Wood Roof Replacement in Omaha, NE and the surrounding area

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Wood roofs are undoubtedly beautiful and have been a popular option throughout Omaha and beyond. Many of Omaha’s most prestigious neighborhoods feature homes with wood shingle roofs. Given the average wood shingle/shake roof lasts between 20-30 years, however, many of these homes are due for a new roof. To help facilitate this transition for homeowners in need of a new roof, we have developed the Emerald Roofing Wood Roof Replacement Program. To learn more about the program, please call our office anytime at 402-581-7222

We have performed hundreds of wood roof replacements. In the overwhelming majority of these projects, the homeowner chose to replace their wood roof system with a different type of covering.

Below are the top 4 reasons we hear as to why homeowners decide to move away from wood roofs.

1. Insurance Cost / Difficulties

Insurance companies are becoming increasingly wary of covering homes with wood shingles. We’ve heard from homeowners that have been dropped from their insurance, simply because they have a wood shingle roof. Many major insurance companies won’t write new policies for homes with wood roofs. If they do, they have a very high deductible, or they have a limited payout for a roof claim.

2. Increased Risk of Fire

Roof coverings are rated in the building code as Class A, B, or C. Class A roofs (like asphalt composite and others) offer the best resistance to fire. If a roof covering can’t meet even the lowest of requirements, it is listed as “unrated”. An untreated wood roof is “unrated”. Most roofing experts do not recommend “treating” wood roofs, as the fire-retardant chemicals can cause serious wood degradation.

3. Maintenance Requirements

Both wood shingle roofs and their asphalt or composite counterparts can last on average about 30 years. However, unlike the asphalt or composite options, a wood roof requires significant maintenance to fully extend its life. Wood shingle roofs are particularly susceptible to lingering debris, and often require frequent application of preservative treatments.

4. Insects & Mold

Ever wonder why you see more silverfish on a top floor than in a basement? It’s no coincidence: silverfish are drawn to wood roofs! While they don’t pose any health risk, they do love to damage things like fabric and books. They choose wood roofs as their home because of the moisture, and the fungal molds that commonly grow on wood roofs are a great insect food source.

What are the alternatives?

When considering the type of material you may use instead of wood on your roof, there are some considerations that eliminate some options right from the beginning. For starters, homes typically have wood roofs because the builder paid a lot of attention to architectural detail. You don’t typically see wood roofs on mass-produced, entry-level homes. As such, replacing a wood roof with a basic 3-tab shingle would be doing a tremendous disservice to the exterior of your home. In fact, many homeowners (and their neighborhood HOAs – more on that on the next tab) decide not to deviate too far outside of their current wood-style look, to stay consistent with the original exterior design.

Fortunately, there are a variety of materials that can be used to give that same wood-style appearance, that offer other practical benefits as well. The cards below depicts some of the choices we offer, across what we call our standard, premium, and luxury categories.

Standard materials

While we are using the word “standard”, rest assured there is nothing inferior about these products. All of the materials we use are architectural grade, made by industry-leading manufacturers, and come with a minimum 30 year warranty. Our standard options are asphalt shingles by CertainTeed, GAF, and Tamko which, if selected in the weathered wood (or similar) color, can give an appearance suggestive of a wood roof.

Premium materials

Our premium shingles are made of the same high-quality asphalt by the same manufacturers as the standard shingles, but the design offers a little more pizzazz. The intricate design of these shingles is a much stronger replication of wood shake.

For many neighborhoods with HOA covenants, these premium options are the point of entry if an asphalt shingle is desired.

Luxury materials

In our luxury category, we move away from asphalt, and introduce products made by CeDUR, DaVinci and Ply Gem. These engineered shakes are comprised of synthetic materials that allow for the most realistic wood appearance. They carry the highest price point of the options available, but the benefits are undeniable: long lasting, natural appearance, impact resistant, and fire rated, with very little maintenance required.

What Our Customers Say

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"Bill and his crew have been so great!! Helped us with any issues we have ever had with our roof, without hesitation and always timely. Emerald Roofing is our go-to company!! 5 Stars!"

- John C.