FAQs

One inch board sheathing or 3/4″ APA plywood provides a suitable deck material for the installation of natural slate. This material provides minimum deflection during nailing, supports the weight of the slate between rafters and provides adequate resistance to nail pull out.

The weight of nominal 3/16″ slate is 7 – 8 lbs. per square foot and nominal 1/4″ is 9 – 10 lbs. It is worth noting that the common practice of applying 3 layers of asphalt shingles, before tearing off, creates a combined total weight of 7+ lbs. As with the application of any roofing material, dead load weights for natural roofing slate should be taken into consideration at the design stage or prior to re-roofing.

Absolutely!  You can customize your roof with several colors to provide a one-of-a-kind roof. Sometimes a combination of unfading and semi-weathering slates is combined to soften the transition from color to color on the roof.

Natural roofing slates are available in several colors such as black, gray/black, gray, green, gray/green, purple, mottled purple & green and red. Some slates can be unfading, and others are semi-weathering. Perhaps you have “attic stock” available that a roofer may have left for future repairs.  Looking at the back side of the slate will provide a much better indicator as to what the original color may have looked like as it will have not been exposed to the elements over time.

Good quality natural roofing slate has been used under the harshest climatic conditions in the world and has proven performance dating back a thousand years. Poor quality roofing slate yields a limited life expectancy under moderate conditions and therefor its use should be restricted to milder climates with very careful evaluation of precipitation and freeze thaw cycles.

We maintain a database of qualified North American roofing contractors who have the necessary skills and experience to install your roof. With some basic information regarding your roofing requirements, we can recommend the contractors that are most capable and interested in your type of project.

The life expectancy of a slate roof will depend on climatic conditions, roof pitch and slate quality. Climatic conditions and roof pitch are variable, however, ASTM International’s C406 Standard Specification for Roofing Slate establishes expected service life for grades of slate as S1 over 75 years, S2 40-75 years and S3 20-40 years..

Typically, each piece of slate is punched with two nail holes. In most cases, nails are ordered by the pound. Please CHECK OUT THIS RESOURCE which will show the pounds per square required based on the size of slate tile.

Essentially a slate roof is a stone roof! Slate roof tiles are made of metamorphic rocks which are derived from sedimentary rock of volcanic ash and clay. Created by the forces of nature over 500 million years ago, slate roofs have provided shelter to homes, churches, courthouses, universities and historic buildings for more than a thousand years. As a natural product, no two pieces of slate are the same. There will be a variation in shade, veining, texture and grain. Being a natural stone they are environmentally friendly and don’t give off volatile organic compounds (VOCs) or other pollutants.

The rule of thumb is if 20-30% of the slates are damaged, it’s better to replace the entire roof. If it’s just a few pieces, a skilled slate roofer will be able to match the existing color, size and thickness and with a copper repair hook can slide the new piece back into place.