What Did This Project Involve?
This was a complete shingle reroof at 2872 Motor Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90064 — a single-family residential home in the Palms neighborhood west of the 405. The homeowner’s goal was straightforward: replace an aging roof system that had outlived its useful life, and bring the structure up to current standards with a durable new shingle assembly.
The scope went deeper than a simple overlay. When our crew got on the roof, it became clear the existing structure used wood skip-sheathing — spaced horizontal boards rather than a continuous solid deck — which is common on Los Angeles homes built before the 1970s. That type of substrate is incompatible with modern asphalt shingles, which require a solid nailable surface. The entire sheathing layer had to come off before a single new shingle could go down.
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What Did We Find When We Stripped the Old Roof?
Beneath the old material, the skip-sheathing boards showed decades of weathering, surface oxidation, and accumulated debris packed into the gaps between boards. The rafter framing underneath was structurally intact, which meant we could move directly to re-decking without structural repairs — a meaningful cost and time saver for the homeowner.
With the deck fully stripped, the crew installed new OSB (oriented strand board) solid sheathing across the entire roof plane, providing a continuous, flat, nailable substrate. New drip-edge metal flashing was set along all eaves and rakes before any underlayment was laid — a sequencing detail that matters for water management at the roof’s edges.
Our crew strips skip-sheathing on roughly 3 out of every 10 reroof jobs we take in Los Angeles’s older residential neighborhoods, where pre-1970s construction with open-board decking is still widespread. On those jobs, re-decking with OSB typically adds 1 to 2 days to the overall schedule compared with a straightforward tear-and-replace on an existing solid deck.
How Was the Underlayment System Installed?
The underlayment layer used on this project was Titanium PSU30, a self-adhered synthetic high-temperature product rated for use under mechanically fastened asphalt shingles, metal, tile, slate, and composite systems. PSU30 is a step up from standard 30-lb felt: it’s lighter, more tear-resistant, and carries a high-temp rating that matters in Los Angeles, where roof-surface temperatures regularly exceed 150°F during summer heat events.
At penetrations — including a skylight curb and a plumbing vent stack — the crew applied DeckDefense self-adhering ice-and-water shield as a secondary seal before the PSU30 field underlayment was laid. This layered approach at vulnerable points is consistent with California’s Title 24 building energy standards, which set minimum performance requirements for the building envelope including roofing assemblies. The completed underlayment layer was fully watertight before the first shingle was nailed, giving the home a protected dry-in state overnight.
The Finished Roof
The completed field is gray architectural asphalt shingles, installed in a standard staggered-course pattern with proper headlap and nail placement per manufacturer specifications. The gray tone reads as a clean, neutral color against the neighborhood’s tree canopy and street-level context — a popular choice in this part of Los Angeles precisely because it doesn’t read as stark against the mature greenery common to the Palms and Cheviot Hills corridor.
Architectural (dimensional) shingles carry a typical manufacturer warranty of 30 years on the shingle material itself. Actual service life depends on ventilation quality, maintenance, and local UV exposure — in Southern California’s climate, roofing assemblies are subject to high UV index levels year-round, which is one reason proper underlayment quality matters as a backup layer. When installed over a solid deck with high-temp underlayment, architectural shingles routinely deliver 25 to 30 years of reliable service in this climate zone.
Roof Replacement Inc is licensed by the California Contractors State License Board (CSLB). If your home has skip-sheathing, aging shingles, or a roof that hasn’t been replaced in 20-plus years, call us or submit a project inquiry online. We’ll assess the existing structure honestly and give you a written scope before any work begins.
