Del River Roofing

Roofing contractors around Greater Philadelphia

Most of the difference between two roofing quotes is not the shingle. It is what happens underneath it, and what happens if the decking turns out to be soft.

What separates a complete quote from a cheap one

  • Flashing — replaced, or re-used and sealed? Re-using it is the most common reason a new roof leaks in its first year.
  • Decking — what is the price per sheet, and how many sheets are assumed? Nobody knows the real number until the old roof is off.
  • Underlayment — does ice-and-water shield go at the eaves and in the valleys, or only where code requires it?
  • Ventilation — corrected, or simply reinstalled? A hot attic shortens the life of whatever goes on top of it.
  • Warranty — the manufacturer covers the material; the contractor covers the labour. The second is worth more.
An old roof rarely gives out in the field. It gives out at the joints and the edges. Six of them, numbered. Five are places where the roof meets something else.
Garage Point 1 — ridge caps 1 Ridge caps — thin, exposed, first to lift Point 2 — the field of the roof 2 The field — slate or shingle, aging Point 3 — valleys 3 Leaf load mats where two slopes drain as one Point 4 — flashing 4 Flashing — old masonry, and the wall an attached house shares Point 5 — vent boot 5 Vent boot Point 6 — eaves and ice dams 6 Eaves — where the porch roof meets the wall

The work

Why roofs fail in this region

This is the oldest housing stock we cover, and age decides most of it. Century-old slate is reaching the end of its life across whole streets, interwar rows carry a low-slope porch roof that fails before the main field, attached houses share a flashing joint that moves every freeze-thaw cycle, and a mature canopy fills the valleys each autumn. Most of what gets reported here is predictable.

Cities