Cedar shake roofs are known for their rugged natural beauty and are very popular with homeowners. People have been using wood shakes to cover their roofs for centuries. They provide numerous benefits in addition to their good looks.
However, it isn’t always as clear knowing when to replace or repair a cedar shake roof as it is with other kinds of materials. As a professional cedar shake roofing company, we will be discussing the reasons for this, to help you better understand when your wood roof needs to be replaced.
Repairs and Maintenance For Cedar Shake Roofing
If a cedar roof is well maintained it can last as long as 50 years before it needs to be completely replaced. Maintenance and repair may involve the following: installing metal shims, washing moss off, applying topical treatments and patching. See this information about wood shingle maintenance. The weather and environment play a decisive role in how well a roof will age over time.
How long a roof lasts will also depend on the quality of the product and installation, which after one or two decades can make a significant difference. The major problems that homeowners may notice is loose shakes, moss covering, missing shingles, warping and cracking. Frequently those will signs will result in a large or small leak. However, having damaged cedar shakes or a leak doesn’t automatically mean that the whole roof must be replaced.
With cedar shakes there are certain special considerations, like not pulling out a cracked shake too fast when replacing it. Although that might appear to be the best way of approaching DIY, it could result in the problem getting worse since it disrupts the structure surrounding the shakes. Numerous nails are used to nail each cedar shake into place into layers of wood as well as the decking underneath. Pulling out a shake is an invasive process that tears the felt paper that is there for added protection. It can also end up creating a domino effect with the cedar shakes that surround the one being pulled out.
When a cedar shake roof needs to be repaired due to visible damage or a leak it is better off for homeowners to call a professional with experience working with cedar shake roofs. They know special techniques and have special tools, which over the centuries have become known as best practices. They can repair single shakes effective of patch a cedar roof that needs attention. Homeowners should avoid removing shakes and power washing.
When A Cedar Shake Roof Should Be Replaced
Over time due to age and weatherization cedar shakes will turn a 
silvery gray color, which can be quite attractive. Their unfinished rugged appearance is what makes them stand out from smooth shingles. However, eventually, even with proper and regular repair and maintenance, homeowners will start seeing signs of it the cedar shake roof needing to be replaced.
Those signs include such things as: missing pieces, warping, leaking, splitting and cracking. Those signs will often be confined to just one roof section, which can mean repair instead of replacing the entire roof. However, repairing just one section can creative disunity in the texture and color, so the Chicago homeowner might decide to replace the whole roof.
If a cedar shake roof shows signs of heavy wear and damage in numerous places, the homeowner should think about replacing the whole roof. In these cases, patch repair would be expensive, and the disunity that would be created could affect the home’s aesthetic quality negatively. In addition, repairing just sections of a cedar roof that needs total replacement, can over time cause addition stress on the non-repaired sections.
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