Penn Ohio Roofing
Roof Replacement in Sharon, PA
In-house crews out of our Sharon, PA shop.
A full replacement on a Sharon home is a different job from the same job in a postwar subdivision. It's steeper. It's on plank instead of plywood. There are chimneys, box-gutter cavities, and a real chance the current asphalt is sitting over the original slate roof. This page is about what actually happens on a Sharon tear-off — not the generic roof-replacement brochure.
Day One: The Tear-Off Reveals What the Old Roof Was Hiding
On a typical Sharon Foursquare or two-story Victorian, day one is tear-off to the deck. Because Sharon's Code office does not permit a third asphalt layer, we are almost always pulling off one layer of asphalt to expose original plank sheathing underneath. The plank tells us most of what we need to know before we buy any material.
About one Sharon roof in three still shows the slate nail holes in the plank — a clean grid of small punctures from the original slate installation. That tells us the roof was slate → asphalt → today's asphalt, and the deck has taken more than a century of freeze-thaw. We plan for 5 to 15 percent plank replacement on every Sharon tear-off, most of it around vent stacks, in valleys, and along the eaves where the plank has softened. That plank work is why a Sharon estimate carries a written deck-replacement contingency instead of pretending it won't come up.
Day Two: Chimneys, Box Gutters, and the Roof-to-Wall Junctions
Nearly every pre-1940 Sharon home has at least one masonry chimney, and many of the two-story houses have two. The counter-flashing on a Sharon chimney has to be cut back into fresh mortar, not caulked to the face of spalling brick. On day two we grind out the old counter-flashing, tuckpoint any joints that need it, and re-set the new counter-flashing into fresh mortar. That step alone is about an hour per chimney before the new flashing goes on.
The other Sharon-specific detail is the box gutter. Most Sharon Victorians had integral box gutters at the roof-to-wall junction, and most were converted to hung K-style at some point in the last 40 years. The old box-gutter cavity is still there behind the fascia, and when it leaks, water shows up as a ceiling stain three feet inside the exterior wall. If your Sharon house has hung gutters retrofitted onto original box-gutter framing, we address that cavity as part of the replacement rather than pretending the new roof will solve it.
Steep-Pitch Staging Is the Cost Difference
The single reason a Sharon replacement prices higher than a similar-sized suburban roof is that Sharon geometry is not walk-on. 10/12 and 12/12 pitches on Foursquares and Victorians require roof jacks and staging on every course; even the "shallow" Sharon bungalows are 8/12. That is more labor per square than a 5/12 plywood ranch, and it is the honest reason a Sharon estimate reads higher.
What Is Roof Replacement?
Roof replacement is a full tear-off and rebuild of the roof system on a Sharon, PA home — not just new shingles, but new underlayment, new ice-and-water shield, new flashing, and corrected ventilation. A roof is a system; replacing only the visible layer is how homes end up leaking a year after a "new roof."
What a Full Replacement Involves in Sharon
- 1Tear off every existing layer down to the bare deck, so the sheathing can actually be inspected.
- 2Replace any soft, delaminated, or rotted decking — priced per sheet and shown to you before it goes on.
- 3Ice-and-water shield at all eaves, valleys, and penetrations. In this climate that is not optional.
- 4Synthetic underlayment across the field, new drip edge, and new step and valley flashing.
- 5Architectural shingle installed to manufacturer spec — correct nail count, correct placement, correct starter and ridge cap.
- 6Balanced ventilation: continuous ridge exhaust matched to real soffit intake.
- 7Magnet sweep and full cleanup; the property should look better than when we arrived.
Do It Right
- Full tear-off rather than a layover, so decking problems get found.
- New flashing everywhere, never reused chimney or wall flashing.
- Fix the ventilation during the replacement — it is far cheaper now than later.
- Use a certified installer so a real manufacturer warranty can be issued.
- Get the permit pulled properly by the contractor.
What to Avoid
- A second layer of shingles over the old roof to save money.
- Reusing old pipe boots and flashing.
