It's not entirely clear from the photos, but the mesh is most likely a fiberglass product sold in rolls. It is intended to be put down and then roofing cement placed over it as a cure for leaks. The silver colored material is probably another leak fixing product that contains aluminum. Stop gap measures such as these do not last very long and are not a substitute for properly applied shingles and flashing. If you are not yet experiencing leaks, you will be soon as the photos show a real need for a new roof.

Is it really flat, or just not sloped? It almost looks like there's a peak in the 2nd picture.

I'm no roofing expert, but those shingles going UNDER the other product just looks very wrong.

Thanks for the responses. It is a low slope roof; so there is a pitch, but not as much as a normal roof. I didn't mean completely flat - apologize for the confusion.

Also, the shingles aren't going under the other product. They just kind of stop there.

My question - if it does need to be repaired/replaced, is it possible to put shingles on a low-slope roof? I thought you have to have different roof decking for shingles. If I go for another low-slope roof material, what should I get?

Does anyone know what the bubbles on the roof are?

Also, the shingles aren't going under the other product. They just kind of stop there.

That's good! I guess it's just a trick of perspective that made it look to me like they are going underneath.

Does anyone know what the bubbles on the roof are?

Are they bubbles (ie. hollow)? Or is it just that whatever the substance is was slopped on there heavily and when it dried it cracked into those shapes (ie. are they solid?)

I'm not sure if they are hollow - I'm afraid to press down, in case they crack and I have to repair it!

Do you know what the slope is? Some shingles can be put on as low as 3/12, but I'd use a good underlayment. There are a variety of low-slope products out there. What you use in a place like Death Valley is going to be different than what you use in Maine.

Not sure how to measure the slope, but I can take a picture from the ground to give you an idea. I'll do that.

I'm in Atlanta. What do you think would work?

If you hate math (even though the above calc is pretty simple) and if you have an iphone, you could measure the angle by just laying your phone on the roof. A 3/12 pitch is about 14 degrees.

The angle app is built into the compass app. Other smart phones might have a similar feature.

I don't want to come off like chicken little but don't alow anyone to work on that roof before you make certain FLAT ROOFS ARE THEIR ONLY BUSINESS. The area of greatest concurn with any roof is always transitions. In your case the transition from shingle to membrane make's it triple whammy. Actually the dormer and chiminey transitions require added level of expertise on shingle portion when time come's to replace it. I highly reccomend getting two opinions by flat roof pros,this isn't diy for even the best handyman on the block. You may only need serious maintinance but it's expensive. There are ugly flat roofs on every commercial building in town that will last another 10 or 20 years.

I still need to measure the pitch, but if practical, would you convert to a shingles roof?

It sure looks like shadow lines of shingles. Looks like a mesh with the white

paint like stuff you can buy for patching.

do all your bath and kitchen fans vent through the roof?

(referencing bubbles)

oh that looks bad. This blog might be helpful for you http://www.empireroofingcorporation.com/recover-repair-or-replace/ . Check for the signs of damage and replace or repair your roof. If you feel like the roof is showing signs of serious damage. Don't wait till spring to re roof.

"I still need to measure the pitch, but if practical, would you convert to a shingles roof?"

If it were mine,I would (A) Have a flat roofing specialist examine it to estimate remaining life and cost vs value of maintinance. (B) Have shingle roofing contractor do the same with remainder of house. (C) If both pros say roofs are due replacement,yes,I would do the intire house in the same material if pitch is acceptical. Replacing either roof alone make's it difficult keeping valley leak free.

I'm in agreement with tim45,it look's like shingles might of been overlaid. If that's true there is no acceptical industry standard for that and getting rid of it will be wise.

Thanks. Will have to get the roofing folks up there to have a look and report back. The shingles are pretty new - 2010.

"The shingles are pretty new - 2010."

Maybe nature will send a hail storm and your H.O. insurance will replace the whole kit & kaboodle.

Report back and tell us what's what.

Here is what I heard from the company that did the shingles roof of my house. Names have been changed or omitted to protect the innocent. ;)

First Reply:

Hi – It looks like they originally installed an EPDM rubber roof system up there and then applied a coating to it once it started to fail and cause leaks. I’m not sure on the leaks obviously, but most people would not spend $4-5 a SQ FT to apply a temporary solution for no reason whatsoever. It also appears to have been applied during the summer which is why you’re seeing bubbling in certain locations. Even though you’re not experiencing leaks, you can see on some of the zoomed in photos that some of the fiber from the rubber membrane is exposed due to aging. That’s obviously not a good thing.

How much life remaining is almost impossible to narrow down since most people are pro-active and try to fix a problem before it becomes one and other people wait until they have interior damages to repair before doing anything about the source of the leak. I can’t speak for you there.

Moving forward, we would recommend a TPO system (Thermoplastic Polyolefin) that utilizes fuse welded seems and also has energy efficient properties. This is the same type of membrane that’s used on commercial roof systems and new modern homes without roof pitch. We’re a GAF certified Master Elite TPO installer so we’re well-qualified to tackle this for you if you decide to go that route.

Let me know if you want us to have someone out and get you a quote for that.

Hope this helps. Thanks!

I then asked him what it would cost, whether a low-slope roof is better, whether a shingles roof could be put in instead, etc. Second Reply:

It’s better because there are essentially no penetrations for roof to get into even with product failure.

Most shingles cannot be installed on a low-pitch roof and even so, they will typically have issues during heavy rain.

We can usually instead a TPO system for $400-650 per 100 SQ FT depending on the area (large commercial projects will see the low end of that) and whether or not we’re adding insulation (PolyISO) board below the TPO as is common practice.

I would of course get more than one quote from a low-slope roof specialist if I go that route. What do you guys think? Anyone familiar with the TPO System? Thanks in advance. (I still haven't gone up to measure the pitch. So, shingles may or may not be an option).

"IF" the pitch turn's out suitable for shingles I would definatly go that way. Something stated above bother's me. "you can see on some of the zoomed in photos that some of the fiber from the rubber membrane is exposed due to aging. " Epdm aka rubber membrane has no fibers imbeded in it. Saying it does call's the roofer's compitency and/or straightforthness into question. Epdm and Tpo are both fine commercial systems but require specialized installers. There's a third and less expensive option that offer's an important feature. Bitumen material use's petroleum base adhisives,much like shingles do. That transition from shingle to other type material is the potential trouble spot. Get that wrong and every thing else doesn't matter. Bitumen X shingle would use convintional mineral sheet in valley. I don't know of a good way of handling shingle x membrane valley/transition. Find the pitch so you aren't going in so many directions at once.

Are there any neighboring houses with a roof with the same pitch?

If this roof isn't leaking, I wouldn't worry about it.

Finally got up on the roof with a level app on my phone. Regular shingles roof comes out at about 20 degrees. Low slope roof (with the problem) comes out between 6-8 degrees depending on where I put the phone and if there is some unevenness to the roof.

Thoughts?

3 1/2" pitch if I remember correctly is about the minimum for a shingle. 3 1/2" pitch is in the neighborhood of 12 to 14 degrees. So you would be in the no fly zone for shingles and would need to go back to some sort of sheet/rolled roofing product.

6-8 degrees is too flat for shingles and just barly ample for metal. I've already told you above what I know about flat/low slope roofing.