What Is Wood Shake Roofing?
Wood shake roofing covers a sloped roof in hand-split or tapersawn western red cedar laid over a ventilated assembly that lets each course dry from the underside after rainfall. The air space beneath the shakes manages the moisture that drives most cedar wear.
What Wood Shake Roofing Do We Provide?

Newark Quality Roofing provides 4 wood shake services across Essex County: cedar shake and shingle installation, individual shake replacement, flashing and detail repair, and preservative and cleaning maintenance — for residential and commercial properties. Wood shake roofing covers a roof in hand-split or tapersawn cedar laid over a ventilated assembly that dries each course after rainfall.
Wood shake and shingle roofing lasts 25 years as a single "Wood" category, per the InterNACHI life-expectancy chart, and the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau separates the products at cedar shake 20 to 40 years and cedar shingle 30 to 50 years. Western red cedar carries natural extractives that resist decay, and a cedar roof needs at least 1.5 inches of air space beneath the shakes for drying, because moisture, not insects, drives most premature cedar failure, per Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau and NRCA guidance. A Newark Quality Roofing wood shake installation builds the ventilation that the Essex County climate demands before the first course goes down.
- Cedar shake and shingle installation — Cedar shake and shingle installation lays western red cedar over a ventilated assembly that lasts 20 to 40 years for shake and 30 to 50 years for shingle, per the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau, with at least 1.5 inches of air space beneath the shakes for drying.
- Individual shake replacement — Individual shake replacement swaps cupped, split, or rotted shakes before the damage spreads, because a wood roof crosses the replacement threshold when more than 25 to 30% of the shakes cup or split, per industry consensus.
- Flashing and detail repair — Flashing and detail repair reseals the cedar transitions at valleys, walls, and penetrations, where flashing corrosion and lifted laps admit water, the most common leak source across roof types, an industry estimate attributed to the NRCA.
- Preservative and cleaning maintenance — Preservative and cleaning maintenance clears moss and debris and applies a fungicide or algaecide treatment at $0.15 to $0.60 per square foot every few years, per HomeGuide cost data, slowing the moisture-driven decay that shortens cedar service life.
How Do You Know If You Need Wood Shake Roofing?




- Cupped, split, or warped shakes across more than 25 to 30% of the roof cross the contractor-consensus replacement threshold, the point above which full replacement costs less than continued shake-by-shake repair, per industry consensus.
- A shake that cracks under light bending in the flex test indicates advanced degradation regardless of surface appearance, the InterNACHI field test for end-of-life cedar.
- Moss and lichen colonizing the shake surface indicates moisture retention and decay, because moisture, not insects, drives most premature cedar failure, per Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau and NRCA guidance.
- Rot beneath cupped shakes on north-facing or shaded slopes indicates trapped moisture, because shaded slopes dry slowly and degrade faster than sun-exposed slopes, per Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau guidance.
- A cedar roof past its material lifespan signals replacement, because wood roofing lasts 25 years per the InterNACHI life-expectancy chart and cedar shake 20 to 40 years per the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau.
- Daylight through the roof deck seen from inside the attic indicates holes in the sheathing and shakes, a sign that points toward replacement rather than a patch, per This Old House.
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How Do Our Roofing Contractors Perform Wood Shake Roofing?

Newark Quality Roofing builds a ventilated cedar assembly with at least 1.5 inches of air space beneath the shakes, because moisture, not insects, drives most premature cedar failure. A Newark Quality Roofing crew installs spaced skip sheathing or a breathable interlayment between courses so each shake dries after rainfall, per Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau and NRCA drying-space guidance. Newark crosses the 32°F freezing point repeatedly through winter with an average January low near 25.5°F, per NOAA 1991-2020 normals at Newark Liberty (EWR), driving freeze-thaw stress on trapped moisture, so the ventilated assembly removes the water that freeze-thaw cycling expands.
Newark Quality Roofing hand-selects each cedar shake, fastens with corrosion-resistant stainless steel nails, and reseals the transitions to specification, the sequence that keeps a wood roof watertight through the Essex County climate. A Newark Quality Roofing crew sets thicker shakes at the eave courses, sorts for color across the surface, and gaps adjacent shakes for moisture expansion, because cedar expands and contracts with moisture content. Flashing fabricated from corrosion-resistant stock matches the cedar transitions at valleys, walls, and penetrations, where flashing corrosion and lifted laps admit water, the most common leak source across roof types, an industry estimate attributed to the NRCA.
What Residential Wood Shake Roofing Do We Provide?
Newark Quality Roofing installs and repairs cedar shake and shingle roofs across Essex County, building the ventilated assembly on detached one- and two-family homes with no construction permit required for the roof covering. A repair or replacement of the roof covering on a detached one- and two-family dwelling counts as ordinary maintenance under N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.7 and requires no construction permit, no inspection, and no notice to the construction official, per the NJ Uniform Construction Code, while a structural change to rafters or trusses triggers a permit.
A cedar shake roof reaches the upper end of the 20 to 40-year range with maintenance, because a fungicide or algaecide treatment at $0.15 to $0.60 per square foot every few years slows the moisture-driven decay that ends a wood roof early, per the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau and HomeGuide cost data. A Newark Quality Roofing residential cedar installation gaps each shake for moisture expansion, sets the drying space beneath the courses, and matches replacement shakes to the existing color and grade across the roof surface.

