Expert: Richard Taylor, AIA - 2/16/2010

Question
Dear Richard,
Our house was built in 1968.  It has cedar shingles and a mansard roof.  We are in the process of choosing a new roof and it was suggested that we replace the roofing on the second floor with siding. This would completely change the look of the house.  IS this a good idea, or are there other problems that would arise?  AT this time we have roof shingles slipping on the side of the house.  
 We live in Buffalo.

Answer
Johanna - thanks for your question!

Keep the roof covered with roofing, no question there!  The whole idea of the Mansard-style roof (originally popularized in Second Empire homes in the second half of the 19th century) was to imitate the grand buildings in Paris - which had top floors "concealed" behind a steeply-pitched roof plane.

Changing a primary characteristic like that will change the look, I agree...but not in a good way!  That's something we call "reMUDelling" in the biz.

Cedar shingles are a maintenance problem, to be sure.  They're also expensive to replace, and truly good quality wood roof shingles are hard to find.  But you don't have to use wood shingles if it's a budget concern - it would perfectly appropriate to use a heavy dimensional asphalt shingle instead.

Even the very best dimensional shingles will be far less expensive than cedar, so you'll have lots of choices available to you.

Hope this helps!

Richard Taylor, AIA
www.rtastudio.com
www.rtaplans.com
www.rtastudio.blogspot.com