You’re busy with work, keeping your home operating, and running the kids to school and extracurriculars. When you discover that you need a roof replacement, the first thing you wonder might be how long does it take to replace a roof?
Thankfully, most roof replacements on average-size homes can be completed in as little as one day!
If you are looking into getting a full roof replacement, don’t hesitate to contact the professionals.
In the meantime, here’s what you can expect from the process and about how long you can expect it to take—as well as the different factors that can increase how long it takes to replace a roof. To feel fully prepared for your upcoming roof replacement, check out this helpful timeline of what to expect during the roof replacement process.
How Long Does It Take To Replace A Roof?
Even though you can trust certain professional roofers like Monarch Roofing to act fast in emergencies, you still need to allow time for communication and inspections. The administrative aspect of roof replacements will add some additional time to the overall process. You can expect to follow these three steps:
- Getting an estimate
- Scheduling a service date
- Installation day
1. Initial Estimate: A Couple of Days to a Few Weeks
If you’ve never had roofing service done before, or if you had a bad experience with a previous contractor and are looking for a new one, it can be a good idea to get estimates from multiple companies. This will help you get a well-rounded idea of how the roofing company handles communication and customer service, in addition to their price.
You will likely spend a week or two reaching out to a few different roofing companies and scheduling estimates. As long as roofers aren’t experiencing an extremely high load of customers at the time, they should be able to send someone out within a few days to perform a roof inspection. Once the inspection is complete, each company should promptly send you an estimate for the roof replacement.
2. Scheduling Service: A Few Days Out
Once you make a decision on which roofing contractor you want to hire, you can reach out to that company to schedule the replacement. It’s unlikely that the roofing team will be able to arrive at your house the same day unless you have an urgent need like emergency tarping after a storm.
Depending on your schedule and the availability of the roofing company, you will probably schedule the replacement for a few days out. Try to avoid scheduling too far in advance (ie- many weeks) so that your roofing team has an idea of the weather forecast.
3. Installation Day: Usually One Day
When installation day arrives, you can expect that the work will be completed in as little as one day if you have an average size residence (3,000 square feet or less). Many steps will be completed on installation day, including:
- Home preparation: Covering siding and any nearby landscaping, bringing dumpsters on-site
- Removing shingles: Removing and disposing of the old materials
- Inspecting the plywood: Before laying a new roof, contractors check the condition of the plywood and make any needed repairs
- Preparing the roof: Installing drip edge, ice & water protection, and applying roofing felt/tar paper
- Shingle installation: Shingles (or other materials) get attached after all prep work is completed
- Cleanup: The roofing team will clean up all materials and debris
Additional Factors That Can Affect the Timeline
Even though most roofs can be replaced in one day, there are certain factors that can increase that time to 2 to 5 days. These factors include:
The Roofing Materials You Choose
The most common roofing material for homeowners is asphalt shingles. If you will be working with asphalt shingles, that’s when you can expect a one-day installation. However, other roofing materials may take a bit longer to replace and install.
- Metal roofing: 1 to 3 days
- Cedar shakes: 3 to 4 days
- Slate tiles: 6 to 7 days
- Concrete tiles: 8 to 9 days
The Size of Your Home
The numbers given so far have been for average-size homes that are 3,000 square feet or less. If your home or business is much larger than 3,000 square feet, you can expect to add more days to the replacement process. Conversely, if your home is much smaller, say 900 square feet, then you can expect materials that normally take many days to be completed much faster.
The Accessibility of Your Roof
How easy or difficult it is for your roofing contractor to access your roof will affect installation time. Access is required to tear off the old roof, get the old materials to the dumpster, and bring the new materials back up to the roof. Certain details can make a roof more difficult to access, such as:
- Rows of bushes around your home
- No paved surface near the roof access point
- A fence
- Tree branches that hang directly over the roof
Complex Slopes on Your Roof
Some roofs are pretty straightforward, while others feature complex angles, valleys, facets, and steep slopes. The more complex roof design you have, the longer it will take to replace. Part of this is because roofers have to take extra safety precautions the further they go off the ground.
Weather Conditions Day-Of
Roof replacements require ideal weather conditions so that you don’t end up with a massive leak. Roofs can’t be replaced in the rain, snow, or freezing temperatures. Dangerously hot temperatures should also be avoided.
If there is rain in the forecast on the day of your scheduled installation, it will need to be rescheduled. Unfortunately, in some climates, this may mean pushing your roof replacement out by a week or two to avoid inclement weather.
Since weather plays such a huge part in roof replacements, most roofers ramp up service in the spring and summer seasons and slow down in the winter months.
Ensure an Efficient Roof Installation
Since asking, “how long does it take to replace a roof” and reading through our assessment, you may have done the math on how big your roof is, what materials you want installed, or when you want your new look finished. But don’t be disheartened because partnering with a licensed, insured, and highly-skilled roofing company will always make the process 10x smoother.
Even though your roof replacement can be impacted by many factors outside of the contractor’s control, most projects should move forward with respect for your time and schedule. At Monarch Roofing, we strive to always offer the most professional roofing experience you can find.
From when you first reach out to schedule an inspection to the clean-up after the project is done, we go above and beyond to provide a well-rounded customer experience.
We offer free estimates for roof replacements—contact us today to get started!
