Nails Or Staples For Roofing Shingles

The international building code requires that roofing nails have a minimum 12 gauge shank and a 3 8 inch diameter head.

Nails or staples for roofing shingles.

When properly installed a staple grabs and holds more material than the small head nail could ever hope to. Breaking it down further you ll typically use four fasteners per 3 tab shingle. As we state in our companion article asphalt shingle installation best practices the preferred fastener is galvanized roofing nails with a minimum 12 gauge shank and head diameter of at least 3 8 inch. In the past roofers preferred staple guns for attaching shingles to roof sheeting.

Roofing nails staples. Galvanized roofing nails tend to resist rust formation and they are a suitable option for asphalt shingles. For one staples cost less than nails adding to their profit per roof. Staples also offered excellent holding strength and could be installed over a larger roof area quickly.

However always consult your local building authority for exact code requirements. The installation manual for the cssb says that staples for attaching sidewall shingles must be stainless steel. 5 8 staples which penetrate only 1 4 can pull out with as little as 1 lb. Of force per staple.

Although staples are allowed in some jurisdictions they do not provide the same holding power. 3 4 staples pull out with 5 10 lbs. Owens corning requires using either galvanized steel stainless steel or aluminum nails to affix shingles. They are an accepted fastener by shingle manufacturers such as sbc and maibec.