ELLIS LUCIA / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE InDetail, In Detail photos of roof lines on homes in western St. Tammany Parish Friday, May 28, 2010, for InsideOut. rooflines Roof lines Rooflines
ELLIS LUCIA / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE InDetail, In Detail photos of roof lines on homes in western St. Tammany Parish Friday, May 28, 2010, for InsideOut. rooflines Roof lines Rooflines
Roofing contractors at a New Orleans East house on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2021, install the first of what's expected to be about 70,000 blue tarpaulins on Louisiana roofs damaged by Hurricane Ida. FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers are overseeing the blue roof project.
Giovanni Mendez, left, and Ismael Gonzalez with Lafayette Roofing install a new roof Friday, September 10, 2021, at the home of veteran Murray Johnson in Lafayette, La. The Acadiana Veterans Alliance worked with Lafayette Roofing to install a new roof at his home.
Larry Dominique of Gulf Coast Outboards in Larose puts down a blue tarp to cover his roof Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021, that was damaged by Hurricane Ida.
Ismael Gonzalez, right, and Giovanni Mendez with Lafayette Roofing install a new roof Friday, September 10, 2021, at the home of veteran Murray Johnson in Lafayette, La. The Acadiana Veterans Alliance worked with Lafayette Roofing to install a new roof at his home.
The Rev. Joseph Caraway and the Rev. Garrett McIntyre of Breaux Bridge.
A crew works on the roof of Ethel Schoeffner Elementary School in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida in Destrehan on Friday, September 10, 2021. (Photo by Brett Duke, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate) ORG XMIT: BAT2109101428050031
ELLIS LUCIA / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE InDetail, In Detail photos of roof lines on homes in western St. Tammany Parish Friday, May 28, 2010, for InsideOut. rooflines Roof lines Rooflines
ELLIS LUCIA / THE TIMES-PICAYUNE InDetail, In Detail photos of roof lines on homes in western St. Tammany Parish Friday, May 28, 2010, for InsideOut. rooflines Roof lines Rooflines
Larry Dominique of Gulf Coast Outboards in Larose puts down a blue tarp to cover his roof Sunday, Sept. 12, 2021, that was damaged by Hurricane Ida.
If your home is one of the estimated 80,000 across the state whose roofs were shredded by Hurricane Ida, Claudette Reichel has some advice on choosing a new one. The best roofing option here, she says, is using architectural shingles that are rated as resistant to winds of up to 150 mph — the speed at which Ida blasted in on Aug. 29 as a Category 4 storm.
Reichel is the director of the LaHouse Resource Center at LSU in Baton Rouge, a project developed after Hurricane Katrina to study and educate the public on best practices in building to suit southeast Louisiana's climate.
Shingles resistant to winds of up to 150 mph receive an H rating from from ASTM International. Other designations are Class D (90 mph), F (110 mph), and G (120 mph).
But here’s a note for consumers: Buying wind-resistant shingles is just the first step. Ensuring proper installation is crucial for the roof system to hold fast during devastating winds.
“The manufacturers will have specific installation instructions, maybe even two sets: one for high wind and one for regular,” said Reichel.
The high-wind instructions will require the use of a special starter strip. “Typical practice is to turn a shingle upside down and put another over it, then start the shingles. You need that special starter strip,” she said.
Make sure to specify use of that strip in the written contract with your roofer, along with any other manufacturer’s requirements for achieving maximum wind resistance.
Ismael Gonzalez, right, and Giovanni Mendez with Lafayette Roofing install a new roof Friday, September 10, 2021, at the home of veteran Murray Johnson in Lafayette, La. The Acadiana Veterans Alliance worked with Lafayette Roofing to install a new roof at his home.
To get the most out of your roof, Reichel had some other suggestions as well. When she reroofed a few years ago, she stipulated that the roofer use six nails per shingle, in specific locations, rather than the typical three or four nails. That can be written into a contract as well.
So can the way the nails are hammered down.
Nails should not be overdriven. “That means they’re pushed too far into the shingle, essentially tearing it. Sometimes when roofers have several workers using a hydraulic nail gun, they (the guns) are harder to control — they fluctuate with how many people may be using it at once.”
Reichel recommends specifying that they be nailed by hand, so the worker has more control over the nail penetration.
A crew works on the roof of Ethel Schoeffner Elementary School in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida in Destrehan on Friday, September 10, 2021. (Photo by Brett Duke, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate) ORG XMIT: BAT2109101428050031
“You want them flush, not indented into the shingle.”
For even more protection, the LSU AgCenter suggests combining the ASTM-rated shingles with a higher performance, No. 30 synthetic underlayment that’s much more tear resistant than normal felt. For the highest level of water protection, invest in an adhesive-backed roof membrane underlayment.
“These days, most manufacturers tend to have regular (asphalt) shingles, or the ones that meet F and H,” she said.
