The average age of a house in the United States is around 37 years old. 

A lot goes into building a house, and one of the most important parts of a house is the roof. It protects everything underneath it, from valuables to structural integrity. If a house averages 37 years old, what is the average lifespan of a roof?

What can you do to prolong the life of your roof, and how long can you expect it to last? 

Average Lifespan of Roof Materials

The average lifespan of roof materials is all different. In general, there are three types of roofs that are most common throughout the United States. Each one of them has different strengths and weaknesses: 

• Wood shake
• Cement fiber
• Asphalt shingles

Wood shake roofs are wonderful to look at and last a long time. Homeowners who have a wood shingle roof can expect a roof lifespan of around 30 years. They will have to commit to having regular roof maintenance done, but in the end, they will have a beautiful roof that stands up to the weather and environment. 

Cement fiber roofs often last around 25 years, but they require very little roof care. You can expect that between the installation and roof replacement they will be the easiest roof to keep looking nice. 

Asphalt shingles are by far the most common type of roof in existence today. The number of homes that have asphalt shingled roofs is a sizable majority. They are susceptible to damage from weather and wind, but in general, you can expect a roof to last around 20 years. 

Maintenance and Care

A roof is only as good as the maintenance and care that is given. Wood shake and asphalt shingle roofs need to have sections replaced as they become damaged over time. This is often the result of bad weather or severe storms causing damage with hail and high winds. 

You can check by looking at the ground around the house after a storm. If you see a lot of shingles, then you know that they’ve been blowing off. You can also look for deformations in the slope of the roof, as well as basic maintenance items like checking the gutters. 

Taking care of the gutters and replacing broken shingles won’t solve all your problems, but it will make sure that your roof manages to last towards the longer end of average. It will also reduce the amount of money that you have to spend on repeated repairs. 

If you want professional help in repairing or replacing your roof, visit mscroofsystems.com.

The Lifespan of Your Roof 

If you know what your roof is made out of, then it isn’t hard to figure out how long it will last. As long as you take special care to ensure that all standard roof maintenance is done, the average lifespan of roof materials and the roof itself won’t be a problem, yours will last far longer. 

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