What Commercial Wood Shake Roofing Do We Provide?
Newark Quality Roofing installs and repairs cedar shake roofing on commercial buildings across Essex County, building the ventilated assembly and reflashing the cedar transitions where architectural character specifies a wood roof. On a commercial building, repairing more than 25% of the total roof area in a 12-month period requires a permit under N.J.A.C. 5:23-2.7, per the NJ Uniform Construction Code, so a Newark Quality Roofing scope sizes the cedar work against the 25% threshold before setting the permit path.
A permitted re-roof over an existing cedar covering requires complete removal of the wood shake, because N.J.A.C. 5:23-6.4 bars a recover-over when the existing covering is wood shake, slate, clay, or tile, per the NJ Rehabilitation Subcode. A Newark Quality Roofing commercial cedar installation tears off the existing shakes to the deck, repairs the sheathing, and rebuilds the ventilated assembly that dries each course.

What Are the Steps in Our Wood Shake Roofing Process?

- Inspection and Material Selection
A Newark Quality Roofing technician inspects the cedar roof and the attic, runs the flex test on suspect shakes per the InterNACHI field test, and presents western red cedar grade and treatment options matched to the building and the Essex County climate.
- Written Estimate
A Newark Quality Roofing written estimate documents the cedar condition with photographs and sets the scope, labor, materials, and timeline before any work begins, per Integrity Home Exteriors documentation guidance.
- Tear-Off and Deck Repair
A Newark Quality Roofing crew strips the existing cedar covering to the bare deck and replaces deteriorated sheathing, with complete removal required by N.J.A.C. 5:23-6.4 on a permitted job when the existing covering is wood shake, slate, clay, or tile.
- Ventilated Assembly Installation
A Newark Quality Roofing crew installs spaced skip sheathing or a breathable interlayment for at least 1.5 inches of air space beneath the shakes, the drying space the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau and NRCA guidance require to limit moisture-driven decay.
- Shake Installation to Specification
A Newark Quality Roofing crew hand-selects each cedar shake, gaps adjacent shakes for moisture expansion, and fastens with corrosion-resistant stainless steel nails at the specified exposure, weaving the interlayment between courses.
- Flashing, Verification, and Warranty
A Newark Quality Roofing lead reseals the valley, wall, and penetration flashing, verifies watertight execution, runs a magnet sweep for nails at cleanup, and issues a written workmanship warranty on the labor, per Integrity Home Exteriors verification guidance.
How Much Does Wood Shake Roofing Cost?
Wood Shake Roofing cost in Essex County, NJ runs $400–$1,800 for most wood shake repairs, with the cost factors below setting where a given job lands in that range.
Typical Price Range
$400–$1,800 for most wood shake repairs
Cost Factors:
- Wood shake repair averages roughly $750 nationally, with a range of $400 to $1,800, per Angi cost data.
- Small wood shake repairs run $100 to $400 and large repairs $1,000 or more, per HomeGuide cost data.
- Replacing shakes runs about $600 to $700 per 100-square-foot square, with labor accounting for roughly 60 to 70% of the cost, per Modernize cost data.
- Fungicide or algaecide maintenance treatment costs $0.15 to $0.60 per square foot every few years, per HomeGuide cost data.
- NJ ranges sit roughly 10 to 40% above national figures because of higher labor and stricter NJ code, and cedar installs in NJ run $10 to $20-plus per square foot, per NHI Contractors NJ pricing.
A free written estimate confirms the exact figure for a specific roof before any work begins.

Why Choose Our Roofing Company for Wood Shake Roofing?
Newark Quality Roofing holds New Jersey Home Improvement Contractor registration, the credential the NJ Division of Consumer Affairs requires of every NJ roofing contractor.
Newark Quality Roofing carries liability coverage, the insurance the Contractors Registration Act requires of a registered New Jersey Home Improvement Contractor.
Newark Quality Roofing builds at least 1.5 inches of air space beneath the shakes, the drying space the Cedar Shake & Shingle Bureau and NRCA guidance require to limit moisture-driven cedar decay.
Newark Quality Roofing installs and repairs cedar shake roofs across Essex County, covering Newark, East Orange, Bloomfield, Montclair, Belleville, and Irvington, Monday–Friday 7:00 AM–6:00 PM and Saturday 8:00 AM–2:00 PM.
What Questions Do Customers Ask About Wood Shake Roofing?
How long does a wood shake roof last in the New Jersey climate?
Are wood shake roofs a fire hazard?
What maintenance does a wood shake roof require?
What is the difference between wood shakes and wood shingles?
How do you know when to repair or replace a wood shake roof?
How much does wood shake roofing cost in Essex County, NJ?
Does a wood shake roof in Newark require a permit?
What Knowledge Base Articles Explain This Service?
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