What is Panelized Roofing? A DIY Guide

Installing individual shakes or shingles can take three to five times as long as installing asphalt fiberglass-based shingles.  Two alternative materials are available, however, that can speed up installation.  Shakertown's cedar shingles and shakes are bonded with waterproof adhesives to form three ply, 8 foot long panels.  The panels do not need sheathing and can be nailed directly to studs.  Shakertown two-ply panels can be applied to sheathing or to furring strips.  A self-aligning feature and the need for only two nails per panel per rafter speeds the work, and no straight edge or gauges are needed.

Another product that speeds installation is Masonite's fiberboard-panel roofing product, Woodruf, which is manufactured from highly compressed wood fibers.  Woodruf comes in 12-48inch panels that are 50 perfect more dense than natural wood and resemble wood shakes when installed.  It takes 32 to 36 Woodruf panels to cover 100 square feet.  If left uncoated, these panels weather to a natural gray cedar color in most cases.  This is a popular home in places like Greenwich and along the coast in Los Altos.