Roof replacement on a Twin Cities home starts with a full tear-off down to the roof deck, because an overlay hides rot you cannot see from the ground.
We inspect every sheet of plywood or OSB sheathing and replace any softened decking before we build the substrate back up with synthetic underlayment instead of old roofing felt or tar paper.
Heavy snowfall and ice dams push meltwater sideways under the shingles, so we run a self-adhered ice-and-water shield along every eave, rake, and valley. That shield bonds with a low-temperature adhesive that stays tacky in cold weather.
- Architectural shingles carry a thicker mat and a longer warranty than three-tab shingles, which is why they handle hail better.
- A self-adhered ice-and-water shield seals the eaves and valleys where ice dams back water up under the field course.
- Synthetic underlayment replaces roofing felt as the secondary barrier across the whole roof deck.
- Drip edge protects the fascia and soffit so water leaves the roofline instead of wicking into the trim.
- Ridge vents and soffit vents work together to pull attic heat and moisture up and out at the ridge.
- Step flashing, counter-flashing, and chimney flashing get replaced rather than reused, because old metal is where most leaks start.
- A pipe boot or vent boot cracks under UV exposure, so we swap it while the deck is open.
- Ridge cap shingles finish the hip and ridge lines and tie the field courses together.
Not every home wears the same system. Flat and low-slope sections need a membrane: TPO, EPDM, or PVC membrane on newer work, and often a built-up roof or modified bitumen we re-cover with torch application and mastic.
A finish coating buys a sound membrane a few more seasons before it has to go.
Wood shake and cedar shake can be maintained for a while, but they dry, split, and spall with age. Metal panel, standing-seam panel, and corrugated panel shed snow well when pitch and snow guards are set correctly.
Concrete tile, clay tile, and slate are heavy, so we check the truss, rafter, and joist framing and the ridge beam before we quote. A purlin, batten, or counterbatten system sometimes needs sistering first.
Failing roofs announce themselves. Granule loss in the gutter, curling shingles, and a sagging roofline all point to end-of-life wear, and rapid freeze-thaw cycles peel caulk until water wicks into the deck.
- Granule loss collecting in the gutter and downspout means the asphalt is eroding off the shingle surface.
- Shingles that curl, buckle, or flake at the edges follow a hard season of ice dam damage and late-spring hail.
- Dark stains on the soffit or a swollen fascia board suggest a systemic leak already rotting the deck.
- Popped nails or backed-out screws above a chimney usually mean the deck beneath is moving.
- Ponding water on a flat section means the membrane has settled and no longer drains.
- Stains on a dormer ceiling near a skylight usually trace back to boot flashing or apron flashing.
Here is what happens next, in order. You get a free estimate before any material is ordered, and you know the schedule before the dumpster lands in the driveway.
- A roof inspection and roof estimate come first; we walk the roof, check the deck, and put the scope in writing at no cost.
- Tear-off day brings a dumpster, tarps over the landscaping, and material staged on the rooftop in staggered courses.
- Deck repair means cutting out rotted sheathing, fitting matched OSB or plywood, and re-nailing to building code.
- Waterproofing runs ice-and-water shield at the eaves and valleys, then synthetic underlayment across the field.
- Install covers drip edge, starter course, field course, ring-shank nails set with a nail gun, ridge cap, and ridge vents.
- Detail work handles step flashing, counter-flashing, chimney flashing, pipe flashing, pipe boot, vent boot, and fresh sealant or caulk.
- Cleanup leaves a magnet sweep for fasteners, haul-away of all debris, and a walkthrough with you before we pack up.
Every roofer on the crew is tied off on a steep pitch, and the roof anchor and safety harness are not optional. A pry bar, a roofing shovel, and a roofing square handle demolition while an air compressor runs the nail gun.
Crews work from ladders and scaffold, not from the gutter line.
We stay on the small parts too. A vapor barrier, an attic fan, and balanced ventilation keep moisture off the deck, and a snow guard above a walkway, canopy, awning, or overhang stops sliding ice before it lands.
On a parapet or low wall, a scupper and coping move water away from the edge. Mansard and gambrel rooflines, dormers, and hip and gable ends each get their own detail work at the verge and ridge.
Cost tracks complexity more than square footage alone. A short roof estimate conversation covers the variables that actually move the number.
- A simple gable roof with one layer of asphalt shingle is the cheapest to tear off and rebuild.
- Steep pitch, multiple valleys, and a second layer of tear-off add labor hours to the estimate.
- Rotted decking or failed sheathing gets billed per sheet once we open the roof and see it.
- Chimney, skylight, and dormer flashing add detail work that takes time to do correctly.
- Upgrading to metal panel or standing-seam panel changes the material cost, not the labor pattern.
When a repair will buy you several seasons, we say so instead of quoting a replacement. Call Minneapolis Roof Pros at 612-979-0693 for a free estimate; we are licensed and insured, and a roofing contractor on our team will walk the roof with you.