Marty Scoggins, CEO of Suburban Roofing in Harahan, agreed. "Most of what we handle now are the higher wind-rated architectural shingles," he said. "That's what people want."
Because roofers tend to use particular brands, Reichel advised, consumers should look up the products online to verify that what their roofer is using is wind tested.
One thing to watch for: Upscale architectural shingles are not necessarily wind resistant. “Architectural shingles’ composition is thicker, for a better look,” Reichel said. “The longer warranty — they may be a 40-year roof — is an indicator of quality but not of wind resistance. It means longevity, outside of a hurricane, to normal elements of sun and weather."
The wind-rated shingles will be architectural shingles, however, and will have a longer warranty.
(An average asphalt-shingle roof might last 20 years.)
The Rev. Joseph Caraway and the Rev. Garrett McIntyre of Breaux Bridge.
Metal roofs are also a great choice to withstand high winds, and with the availability of metal that looks like shingles, they can look good with any type of home. The downside is that they're several times more expensive than more typical roofs.
After both Ida and the COVID-19 pandemic, and with roofers so busy some aren't even answering their phones, costs and availability are a question mark. Even before Ida, the U.S. Labor Department reported that combined prices for windows, doors, roofing and other building products jumped 13% in the first six months of this year. Before 2020, aggregate prices would typically rise about 1% annually.
Locally, Scoggins said materials are tight, adding that his costs have gone up about 20% since the storm. Doing business in hard-hit areas like Luling, Destrehan and metro New Orleans, "We're not even fooling with repairs."
Even with higher costs, it may be a case of pay now or pay even more later.
“If you don’t go with wind resistant shingles, you could have to pay that deductible again because storms are increasing," Reichel said.
"Think of saving your home. When you lose a lot of shingles, you get water, the roof can collapse, and you get major water damage inside the home. Having a wind-hardy roof is the most important investment in a home.”
The deadline for residents who suffered damage or need emergency assistance after Hurricane Ida to apply for FEMA aid has been extended, accor…
Here are some other suggestions from the LSU AgCenter to help your new roof stand up to a storm.
DECKING: After removing the old shingles and underlayment, roofers should inspect the decking, the layer of boards that the shingles and other roofing components are installed on. Make sure it is at least 7/16-inch thick. If replacing the entire deck (also called sheathing), consider upgrading to 5/8-inch plywood for a stronger roof. Roof decking is usually nailed or stapled sparingly to the rafters. Add ring shank nails so the decking is secured every 6 inches and, if possible, install hurricane hardware that connects rafters and trusses to side walls for added stability.
SEAL: Finish seams of roof decking with 4-inch-wide roofing tape as a secondary defense against water damage. Add a secondary moisture barrier to prevent water leaks at decking seams if roofing is ever lost or damaged. Do not use window flashing tape.
FLASHING: Properly install new, durable flashing at all penetrations, roof and wall intersections, and valleys. Proper installation methods layer materials shingle-fashion to prevent water seepage under flashings.
FASTEN: Brace gable end walls to roofing members to prevent collapse from very high wind.
ATTIC: For a vented attic, use only TAS 100(A)-tested ridge or roof vents. Securely fasten strong panels and soffit vents to the framing under roof overhangs. Perforated fiber cement soffits are a sturdy, one-step, low-maintenance option.
Giovanni Mendez, left, and Ismael Gonzalez with Lafayette Roofing install a new roof Friday, September 10, 2021, at the home of veteran Murray Johnson in Lafayette, La. The Acadiana Veterans Alliance worked with Lafayette Roofing to install a new roof at his home.
“Unless the rest of the roof is new, try to make a case (to your insurance company) for doing the whole thing,” advised Reichel. “If you lost shingles with this storm, the roof might be vulnerable to lose more the next time.”
If you're not replacing the whole roof, ask the contractor to do a thorough inspection for loose or damaged shingles. “If the other shingles are well-adhered and the nails are not overdriven (which would weaken them), it’s reasonable to just replace the ones that came off," she said.
While workmen are on site, there's another fairly easy way to help head off future damage: Adding an extra dot of roofing cement to the first course of shingles, which are the most vulnerable. Each shingle should get three 1-inch dots of cement, one in the middle and one on each side, a few inches from the shingle's edge.
Roofing contractors at a New Orleans East house on Wednesday, Sept. 8, 2021, install the first of what's expected to be about 70,000 blue tarpaulins on Louisiana roofs damaged by Hurricane Ida. FEMA and the Army Corps of Engineers are overseeing the blue roof project.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Blue Roofs program provides free tarps until permanent repairs can be made. The tarps are more durable than standard tarps and should last at least a month. Sign-up for the program lasts until Sept. 30. Go to blueroof.us or call (888) 766-3258.
$10,000 batteries are needed to keep electricity running in an outage
Temporary tarps fluttered on roofs across southeast Louisiana on Sunday, makeshift patches for the holes left by Hurricane Ida two weeks ago.
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