Take It Down to the Wood and Build It Once
Holladay’s fifties and sixties ranches were built wide and low on big lots, and that adds up to a lot of roof. When yours has been kept going on patches for as long as it reasonably can, Royal Dane Roofing strips it to the decking, puts in new flashing, and lays IKO architectural shingles over wood that has been checked by hand.
A Long, Low Roof Tends to Wear Out Everywhere at Once
A ranch roof on a wide Holladay lot usually ages evenly. Every plane sits at the same easy pitch and takes the same sun, snow and hail, so no slope gets a head start on the others. That sounds fine until the whole field reaches its end in the same few seasons. Granules pile up in the gutters. Tabs on the sunniest slope turn brittle and crack underfoot. The repairs that bought a few good years stop keeping pace with whatever fails next.
None of that gets settled from the driveway. Jeremy climbs up, walks every plane, and brings the photos back down so you can go through them together at the table. If there is honest life left in the roof, that is the first thing you hear. Some owners are surprised by that. We would rather lose a reroof than sell one the house did not need.
A Holladay ranch carries more roof than its living space suggests. Spread one story across a wide lot and the shingles have to cover the whole footprint, so a reroof here is a bigger job than a two-story house with the same rooms. More roof also means more deck boards, and more chances that one of them has gone soft under decades of snow.
When replacement is the right answer, the price comes to you in writing and covers the whole roof, and it is built from what Jeremy measured on your slopes rather than a guess from the driveway. If the tear-off exposes rot that nobody could see from above, you get a call before a single board changes. And if your roof turns out to be in better shape than you feared, shingle roof repair is where the conversation goes instead.
The Uphill Side of a Wide Chimney
Wide chimneys get a close look at a reroof. A cricket, the small peaked saddle on the uphill side that turns snowmelt around the brick, is simple to add while the deck is bare and a much bigger job later.
Old chimney flashing is never reused on one of our new roofs.
A new roof on the bench also has to live with hail cells. IKO architectural shingles are thicker than the flat three-tab shingles common on older roofs, and the install matters as much as the product: nails at the right line, tabs sealed down, and no loose metal edge for a storm to catch hold of.
Your Street, Your Roof
Holladay blocks mix original ranches with newer custom rebuilds, sometimes on the lot right next door. Owners ask whether a new roof ought to match the house that just went up. Usually the better aim is a roof that suits your own home. A low ranch looks settled under a color and profile that keep its long lines quiet, and IKO’s architectural lines leave plenty of room to fit the street without copying anybody. Jeremy carries samples up so you can judge them in daylight against your brick and trim.
Other parts of the house come up during the same visit. The drip edge comes off during tear-off anyway, which makes gutter replacement easiest right now. Where a roof plane runs into a wall, siding repair handles the other side of that joint. If hail is the reason the roof is coming off, start with storm damage so your insurer is part of it from the first photo.
How the New Roof Goes On
Down to bare wood
Every old layer comes off. Decking on a house built in the fifties or sixties has spent a long life carrying snow, and the only honest way to judge it is with the shingles gone. We walk the exposed wood a board at a time. Anything soft, split or sagging gets replaced now, while it is easy to reach and before new material hides it again.
When there is more than one layer
A house built in the fifties or sixties has had plenty of time for a second roof to go on over the first. Both layers come off. Two roofs stacked on one deck carry extra weight through every snowstorm, and nobody can judge wood hidden under two sets of shingles. The layer count gets settled at the assessment, so it is already part of the written number.
Ice and water shield where a low roof needs it
Synthetic underlayment covers the full deck. Ice and water shield goes on at the eaves, up every valley and around each penetration, wherever Utah code and Utah winters call for it. A shallow ranch pitch sheds meltwater slowly, and water that refreezes at a cold eave will creep under anything less.
Shingles, ridge and airflow
IKO architectural shingles go down across the deck, then the ridge gets capped and every vent and wall line gets fresh metal. While the deck is open, Jeremy checks attic intake and exhaust together. An attic that cannot move air bakes shingles from underneath in July and helps build ice along the eaves in January.
One to three days
Most Holladay replacements take one to three days. The first day is tear-off, deck inspection and a full dry-in before the crew leaves, and it is the noisy one. What follows is quieter work as shingles, ridge and flashing go down.
Where your house lands in that range comes down mostly to square footage and how much decking needs replacing once the wood is exposed. The schedule and the written number come out of the same assessment, so you have a fair idea of the timing before the trailer backs into the driveway.
Cleanup sized for a big lot
A larger yard gives stray nails more places to hide, so the magnet goes over lawn, beds and driveway alike. Past roofs are in the gallery, the full process is on the roof replacement page, and everything else we do in town is on the Holladay page. To get on the calendar, use the contact page or call Jeremy at (801) 750-4243.
What Ranch Owners Ask Before a Reroof
Is a ranch roof really worth replacing all at once?
When the whole field is worn, yes. Low ranch roofs tend to age evenly, so spot repairs end up chasing each other around the house. If the roof shows curling and granule loss on most planes, one replacement is less trouble than a string of visits. If it does not, a repair is the better call.
How much does a new roof cost for a Holladay home?
Roof size and pitch set the starting point. The number of layers to remove, the condition of the decking, chimney flashing and ventilation work all move it from there. That is why nobody here names a figure over the phone. The free roof assessment ends with a firm written number for your roof.
Does a skylight get redone with the new roof?
It should at least get new flashing, because the old kit around the frame comes off with the shingles. Whether the skylight unit itself is replaced depends on its age and whether the glazing or seal has already failed. That question gets settled at the assessment, so it is part of the written number from the start.
What happens to a satellite dish or solar panels on the roof?
Anything bolted through the shingles has to come off for the tear-off, and every old mount leaves holes that need sealing under the new roof. A dish is the easy case. Solar panels usually need their installer or a solar electrician to remove and reset them, so mention them when you call and plan that timing early.
Should I clear out the attic before the tear-off?
It helps. Tearing off an old roof shakes the whole deck, and on older houses dust and the odd nail can sift down through gaps between the boards. Cover or move anything stored directly under the roof, and keep belongings off the attic floor near the eaves until the new roof is on.
How long will the crew be at my house?
One to three days for most homes. Day one is tear-off and dry-in, which is the loud part. Keep cars out of the driveway, stay reachable by phone, and expect a magnet sweep through the whole yard before we pack up on the last afternoon.
