If you are looking for a roof covering material that can add natural appeals to your home, then you may want to consider using cedar roof shakes. If you are yet familiar with it, this article will show you ‘how long does a cedar shake roof last,’ what maintenance it requires, and a general guide on installing it.
How Long Does a Cedar Shake Shingle Roof Last
Cedar wood makes a stunning and practical material for roofing because this widely available product has various natural colors and numerous possible applications. Cedar shake has a charming appearance due to its varying widths and thicknesses from being cut straight from the wood.
So, how long does a cedar shake roof last? Durability is a downside to cedar roof shake. Compared to the other durable roof material such as metal, asphalt shingles, or clay tile, it only has a life expectancy of 30 years. There is a chance that it may reach 50 years of life if you live in an area with desirable weather conditions and invest in high-quality components.
Cedar Shake Roof Maintenance
Regardless of the cedar shake roof pros and cons, it’s still important to take care of it regularly by doing these maintenances below:
- Removing debris and plant
It is not rare to find fungus grows and dirt accumulating on cedar shake roofs. You may even see other plants thrive on it, which may cause heavy damage if they aren’t eliminated soon.
- Chemical Treatments
To clean the cedar roof shake, you may use a mix of 1:3 solution between water and bleach, such as sodium percarbonate. Apply the cleaning solution using a pump sprayer and allow it to remain for 15 minutes, then rinse the mixture off your roof with water.
How to Install Cedar Shake Roof
Roof installation, in general, is never an easy task to tackle. Before you decide to set up a cedar shake roof on your house, it is necessary to know what not to do to avoid costly and damaging mistakes that may harm the whole roof.
Here are some essential things to take note of regarding the installation:
- After the shakes arrive, don’t install them right away. This material contract in dry weather and expand in humid weather, so you have to give it some time for the material to adapt to the different environment.
- Pick the right nail, as the wrong ones may ruin the shakes even before the installation process is completed. Generally, you cannot go wrong with galvanized steel, stainless steel, or aluminum steel.
- Make sure to align the shakes properly. You should begin from the bottom area, allow an overhang of 1 ½ inch on the roof’s edge. This is meant to prevent water runoff to get into your home’s edges. Set and align them row by row.
- Utilize cool roof system to make sure your building has adequate ventilation. To set this structure, install roof underlayment above the sheathing. After that, put wood spacers along the rafters of the attic. Then if you have made sure that the spacers have been secured, layer them with spaced sheathing. Lastly, set out the cedar roof shakes.
As mentioned before, roofing is a complicated project that’s recommended to be left to professionals. This also applies to cedar roof shakes. Experienced roofers will be able to give you a better estimation on how long does a cedar shake roof last according to the particular conditions of your area, as well as giving you more valuable tips about the maintenance to make your investment last longer, or at least as long as it is expected to be.
