When the old covering is done and a new one is next
Roof replacement for Harrison-area homes
On a Harrison two-family, replacement means the old covering comes off down to the deck and a new one goes on. Next step: call (862) 418-5296 and give the roof's age, the shape of the house and the spots that keep leaking.
Back away and get help if
- A ceiling swollen with water: send everyone out of the room under it, then dial 911.
- Sparks, a buzz or drips at a ceiling fixture: leave that space, and dial 911 from the hallway or the yard.
- After wind, a wire on the lawn or draped over the roof edge: stay clear, treat it as live and dial 911.
- Roofing peeling off in strong wind: stay inside, away from the top-floor windows, and do not go out to watch.
What comes off, what stays and what goes on
A full replacement strips the roof down to the deck, the plywood or boards under everything else. The deck gets a look before anything new goes on. Then come underlayment, metal flashing at walls, chimneys and valleys, and last the new covering.
In FEMA's guidance for shingle roofing where winds run high, the details worth listening for in a roofer's description are underlayment beneath the shingles, roofing nails in place of staples, six nails per shingle along the eaves, and careful flashing where a roof runs into a wall.
Around Harrison and next door
The Census Bureau's median year built for a Harrison home is 1990, which hides a split. The same 2024 survey counts 2,007 homes from 1939 or earlier and 3,140 from 2010 to 2019, each estimate give or take about 400. A roof's age depends on which side of that split the house sits.
Kearny runs older. The survey puts its median home at 1951 (a margin of 3 years), and 5,873 of its 15,367 homes, more than a third, went up in 1939 or earlier.
A tear-off is loud and drops debris. On a two- or three-family house, that reaches every household under the roof, tenants included.
Mild months and the forecast
Newark Airport's 1991-2020 normals put October at a 57.5-degree average, with a daily high of 66 and a low of 49, and 3.79 inches of precipitation for the month. Mild, but the forecast matters more than the calendar.
A roof with the old covering off sits open to rain until the underlayment is down. Ask the roofer how the days will be sequenced if the forecast turns.
What to look at with feet on the ground
Everything here can be done from the ground or through a window. A job that needs a ladder belongs to the roofer.
- Count the patches from across the street, noting stretches that differ in shade or age from their surroundings. A Department of Energy brief passes on a builders' guideline that sets the tipping point at a tenth of the roof; past that, replacement is the advice.
- Find the grit. Gray granules in the gutters or at the mouth of a downspout mean the shingle surface is wearing away.
- On a bright afternoon, open the attic hatch and switch the lights off. Any spot of daylight through the roof boards is a gap, and each one is worth a photo.
- Dig up the paper trail: an old invoice, a photo of the last reroof, a date on a receipt. The year the roof went on matters to any roofer asking about its history.
How the state treats a whole new roof
For detached one- and two-family houses, New Jersey's Department of Community Affairs treats replacing any amount of existing roof covering, total replacement included, as ordinary maintenance. That skips the state permit process. It does not waive the code's standards.
The same alert does not address attached homes, so row houses call the town office. Checking a contractor lists the four offices and the contract basics.
Ready to describe the roof?
Ready for the call: the street address, where the damage shows and a guess at the roof's age. Dial (862) 418-5296. Renters: the dated photo goes to your landlord or property manager at the outset. Covered: Harrison, Kearny, East Newark and Newark.
Call (862) 418-5296