Asphalt roof shingles are the most used residential roofing material in the United States. For inexperienced homeowners, it might be surprising to know that shingles are not made of only asphalt. These shingles can be made from a variety of raw materials like pine and red cedar. To make these shingles more durable and fire-resistant, they are treated with special chemicals during the manufacturing process.
To achieve optimum durability and longevity for these modern shingles, they must be installed over a specific layer. Aluminum roof shingles have a longer lifespan, but they come at a higher cost. That’s why approximately 90% of homeowners in the U.S. opt for asphalt roofing shingles due to their low maintenance cost, affordable price, and ease of installation.
If you’re looking for resilient and long-lasting shingles for your roof, our experienced and qualified roofers can offer you the best solution to suit your needs and budget precisely.
Asphalt shingles: An Overview of the Production Process
The production of asphalt roofing shingles uses a roofing machine to combine various materials. Both roll roofing and shingles roofing can be produced using this machine by adding the necessary components one at a time.
1. Looping Phase
The organic fiberglass, wounded on a reel, is fed through the roofing machine. The initial product is processed in a dry chamber. When the current roll runs out and a new roll is inserted, the mating material is stacked in the chamber, enabling the roofing machine to keep operating continuously.
2. Asphalt Saturation Phase
The material is pre-treated with the hot asphalt to remove all traces of liquid or moisture in it. This is done by spraying hot asphalt on one side of the product, which pushes out any form of moisture. After this process, the mixture is placed in a chamber filled with hot asphalt. The organic mat is soaked in hot asphalt to fill in any gaps and cover the fibers.
3. Wet Looping
The mat is folded again. And as the cover cools, it is soaked in the felt, increasing the level of saturation even further.
4. Coating
The mat is coated with asphalt on both sides with a balanced mixture of powdered materials. It passes through two reels that are positioned at a fixed distance from each other to ensure proper coverage. If the coating is sufficient, this wet looping or saturation phase may be skipped, as the existing spaces and fibers would be already covered.
5. The Minerals Surfacing
The covered mat has ceramic fragments of any chosen color on its top surface and a coating of particles on its rear side. The mat goes through several stages to properly fix the ceramic fragments and cool them down at the same time.
6. Finishing Phase
The finished shingles are then placed in a cooling chamber to solidify them and make them more durable. This process makes the material resilient enough to withstand harsh weather conditions thanks to its hardened surface.
7. Shingle Cutting
The shingle sheet is cut into the desired shape and size using a cutting machine. The machine first splits the sheet into smaller bundles before cutting them from the rear part. The resulting pieces are then put together to form the final product.
8. Shingle Packaging
The resulting bundles of asphalt roofing shingles are transported to the warehouse for wrapping and labeling.
9. Quality Assurance
In order to ensure that the asphalt roof shingles meet the strict standards set by the manufacturer, some roofing shingles from each batch will be sent to the laboratory for thorough testing.
10. Recycling Byproducts
At Alpha Roofing, we aim to recycle as much waste byproducts and off-cuts as possible by incorporating them back into the production process.
Get In Touch with the Leading Asphalt Shingle Roofing Experts
Give Alpha Roofing a call at 318-373-5942. Our expert team is ready to serve you with the best professional attitude and expertise. We service areas in Bossier City and Shreveport, LA.