Rambler and split-level reroofing in Annandale (22003)

A 1950s rambler near Ravensworth or Wakefield Chapel was usually built with board sheathing, a low pitch around 4/12 and a single gable vent at each end. Over the decades, many got a second layer of shingles nailed straight over the first, which hides rotten boards and traps heat.

When we strip one of these roofs, we expect to replace boards at the eaves and along the bottom few feet, where water from ice and clogged gutters sat. We then add plywood over gappy boards where needed, so new nails have something solid to hold. That step matters on a low-slope roof where wind uplift is the main threat.

Split-levels in neighborhoods off Annandale Road and Columbia Pike usually have a higher roof meeting a lower roof at a sidewall. That junction is where step flashing, siding and a kickout all have to work together, and on many homes one of the three is missing.

We rebuild those sidewalls with new step flashing woven into each course and a proper kickout at the gutter. Inside the house, the leak usually shows up on the ceiling of the lower level, near the stairs, which confuses many owners because it appears far from the source.

Some Annandale split-levels also have a flat roof over a lower family room or a sunroom added in the 1970s. Those were often finished with roll roofing that has long since cracked. We replace them with a fully adhered membrane, run it up the wall under new counter flashing and slope it toward a proper scupper or gutter.

• Stains on the lower-level ceiling near the half-flight of stairs
• Rotted trim where the upper wall meets the lower roof
• Gutter overflow at the corner of the two roof levels

Many of these houses have little or no soffit venting, and their attics bake in July. That heat cooks shingles from below and shortens their life, and in winter, warm moist air condenses on the cold deck. We check for intake and exhaust on every replacement and add soffit vents and ridge vent where the framing allows it.

Owners are often surprised to learn that attic ventilation is part of the shingle maker's installation instructions. We also look at bathroom fans that dump moist air into the attic and run them outside through a roof or wall cap.

Most Annandale ranch roofs come off and go back on in one to two days. Driveways here are usually wide enough for a dump trailer, and we lay tarps over shrubs and cover window wells. The county permit office decides whether your scope needs a permit, and we check that before the job.

If your home also has gutters that have pulled loose from rotten fascia boards, it makes sense to fix them during the same visit. Our fascia and soffit repair keeps the new drip edge fastened to solid wood.

Annandale's commercial strip along Little River Turnpike also has low-slope buildings with membrane roofs, and we work on those too. For homes, though, the most common sequence is simple: tear-off, deck repair, ice and water membrane, new metal, shingles, ridge vent and a final cleanup with a walk-through of your yard.