The use of the asphalt shingle continue to dominate the roofing industry in the United States. It accounts for more than 70% of all of the sloped residential roofs that include replacements and new constructions. Asphalt shingles are highly considered for any business, home, or garage.
What Are Asphalt Shingles?
There are numerous reasons as to why asphalt shingles are highly popular. The main reasons are they are easy to install and come at a low cost. Aside from that, they have a fairly decent longevity and durability.
Types of Asphalt Shingles
Luxury Shingles
Luxury asphalt shingles have a multi-dimensional appearance that is more affordable and offers maximum durability compared to cedar and slate alternatives. These shingles have a design that replicates cedar shake and natural slate roofs at an affordable cost. Slate and shakes can be very laborious to install and highly expensive. The price of a slate roof may cost ten times the price of the architectural laminate shingles.
This can be a great alternative for roofing homes with a period style that appear great with shake- or slate-style roofs. Since luxury shingles have a multi-dimensional texture it creates depths and shadows that appear similar to real slate and shakes.
Since luxury shingles have additional layers, they bring in additional weight. These may even weigh twice as much for every square foot of the basic 3-tab shingles. Aside from this, they may not be well suited to every home.
However, having added weight also has some advantages. It provides additional strength against impact and tears. This can be helpful whenever you live in a region that is prone to hail, hurricanes, and tornadoes.
Dimensional Shingles
The strength of dimensional shingles are great as they are highly durable. They boast an appearance and texture that is multi-dimensional and can last for three decades or more. However, you may end up paying more upfront for these dimensional asphalt shingles compared to the 3-tab shingles. Despite that, according to the ARMA or Asphalt Roofing Manufacturer’s Association, the dimensional asphalt shingles are now the most popular asphalt shingles in use nowadays. They account for almost three-quarters of all of the sales in asphalt roofing in the year 2010. The trend continued through the year 2017.
Dimensional shingles have a couple or more layers of shingles. These multi-layered shingles are highly durable and are allowed to get used in strong warranties for various homeowners. Lots of dimensional singles have warranties from 30 years depending on the chosen shingles and the method of installation.
Aside from these, dimensional shingles are appealing because they look wonderful. It can be really easy to spot them whenever you drive down a neighborhood. They never looked anything similar to the asphalt shingles. Moreover, dimensional shingles are also 75% less expensive compared to the actual wood shakes which will allow you to get a better warranty compared to the 3-tab shingles.
3-Tab Shingles
In the right conditions, 3-tab shingles are affordable and may last for a couple of decades. However, it has a shorter lifespan and less aesthetic options. Despite that, affordability meets functionality. A piece of a single-layer 3-tab asphalt shingles is basically the most economic example as they are created from durable fiberglass basemat that is coated with mineral granules which gave every piece various color tones.
Moreover, the lightweight 3-tab shingles have a design that can withstand any elements for more than two decades. They are also easily recognizable because of their clean and horizontal appearance. These have an exposed layer that is notched into three tabs to provide a a decorative appearance. The 3-tab shingles are great for homeowners that are on a budget.
However, 3-tab shingles do not have some of the luxury and dimensional shingles’ aesthetic qualities. Moreover, aging and poor installation may make it unreliable whenever the weather conditions are rough. Despite that, the 3-tab shingles can still provide your home protection against the elements.
Options for Design with Asphalt Shingles
Asphalt shingles come in a variety of design styles that may include the textural dimensional shingle that is laminated and the old strip shingle with three tabs. The basic shingle is the strip shingle that has a strip of the material that is often three times the proportion of the tabs or cutouts. The 3-tab strip shingle is the one that is the most common. The premium shingle which is the laminated dimensional shingle has tabs in multiple layers that create dimension and texture to every shingle. The dimensional shingle has a variation called the luxury shingle which has bigger exposures and is thicker compared to the dimensional shingles. These luxury shingles can imitate the appearance of any slate or wood shingle.
The ones that have tabs or cutouts that are lined along the edges are called the three-tab shingles. It allows every shingle to appear like they are three different pieces even if they are just a big piece. This kind of shingle is the most economical and popular way of having a roof covered because it can cover a bigger area.
Dimensional shingles that are laminated do not have cutouts but has portions which are laminated with the use of more asphalt. Asphalt’s sealant allows the layers to bond and reinforces every shingle’s ability to become defensive against wind, rain, and impact damage.
Designed for slopes of roof with at least a pitch of 4:12 are asphalt shingles. These shingles are not recommended to get installed on roof slopes that are less than 2:12.
Colors of the Asphalt Shingle
Aside from the wide variety of designs and colors that asphalt shingles have, they also have numerous colors to choose from that you can place on your roof. The choices for color was able to expand since asphalt shingles began and what you choose may depend on what can match the style and look of your home as well as what you would like for it to appear.
There may be tones that can range from brown to gray to red. You may even find green and blue mixed in. It is also possible to mix the dark and light tones for the creation of vintage or weathered shingles in case the home is old. Professional people in roofing can now access the new technology which allows people to experiment with the home’s colors by using an online tool before having them installed on your residence.
Shingles that are Energy Efficient
Whenever people want their home to become green and efficient in energy, the industry now has a lot of manufacturers that produce asphalt shingles that are also energy efficient. They use the cool-roof technology that allows the lesser absorption of the sun’s heat. It can help in cutting down the use of the air conditioner whenever it is hot during summer.