Garage, porch, and shed roof repairs: DIY vs. hiring a contractor

Shed roofs, garage roof repairs and porch roof installations are all often thought of as simple weekender DIY projects. Little thought, however, is given to the technical aspects of roof framing, repair and replacement.

To save yourself the headache of spending your weekend attempting to repair your shed roof only to find you misaligned the shingles and have to rip it all out and start again, it might be a good idea to call an experienced roofing contractor. They accurately determine whether your garage roof needs a couple repairs or a complete replacement. And they will be able to finish the shed, garage or porch roof installation quickly.

During a quick analysis of your shed roof, a roofing contractor will look for cracks or bare spots in your roofing material—whether it’s roll roofing, asphalt shingles or modified bitumen—which might be spaces where water can get into your garage or shed, spoiling its contents. Small areas of cracked roofing material might indicate a shed, porch or garage roof repair is the best course of action. Large areas of cracked or completely missing roofing material might mean it’s time for a completely new garage, shed or porch roof installation.

Here’s what a professional roofing contractor will do differently during a repair or installation:

  • Repair to restore protective nature of the roofing system

    Small areas of cracked shingles or roofing material on your porch or shed roof can easily be repaired without a whole new garage or porch roof installation. For shingle roofs, the cracked shingles will be removed and replaced with watertight, new ones. On flat roofs or roll roofs, areas where the membrane is peeling away or cracked will be mended with roofing cement or coatings. This should restore the waterproof nature of your shed roof and prevent future leaks.
  • Carrying out a new installation correctly

    While many popular DIY sites say it’s okay to install new shingles atop old ones, any roofing contractor worth their salt will know that this will only place undue burden on the garage or shed roof framing, and might lead to a roof collapse down the road. Not only that, but it will also reduce the working lifetime of the roofing material—since the shingles haven’t been nailed directly into the roofing deck, they will not be as watertight, nor will they be held as strongly.It’s also important that every course—or row—of shingles be perfectly straight with minimal bending during installation. For flat roofing materials, special attention must be paid to corners so that the membrane does not peel away from edges and flashing throughout years of use. Basically, proper technique goes a long way toward ensuring the longevity of your shed, garage or porch roof installation.

If your porch, shed or garage has developed leaks, then call the St. Louis roofing experts—Wildwood Roofing & Construction. We’ve been doing garage repairs, shed roof framing and porch roof installations for years. And we hold ourselves to a higher standard. We stand behind every roofing project we’ve done—that might be why our past clients have such good things to say about us.

Give us a call and schedule a cost- and obligation-free roof analysis today.

Drop us a line to tell us your project goals. We’ll tell you how we can exceed them.