Zimmerman, Minnesota
Straightforward Cedar Shake Roofing in Zimmerman, MN
Almost every house in Zimmerman went up after 2000, so cedar here is nearly always a choice a homeowner makes rather than a roof they inherited. The good news is that the stock suits it: steep pitches shed water fast, deep soffits give you the intake air cedar needs, and the long ridgelines over three car garages are the part we detail carefully.
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Going from asphalt to cedar takes deck work
Most of these roofs are coming off asphalt, so the first thing we look at is the deck. Shakes have to breathe, which means interlayment felt between the courses and, over solid sheathing, a mesh or batten layer so air moves under the wood instead of sitting against it. Skip that and a Zimmerman roof with good pitch will still rot from the underside. Wind is the other item. The EF-1 that touched down near town on March 6, 2017 and ran 8.9 miles to Princeton was part of the earliest tornado outbreak on record in Minnesota, and early spring wind is what lifts hip and ridge caps first, so the caps get extra fastening. If the deck work pushes the job past what you want to spend, we will quote asphalt roofing on the same walkthrough, with both quotes side by side.
Cedar Shake Roofing in Zimmerman
What goes into a cedar roof in Zimmerman
Mesh or battens over solid sheathing
Shakes have to breathe. Over solid sheathing we install a mesh or batten layer plus interlayment felt, so water that gets under a course drains and dries instead of sitting on the deck.
Caps fastened for spring wind
Early spring storms here are real, as the March 2017 tornado that ran from near town to Princeton showed. Hip and ridge caps lift first, so they get the fastening that exposure calls for.
Deep soffits used for intake
These houses came with generous soffits, which is a gift for a cedar roof. We open the intake, clear the baffles and balance it against ridge exhaust so the deck dries from below.
Fasteners cedar will not corrode
Cedar tannins corrode cheap fasteners and streak the field where they bleed. We use stainless on shakes, because the alternative shows up as black lines down a roof you chose for looks.
Long ridgelines that stay straight
The ridge over an attached three car garage runs a long way, and any wander in the coursing shows from the street. We snap and check lines as the courses climb.
Garage roof tied into the house
Where the garage roof dies into a wall is where these homes leak. That transition gets step flashing and counterflashing, not a bead of sealant, and the shakes get cut to fit around it.
What to expect from our crew
We start in the attic
Cedar fails from the underside first. Before quoting we look at insulation depth, baffles and exhaust, because a roof that cannot dry from below will not last no matter what goes on top.
Quotes break out the deck work
Switching from asphalt to shakes usually means work on the deck. That part is listed separately, so you can see what is roof and what is preparation.
Access planned on wooded lots
Long driveways, trees close to the house and soft gravel shoulders change where a truck can sit. We sort that out on the estimate visit rather than on delivery day.
Family run, faith based
Those two words decide the small calls nobody writes into a contract. The extra piece of flashing, the board that should be swapped rather than covered, the hour spent straightening a ridge line that was already close enough.
Free estimates, and the reasoning with them
Estimates cost nothing and come with the why: what we would do on your roof, what we would skip, and what we would keep an eye on over the next few winters.
What people near Zimmerman say
We live in Eden Prairie. Orange did an excellent job on our siding replacement and provided great customer service all the way through.
Thomas DeSutterSiding replacement, Eden Prairie, MN Fantastic guys to work with, did an excellent job of fixing our siding. You can tell it’s a high integrity company. Definitely recommend.
Carolyn MillerSiding repair The crew arrived early and spread tarps all around the house to capture every bit of debris. By 3:00 PM, my entire roof was completely finished.
Hazel JamesRoof replacement, Minneapolis, MN
Switching to shakes, answered
What people in Zimmerman ask us about this work. If yours is not covered, call and ask.
Can I switch my Zimmerman house from asphalt shingles to cedar shakes?
Yes, and most cedar jobs in town are exactly that, since the housing here mostly postdates 2000. The shingles and underlayment come off, the deck gets inspected, and we add the ventilation layer that shakes need over solid sheathing. Plan on that layer, because it is the part homeowners do not expect to hear about.
Will cedar hold up to the wind we get around Zimmerman in spring?
With the right fastening, yes. The failures we see are caps and rakes lifting, not whole fields blowing off. The EF-1 that tracked from near town to Princeton in March 2017 is a reminder that wind here arrives before anyone is thinking about roofs. Heavier grade, tighter exposure and more fasteners at the edges is the answer.
Does living next to the Sand Dunes State Forest hurt a cedar roof?
Only if the trees are on your own lot. Woods three miles west do not shade your roof. Oaks hanging over the garage do. What the surrounding forest land does mean is more needle and leaf litter blowing in, so valleys and gutters need clearing more often than they would in an open subdivision.
Ask what cedar would take on your house
Tell us the address and we will look at the pitch, the soffits and the deck, then give you a free estimate covering the shakes and the preparation both.
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Tell us what is going on with your roof, siding, windows, or gutters. We will take a look and give you a straight answer, including when the answer is that you can wait.
- Phone(612) 600-8529
- Emailadmin@orange-exteriors.com
- Office6600 City West Pkwy Suite 375, Eden Prairie, MN 55344
- HoursOpen 24 hours, Sunday to Saturday
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