Proper Laying and Nailing Procedure for Three Tab Roofing Shingles

When using three tab shingles after installing the eaves shied and drip edge you lay a starter course with the tabs upside down across the entire bottom of your roof. Nail these just below the tab slot and again directly down from that about 2 inches up from the lower part of the shingle. With these starter shingles you should have 8 nails in a full shingle. What I mean by upside down is the three tabs are facing toward the ridge of the roof. The first real course goes right over the starter course but right side up this time with the tabs facing toward the lower part of the roof. Start off with about ¾ of a shingle so that the tabs of your first real course are half way between the tabs of your starter course. This way none of the starter course end seams will lie under the tab slot causing a leak. Nail these shingles on the tar strip just over the tab slots so you should have four nails in a full shingle. Always check manufacture specifications for exact nail placement to ensure the factory warranty.

A mistake that is made by many is placing the nail too high. This can cause the large sections of the shingles to come off in high winds. The nail should catch the shingle you are nailing and the top of the shingle below. In reality each shingle is held on with 8 nails even though you are putting 4 nails per shingle. If you place the nail too high it does not catch the top of the shingle underneath and also allows too much tab under the nail to be possibly caught with wind. Too much air pressure when using an air gun can cause nails to break right through causing possible blow off in heavy winds. Other nailing mistakes include nailing on an angle not allowing the nail to sit flat. This will keep the tab of the next shingle from sitting perfectly flat. Not setting the nail right down can also keep the shingle tab from sitting flat.

People get very careless when using air guns and nail too high, too low, blow through without adjusting the pressure and also angle nailing in their effort to go too fast. Contractors want to finish the job quickly and they more often than not, rush their workers causing overlooked mistakes that can end up in a leak down the road. This can very often lead to poor workmanship. If you are a roofer take pride in your work and always leave the home owner with a quality roof job that will last for a very long time to come visit here.