In this video, This Old House general contractor Tom Silva explains how to reshingle a roof.
Steps for reshingling a roof
- Pry off old roof shingles with pitch fork.
- Nail down loose roof sheathing to rafters.
- Cover roof deck with 30-pound felt underlayment; staple felt every 6 to 8 inches.
- Nail drip-edge flashing to lower edge of roof.
- Snap vertical chalk line down center of roof.
- Trim tabs off roof shingles to create starter course.
- Center starter course on the roof’s centerline; allow the shingles to overhang drip-edge by ¼ inch, then nail them in place.
- Snap horizontal chalk line across roof so first course overhangs starter course by ¼ inch.
- Set top edge of first-course shingles on the chalk line and nail them down.
- Snap horizontal layout lines every 5 inches all the way up the roof.
- Snap vertical layout lines every 6 inches across the roof.
- Continue laying roof shingles, aligning the top edges with the horizontal chalk lines, and the ends with the vertical chalk lines to create the proper 6-inch offset.
- Secure each shingle with four nails.
- Trim the shingles at the ridge and ends of roof.
- Cut 12×12-inch ridge-cap shingles from standard roof shingles.
- Center each ridge-cap shingle over the ridge and attach with two nails.
Tools