If your roof has sprung a leak or is on its last legs, can you replace it in winter? Winter is the slowest time of year in roofing, but work doesn’t stop just because the calendar says so. Let’s learn about Denver roof replacement in winter and how winter conditions can affect different roofing. You’ll be surprised that winter roofing in Denver is perfectly viable when you have the right factors.
Asphalt Shingles
Asphalt shingles are the most common form or roofing in Denver and make up an estimated 75% of residential Denver roofs, – but can they be installed in winter? In most cases, yes, you can install asphalt shingles in winter.
Asphalt uses a combination of nailing and adhesives to install, and both can be affected by cold temperatures. When it gets too cold nailing can crack the shingles and the sealant won’t cure and bond without minimum temperatures.
That’s generally bad news for winter installation but the good news is most asphalt shingles only require 40 degrees to adhere to the roofing system. Denver sees days and weeks in winter where the temperature regularly exceeds 40, making asphalt shingle installation viable in winter if you’re hitting temperature minimums.
Note: Shingles don’t always ‘sit down’ immediately in cold temperatures. It might take a couple weeks for your shingles to sit down compared to a couple days in the summer.
Clay and Concrete Tile
Clay, concrete, and stone coated metal tiles only use mechanical forms of attachment, making them perfectly fine for winter installation. There’s nothing to cure, nothing to dry, and nothing to adhere, so cold temperature has little effect on tile installation. The only minimums for tile installation are what the crew is comfortable with.
Metal Roofing
Like clay and concrete tiles, metal roofing uses mechanical attachment and is hardly affected by cold temperatures. There’s no asphalt or glue, just battens and fasteners. If the crew is happy to work in it, you can install metal roofing in below freezing situations.
Flat Roofing
Flat roofing is likely the worst material to install over the winter. Flat roofing needs sun and heat to ‘relax’ and adhere correctly. Roofing crews often use a combination of torches and other heat producing equipment to adhere flat roofing during cool temperatures, but cold weather installation of single ply membranes is generally a bad idea if it’s not at least 50 degrees ambient on the roof. Installing flat roofing below 50 leads to wrinkles and other problems.
Talking Winter Roof Installation
Unless you’re installing single ply membranes, much of Colorado’s cold season is viable for roofing. If you’re using a mechanical system, you’re virtually fine in any temperature but if you’re installing asphalt you want to see at least 40 degree and more for flat roofing. By following these rules and using a local roofer you’ll have a great new roof no matter what the calendar says.