How to Replace the Roof on a Small Building

Start at the end of the roof peak where you can see an entire ridge cap. Use a hammer or pry bar to pry up the edges of the ridge cap and remove it from the roof. When you reveal the entire second ridge cap, pry that ridge cap from the roof, and continue down the peak to remove all of the ridge caps.

Pull up the shingles from the roof, starting with the top row. Use a pry bar to rip the shingles up from the roof surface, and a hammer to pull out any nails left in the roof deck.

Rip up the roofing felt that lines the roof deck. Remove any staples from the roof deck with pliers.

Spread roofing felt out along the roof eave, leaving 1 inch hanging off both edges and the eave. Staple the roofing felt around the perimeter every 6 inches.

Put down a shingle at one end of the roof, letting it hang off the roof edge by 1 inch and off the eave by 1 ½ inches. Move to the other end and place another shingle so that it hangs off the other roof edge by 1 inch and the eave by 1 ½ inches. Secure the shingles to the roof with four nails through the top half.

Tap a roofing nail into the roof deck above the first shingle installed so it touches the top of the shingle. Tap a roofing nail into the roof deck above the second shingle so that it touches the top of that shingle. Cut a string slightly longer than the length of the roof and tie the ends of the string to the nails, so that the string stretches tautly across the roof.

Lay the shingles across the roof so they line up with the string. Cut down the final shingle for the row with a circular saw.

Install the felt and shingles in rows up the roof, so that the seams of the rows are staggered. Overlap the roofing felt over the tops of the rows of shingles by about 4 inches and then overlap the shingles by roughly 6 inches. Cap the peak of the roof with new ridge caps or bend shingles over the peak in the case of asphalt shingles, and cover any nail heads in the peak caps or peak shingles with roofing cement.