OT - Shingling question

[Howard H.]

A friend is putting a new roof on his house with three tab asphalt shingles. I made a comment about the plastic strip covering the tar on the underside and he said he wasn't bothering to pull it off since "the old shingles still had their plastic strips, too...".

There is a sticky strip of tar about 1/2 inch wide on top that has nothing on it. There is a sticky strip of tar about 1 1/2 inch wide on the bottom with a very thin film of plastic over it. It is so thin, it is fairly hard to get ahold of.

Since then, one guy has told me it is critical to take them off and one has told me it depends on how the shingle is made...

What is the real answer??


Thanks,
Howard

 

[RobMD]

The right-side-up row of tar on the shingle is supposed to be there to allow the tabs on the next row of shingles to adhere to it.

As for the plastic strip on the bottom, Leave it there. It serves as an additional support (however minuscule this support is) for nails.

I always put my shingles 5 inches apart on anything over 5/12 pitch, 4.5 inches on anything under 4/12 pitch.

 

[glennster]

i have always left that on. i just did an archetectural (?) i call em timberline shingle roof, the instructions said to leave the strip on.

 

[Red Dave]

I always thought that the plastic strip was there to keep the shingles from sticking together in the bundle before they went on the roof. When you put them on the roof, the strip no longer lines up with the dabs of soft asphalt so that the tabs get glued down when the sun warms the shingle. Therefore, it no longer matters whether the plastic strip is on or off after the shingle is on the roof.

At least, that is how it was told to me, your information may vary.

 

[Sid]

I always put my shingle next to each other regardless of the roof pitch.

 

[rhouston]

If you read the directions on the package it says to leave the plastic strip on- At least it did on the one or two that I have actualy bothered to read.


I found this on a roofing board

The longer answer...
You're not the first one to wonder about that. The answer is that you should NOT remove that strip. It's placed on the shingle so that, as you said, the tar strip doesn't stick to the shingle below it, in the packaging. But the location of the plastic strip on the shingle is completely fine when the shingle is put in place on the roof. If the plastic strip happens to come off during the roofing process, that's not problem. There's just no value in the labor to take the strip off.

 

[johnand cindy]

The clear tape on the back of the shingle is to keep the shingles from adhereing to each other while in the package. You will notice the tar spots are on the face side. When nailing you are stagering the shingle exposing the tar spots to the asphalt of the next course of shingle. When you lay them out you will understand what im tring to say. Get them on soon and pray for a few warm days so they seal. John

 

[RobMD]

That's not what i'm talking about, bud.

I mean the distance from the edge of the white end of the shingle TO the next edge of the overlapping white end of the shingle.

 

[Dick L]

How many layers do you have on that stick Sid ^D>{

 

[Anonymous-0]

Now that's novel. Ha!

Glenn

 

[John (MO)]

Just had to let you all know that I saw someone shingling from left to right the other day... not bottom to top. Must be some sort of new method. I went back a few days later just to look, and they had the job done. I won`t even begin to try and tell you how it looked. I think I`ll stick with bottom to top.

 

[bill mar]

can you go into more detail "left to right"? thanks, bill m.

 

[Anonymous-0]

1) if your installing 3 tab shingles as mentioned then you have a rain row to guide the sequenced layment of each course (one atop of the other) from bottom to top... otherwise they are strip shingles(architectual, and then you align the line printed on them)
2) nothing wrong with the other suggestion(s) relating to pitch and coverage to the weahter... the flatter the more coverage is needed. Most three tabs call for 5 1/4" to the weather, or said differently, bottom of tab of latest laid shingle (one on top) needs to be just even with the rain row slot/ on top of the shingle underneath, generally speaking. However as said, the flatter the roof surface the greater the coverage must/should be, said another way, more of the rain row slot must be covered to guard against siphoning and ice damming.
3) Vertical roofing installation is nothing new, some actually prefer because of scaffolding changes, however, the surface needs to be really good, per se´ new plywood as alignment problems are crucial to good assembly when using vertical method(s). And, some do not prefer because there is a lot of lifting shingles up and down to install the next sucession of shingles laid the horizontal distance of the next vertical section to be installed. But, vetical layment method "is" best for steep roofs -- less moves and less cuts for sure !

Lastly, but actually the first question, the strip stays on, if it is a good quality shingle then "all"directions are included on the outside of the packages ( in thirds-- 3 equals 1 square... ect)

 

[Anonymous-0]

bill, that is the way my dad always put down shingles. start on left with a full shingle, for second row cut off the left third of the shingle. the third row cut off the right third. for the fourth row start off with a full shingle again. keep the tabs straight as you go up the roof. if you can't eyeball across to keep the rows straight you can chalkline about every fifth or sixth row.all that being said i much prefer the architectul(sp) shingles. less waste and no tabs to keep straight. napaguy