Roofing materials are some of the most at-risk components to any building envelope, due to how they are more exposed to the elements than any other component. They are used to shield the rest of the property from rain and slow, so it is little wonder that the first thing to go is the shield.
This reality is one reason among many others that the most important function of any roofing system is that some of the components can be easily replaced. Roof tiles and shingles are among the most common and appropriate materials to use thanks to this assessment. They are essentially a form of built-in obsolescence.
Because these products, both wooden shingles and stone and metal tiles, are guaranteed to at some point break down and need to be replaced, it is important that they can be cheaply and easily replaced. This requirement presents itself in two ways; cheap and easily acquired materials and cheap and easy labour for it too.
Replacing roof shingles and tiles is a time-consuming but fairly low-level skill. It is time-consuming because, in order to replace a single broken shingle, you will often have to remove many more until you’ve got the space to reassemble the layout of the shingles. It is low level because all you’re really doing is adding and removing panels. There is an element of danger involved, and every year roofers will experience a large number of workplace injuries.