Roof Repair in Washington, NJ

Roofing in Washington, Warren County

Washington Borough sits southwest of Hackettstown along Route 31 and Route 57, surrounded by Washington Township. In the 1800s it was known well beyond New Jersey as a center of organ and piano manufacturing, and its downtown and the streets around it still have plenty of homes from that era: Victorians, Italianates, foursquares and early 1900s houses, many with steep roofs, porches and brick chimneys. Out in the township, the housing is a mix of farmhouses, post-war homes and newer developments.

Older homes, older roofs

Homes that are a century old or more bring roof issues you don't see on newer houses:

• Complicated roof lines with dormers, gables, bays and porches - lots of valleys and flashing
• Several old layers of shingles that need a full tear-off
• Plank decking instead of plywood, sometimes needing new sheathing before shingles go on - which makes it permit work in New Jersey
• Brick chimneys, often several per house, with worn mortar and patched flashing
• Slate on some houses, porches and bays - often worth repairing. See slate roof repair.
• Box gutters built into the cornice on some older homes, which leak into the walls when their lining fails

Our blog post on roofing the area's older homes covers these in detail.

Porch roofs

Many older Washington homes have wide front porches with low-slope roofs. Those roofs often leak where they meet the house wall, and low slopes need different materials from the main roof - shingles on a roof that's too flat will leak. A roofer can tell you whether the porch needs a membrane, metal or properly installed shingles.

Snow, ice and chimneys

With 30-plus inches of snow in a typical Warren County winter, chimneys take a beating. Snow piles up on the uphill side and slowly melts against the brick. Without a cricket to divert it, and with tired flashing, that's a recipe for a leak. See chimney flashing repair.

Common roofing calls in Washington

• Chimney and valley leaks on older homes
• Slate repairs and flashing replacement
• Full replacement with tear-off on homes with multiple layers
• Ice dam damage in winter
• Porch roof leaks
• Inspections for buyers of older homes

Buying an older home in Washington?

The roof is one of the biggest unknowns on an older house. Ask how many layers are on it, how old the newest layer is, whether there's slate anywhere, and what the chimneys look like. A roofer's inspection gives you a much clearer picture than a quick look from the ground.

Flat roofs on Main Street buildings

Along Washington's downtown streets, many older commercial and mixed-use buildings - shops below, apartments above - have flat or nearly flat roofs behind parapet walls. Those roofs collect snow and can't shed it, drains and scuppers clog with leaves, and the joints where the roof meets the parapet are frequent leak points. If you own one of these buildings, have drains cleared before winter and the parapet flashing checked regularly. Work on multi-family and commercial buildings generally needs a permit in New Jersey.

Before you hire

Ask any roofer for their New Jersey Home Improvement Contractor registration number, a written contract with the full scope of work, and how they'll handle rotted boards if they find them. For older homes, ask about their experience with slate, chimneys and complex roof lines.

When to call

If you have a leak, storm damage or a roof that's due, call to reach a local roofer who serves Washington, Hackettstown and the surrounding area.