Shingle Roofing in Ocala, FL
Architectural asphalt shingles installed to Florida high-wind nailing patterns, with the underlayment and sealing the code now requires.
Architectural asphalt shingle is the roof on most homes in Marion County, and for good reason: it is the most cost-effective covering available, it comes in colors every HOA already approves, and installed correctly it holds up to Florida wind well. The problem is that a lot of shingle roofs around Ocala were not installed correctly, and the sun finds every shortcut.
We install architectural shingle roofs to the high-wind requirements of the Florida Building Code: six nails per shingle in the manufacturer's nail zone, starter strip with the adhesive at the eave and rake, sealed underlayment beneath, and ridge and intake ventilation that keeps the attic from baking the shingles from below. Done that way, a shingle roof in Ocala gives you its full working life instead of half of it.
Why shingles age faster in Florida
An asphalt shingle is asphalt, fiberglass mat and ceramic granules. The granules are the sunscreen. Florida UV and heat drive the oils out of the asphalt faster than in northern climates, the mat gets brittle, granules let go, and the shingle curls and cracks. An unvented or under-vented attic makes it worse, because the shingle is being heated from both sides. That is why manufacturers' nominal lifespans are longer than what Florida insurers and inspectors actually see, and why many carriers treat a shingle roof approaching fifteen to twenty years as end-of-life regardless of what it looks like from the street.
Algae is the other Florida signature: the dark streaks on north-facing slopes and under tree canopy. It is cosmetic more than structural, and algae-resistant shingles with copper-bearing granules slow it down considerably. Pressure washing a shingle roof to remove it strips granules and shortens the roof's life; soft washing is the only method that should touch asphalt.
You get options, and you get told which one we would pick
Nobody should be handed one shingle and one price and be expected to feel good about it. We quote the options, we put the real difference between them in plain language, and then we tell you which one we would put on our own house. Our preference is Owens Corning. That is not brand loyalty, it is one specific thing: their Duration line runs a woven fabric strip through the nailing zone, which gives the nail something to hold besides asphalt and granules and gives the crew a wide, obvious target to hit. Wind is what takes roofs off in Marion County, and wind damage almost always starts at the fastener. TAMKO is a good product too and we are happy to install it.
About one in four customers goes with the premium shingle. That is a real choice with a real difference, not a tick-box upsell, and plenty of people are right to pass on it. What does not change is everything underneath: the same underlayment, the same starter strip at the eave and rake, the same ridge cap, the same fasteners and the same nailing pattern go on whether you picked the top of the range or the value line. Those accessories are where roofs actually fail, and they are the quietest place in the industry to take money back out of a cheaper bid. We do not do that, and it is worth asking anyone else who quotes you whether they do.
Architectural (dimensional)
Laminated, two layers, varied shadow line
3-tab
Single layer, flat, uniform tabs
Which one you want: Architectural shingle, every time, on a house. The cost difference is small next to the labor and the wind performance difference is not.
What a code-correct shingle roof in Marion County includes
- ✓Full tear-off, deck inspected and re-nailed with ring-shank nails to the current pattern
- ✓Sealed underlayment system as a secondary water barrier
- ✓Metal drip edge at eaves and rakes, lapped correctly with the underlayment
- ✓Ice-and-water style self-adhered membrane in valleys and around penetrations
- ✓Starter strip with factory adhesive at every eave and rake
- ✓Six nails per shingle, in the nail zone, with the correct nail length for the deck
- ✓New pipe boots, step flashing and counter-flashing; no reused metal
- ✓Ridge vent and adequate soffit intake so the attic can breathe
- ✓Hip and ridge cap shingles made for the purpose, not cut-up field shingles
- ✕Shingle-over-shingle layovers (not permitted in Florida)
- ✕Four nails per shingle "because it is not the coast"
- ✕Stapled shingles
- ✕Caulk in place of flashing at walls and chimneys
- ✕Reusing old drip edge, boots or valley metal
- ✕Skipping the county in-progress inspection
Most of the premature shingle failures we see in Ocala trace back to one of the items in the right-hand column.
Usually goes with
Related roofing services
Roof Replacement
Tear-off to final inspection: a new roof system built to the current Florida Building Code, not just new shingles over old problems.
Roof replacement in Ocala →
Metal Roofing
Standing seam and exposed-fastener panel systems for homes, barns and shops. The longest-lived roof you can put on a Florida house.
Metal roofing in Ocala →
Roof Repair
Leaks found and fixed at the source. If a repair is the right answer we will say so; if it is throwing money at a roof that is done, we will say that too.
Roof repair in Ocala →Questions we get asked
Shingle Roofing questions
What shingle brand do you use?
If I choose the cheaper shingle, do I get a cheaper install?
Are impact-resistant (Class 4) shingles worth it in Ocala?
Can I choose any color?
Does a new shingle roof need a permit?
Where we work
Shingle roofing across Marion County
Free estimates
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