Roof replacement and leak repair in Prince William County

The eastern end of the county grew fast in the 1970s and 1980s. Dale City is full of split-foyers, ramblers and two-story homes from that period, and Lake Ridge filled in with townhouse clusters and colonials soon after. Many of those homes are now on roofs installed in the late 1990s or early 2000s, which puts them right at the end of a typical shingle life.

Farther west, Manassas, Bristow, Haymarket and Gainesville have newer subdivisions from the 1990s and 2000s. Those roofs are usually builder-grade architectural shingles over OSB, and the first failures we see are at pipe boots, step flashing along second-story walls and ridge vents that were nailed too lightly.

Around the Manassas battlefield and out toward Nokesville, you will also find older farmhouses and 1950s brick homes on larger lots. Those roofs vary more, from metal barn-style roofs to cedar shake that has been covered over, and they reward a careful look before anyone quotes a number.

Neighborhoods along the Occoquan River and the Potomac shoreline, from Belmont Bay to Featherstone, catch wind coming off the water. Gusts that would barely ruffle shingles inland can peel the leading edge of a roof facing the river, especially where the starter strip was skipped or the sealant never bonded.

When the remnants of a tropical storm move up the coast, we often get a run of calls from Woodbridge, Occoquan and Quantico corridors in the same evening. Our emergency roof repair crew starts in the county because it is closest to the head office, and we tarp first, then come back to make the permanent fix.

• Check the windward rake and eave edges after any big blow
• Look for shingle tabs in the yard or on the driveway
• Watch ceilings near exterior walls for fresh stains

A lot of Prince William families live in townhouses, and those roofs come with rules. Most communities in Lake Ridge, Montclair and around Potomac Mills require approval of shingle color, and some want the whole building row done at once so the colors match.

We work with you and your neighbors on shared rows, cut the roof cleanly at the party wall and lap the underlayment and shingles so the joint between units does not become the next leak. When only one unit is replaced, we tie in to the old shingles on each side with a clean step and fresh flashing.

Older townhouse roofs here also tend to have one tired attic vent per unit and no soffit intake at all, which bakes the shingles from below. When we replace a unit, we look at adding ridge vent and intake so the new roof is not cooked in its first summer. We also swap the cheap plastic pipe boots that crack on so many of these rows for a longer-lasting lead or rubber collar.