Starting (asphalt Shingles)

I have read several articles about re-roofing (as I prepare to tackle the job).
Some articles say to start laying the shingles on a center line (vertical) i.e. start laying the shingles in the center and work out to the edges. While others say to start at one edge work across.

Which technique is better? Easier? More efficient?
Why would I do one technique over the other?

Thanks,
Mike

 

You can also shingle horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. A lot depends on personal preference. On a typical gable roof, my preference would be to start in the bottom left and work diagonally. On a hip roof I would begin in the middle and work away from the center diagonally in both directions.

 

I don't claim to be a roofing professional (actually I avoid roofs whenever possible cuz I'm getting old) but here's my thoughts.

When 3 tab shingles used to be commonly used, running a row of shingles up the middle of the roof that was staggered 6" either way of a centerline was the best way to establish a straight line. By cutting the roof in half and running either direction, you'd hopefully keep your tabs all lines up so that when you eyeball up the roof it would look fairly straight. That method also works well if you have several crews working on the same side of a roof and you want to keep them from getting in each other's way.

I generally never work with 3 tabs anymore, so I stairstep everything and work from left to right, bottom to top. Once you get it started, the shingles fly down, especially if you have a helper that can keep up with you by constantly feeding you a shingle at a time.

If working with 3 tabs, you also need to think about how big of a piece you'll be leaving at the edges where you will have to cut a shingle. You don't want to leave a "sliver" if you can help it, so you just have to plan ahead for that. Laminated shingles with no tabs sure make roofing a lot easier.