- Sealing over a ventilation problem instead of correcting intake.
- Any contractor offering to cover your insurance deductible.
- Big deposits before material is delivered.
Warning Signs on a Sharon, PA Home
- Shingles curling, cupping, or losing granules across whole slopes.
- Bare or cracked shingles and exposed fiberglass mat.
- Multiple leaks in different areas rather than one spot.
- A visibly sagging or wavy roof plane.
- A roof at or past 20 years, or a second layer already in place.
What Drives the Cost of Roof Replacement in Sharon
- •Roof square footage, pitch, and number of stories.
- •Complexity: valleys, dormers, skylights, chimneys.
- •How many existing layers have to come off.
- •Decking replacement found during tear-off.
- •Shingle line and warranty level.
- •Whether it is an insurance claim or a retail job with financing.
Roof Replacement Work Near Sharon
Representative projects from our crews across the Shenango Valley and the PA/OH border.
Manufacturer credentials
- GAF Master Elite Contractor. Held by a small percentage of roofing contractors nationwide. Required to install the GAF Golden Pledge warranty — 50 years on materials, 25 years on workmanship, transferable once. GAF inspects the completed roof before issuing the warranty.
- Owens Corning Preferred Contractor.
- IKO Craftsman.
- Fully insured in Pennsylvania and Ohio. In-house crews — no subcontractors. Family-owned and operating out of Sharon, PA since 2000.
Path 1 — Insurance claim
For wind, hail, or storm-driven damage. We walk the roof with your insurance adjuster and document what we find so nothing that should be covered gets missed. We are not a public adjuster — that is a separate PA license — and we do not negotiate the settlement. We document damage, meet the adjuster, and rebuild what the carrier approves to code and to manufacturer spec.
Path 2 — Retail with financing
For roofs simply reaching the end of their life. 0% interest financing on shorter terms and long-term financing that keeps monthly payments low. Runs through a lending partner and is subject to credit approval. We walk through both paths in the free in-home estimate before you sign anything. See financing details →
Frequently Asked Questions — Sharon
- How much does a full replacement cost on a Sharon home?
- Sharon's pre-1940 housing is 10/12 or steeper on 1x6 plank decking with masonry chimneys — that geometry moves a Sharon replacement to the upper end of the typical range. Every Sharon estimate is written after we walk the roof, not over the phone. The pricing drivers on a Sharon roof are steep-pitch staging labor, plank deck replacement, and the number of chimneys needing new counter-flashing set into fresh mortar.
- What does a Sharon tear-off usually reveal that a suburban tear-off doesn't?
- Three things. First, plank decking that has softened around vent stacks and valleys — we plan for 5 to 15 percent deck replacement on every Sharon tear-off. Second, slate nail holes in the plank sheathing on about a third of the roofs we open up — evidence the current asphalt is layered over the original slate roof. Third, masonry chimney counter-flashing caulked over spalling mortar instead of cut back into fresh joints; that gets redone before the new flashing goes on.
- Can I overlay my Sharon roof instead of tearing off?
- No — for two reasons that are both specific to Sharon. The City of Sharon Code office does not permit a third layer of asphalt, and a large share of Sharon homes already carry one asphalt layer over the original slate. Beyond code, an overlay hides the plank decking condition we need to see, and it disqualifies the roof from the GAF Golden Pledge warranty explained below.
- How long does a Sharon replacement take?
- Two to three days on the roof for a typical Sharon Victorian or Foursquare — one day is only realistic on the small number of single-story homes with simple gable geometry. The steep pitch, the plank-decking spot-repairs, and the chimney reflashing time are what stretch the schedule. We do not leave a Sharon roof open overnight.
Local information sources
- Sharon, Pennsylvania — Wikipedia
- History of Sharon — Sharon Historical Society
- Mercer County — PA Historical & Museum Commission (municipal incorporation dates)
- City of Sharon — Code & Zoning Enforcement / Contractor's Registration
- City of Sharon — Zoning & Building Permit Application
- Sharon and Vicinity — SAH Archipedia