How Long Does a Roof Last in Connecticut?

By material

When the sources disagree, it is usually because one is describing a typical roof and the other a roof that was designed, installed and maintained well. The gap between those two is the whole point of this page.

What the Connecticut climate does to a roof

Freeze and thaw

The whole state is in climate zone 5A, with a 7°F winter design temperature. Water that gets into a crack, a nail hole or the edge of a shingle freezes, expands and opens it a little wider, and it does that many times a winter. Every one of our town pages lists that town’s own weather record.

Ice dams

Heat escaping into the attic melts snow on the upper roof; the water refreezes at the cold eave and backs up under the shingles. Repeated winters of it rot the deck at the edges and the fascia behind the gutter. The code’s answer is the ice barrier at every eave (IRC R905.1.2). See ice dams.

Snow load

Ground snow loads across Connecticut run from 30 to 40 pounds per square foot depending on the town. A roof carries that weight for weeks at a time.

Wind

Design wind speeds run from 115 to 129 mph across the state, higher along the shore. Wind lifts shingle edges, and an edge that has been lifted once never seals as well again.

Trees and shade

A roof under oaks and maples stays damp, collects debris in its valleys and grows moss, and a branch over the roof scrapes the granules off every time it moves.

The biggest factor is under the roof

More roofs in Connecticut die early from a hot, damp attic than from anything that happens on top. In summer an unventilated attic cooks the shingles from underneath; in winter it feeds ice dams and condensation that rots the deck. Connecticut’s code requires vented attics to have cross ventilation, with net free vent area of at least 1/150 of the vented space (R806.1), and insulation must never block the eave vents (R806.3). A new roof on an attic that cannot breathe will not get anywhere near the lifespan in the chart above.

How to make a roof last

• Fix the attic — ventilation and insulation — before or with the roof.
• Keep the gutters clear so water runs off rather than backing up at the eave. See gutters.
• Cut back overhanging branches.
• Fix small problems early. A lifted shingle or a cracked vent boot is a small repair this year and a rotted deck in three. See roof repair.
• Look after a storm. From the ground or a window, never from the roof. See storm damage.
• Get it looked at every few years and after any major storm. See roof inspection.

Roof age when you sell, and when you insure

A roof’s age matters beyond the roof. When you sell, the buyer’s home inspector will estimate how much life it has left, and a roof near the end of its life becomes part of the negotiation — often for more than a replacement would have cost. When you insure, an older roof can be valued for depreciation in a claim, which on some policies means the payout is based on what the roof was worth rather than what replacing it costs. See roof insurance claims. If you are planning to sell in the next few years, it is worth knowing where your roof stands before a buyer’s inspector tells you.

How to tell yours is near the end

Curling or cracked shingles across the whole roof, bald patches where the granules have gone, granules collecting in the gutters, more than one leak, a soft or sagging deck, or daylight in the attic. Our roof inspection page covers the signs in detail, and an inspection from us is free.

Common questions about how long roofs last