing permit requirements
When a re-roof needs a permit, the layer limit, and the inspections it triggers.
7 min
Bids & the job
Bids & the job
The roofing insurance claim process
ACV against RCV, recoverable depreciation, the adjuster meeting and supplements.
10 min