THE EXPERTS SAY….

Asphalt Manufacturer:
"Due to the severity of the roof environment, even a one year old roof may look different from a roof that was just installed. While you may have first noticed the cracks or blistering from the ladder as you are cleaning the gutters, please be mindful that these normal weathering characteristics may not be visible when you view your roof from your front lawn or driveway."
--Certainteed

Laboratory Testing Facility:
"Failed shingles that we have tested contain approximately 30% asphalt by weight. New shingles contain less than 25%. This asphalt is mixed with sand and fine mineral matter and then has granules embedded in it. There is no separate asphalt mat "coating"; there is only asphalt binder for the filler. What coating exists on the back of the shingle appears to have bled through the mat from the top side during manufacture. No wonder shingles "weep" water after only a few years."
--Richard Tippet, Applied Roofing Technology

Roofing Consultant:
"The pressures placed on large, public companies to maintain profitability brought forward good old American ingenuity, reduce fiberglass mat weight (fibers were expensive) and increase filler content (asphalt was also expensive.)"
--Dwain Bouton, President of Certified Roofing Consultant

Home Improvement Expert:
"When it comes to shingles, the drawbacks center on service life. While asphalt shingles come with warranties ranging from 20 to as long as 45 years, roofers and builders remain skeptical of those warranties. Since warranties are a marketing device, they are not reliable predictor of lifespan. In the past decade, there have been many complaints of asphalt shingle failure long before warranties expired. Many homeowners have been dissatisfied with warranty payouts that didn't cover all the costs of repair or replacement as well."
--Bob Vila