Homeowners have been using roofs with asphalt shingles for longer than they have been investing in tile roofs. For that reason, some homeowners pose this question, when speaking with a roofer: How long does a tile roof last?

A demonstrated fact about tile roofing:

After installation, there are normally no leaks for 25 to 30 years. Roofers can account for the roof’s longer lifetime. That statement assumes that the homeowner has not hesitated to invest in the measures that have been designed to prolong the lifetime of any roof, including one that contains tiles.

What can cause a leak in a tile roof?

Each of the tiles has been given an asphalt-based, felt underlayment. The tile’s presence cannot do-away with the effects of the sun’s heat. Over time, the asphalt can get baked out of the felt. Nothing stops rain water from falling on the tiles. Consequently, any water that has made its way under one of the tiles could easily slide through a crack in the felt. The material sunder that felt were not designed to withstand the effects of water.

Some tiles slip and expose the underlayment that supports them. That allows the sun’s rays to reach the exposed felt. As a result, the exposed material responds to the effects of the sun’s rays. In other words, those rays burn the felt, and, thereby, expose the rooftop’s plywood structure. How quickly could such a series of events take place? Roofing Contractor in San Mateo is of the view that in the absence of adequate maintenance, a tile roof could start to leak within 5 years of its initial installation.

How to detect leaks early in their formation?

Arrange for the roof’s inspection at least twice a year. If you do not want to pay a professional, then carry out the following steps.

Study the roof from the ground. Look for debris in the gutters; focus on debris that contains man-made materials.

Check the roof’s valleys; see if any one of them contains lots of debris.

Homeowners with tiles on their roof cannot overlook the need for inspections. Each such inspection can be used to check for the existence of any slipped material (tile).

Homeowners that truly want to identify a potential leak should not feel that semi-annual inspections work to guarantee the lengthening of a rooftop’s lifetime. Regardless of the material used to make it, a roof ought to be inspected after any major weather event.

A tile roof is not the only alternative to one that features asphalt shingles.

In the past, some homeowners have tried using one of the metal roofs. Because metal roofing can create a rooftop that lasts for 50 years, it has taken time for accumulation of all the homeowners’ observations.