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Hi everyone, I have a roofing question. We need to replace our 14+ year old cedar shake roof and need to know what to look for in materials (composites, no more cedar!) and the types of installation. The roofing industry here is very unregulated compared to the rest of the building trades. There are many kinds of installations using many differing techniques and materials. Some do it as inexpensively as possible (like our builder did, and it has caused damage to the house), and others do a super-job. Anyone know things like: roofing staples Vs roofing nails; where roof vents are best placed, or, is it better to use ridge top venting along the entire roof instead of vents? (We have square cap vents half way up/down the sides of the roof.) One contractor said that unless the roof was vented along the top ridge, the manufacturers would not guarantee the materials. Anyone heard of this? What should be looked for in a contractor, apart from licensing and bonding? The ones in the 12-14G range all stipulate that the person doing the estimates is on the job to supervise each day and the work is done right. They also have up to 41 regular, long-time crews they work year around...no really slow periods, and are booking now for spring installations. They even go into detail as to the size and metal the hammered-in nails are made of; the weight or mm of everything! The details of some are amazing; others just say "here's the price" and can't, or won't, answer questions. The high-end ones are the one with photo albums of past jobs, homes that can be seen, etc. We have bids ranging $7,000 to $14,000 for a 25 year composite roof. The higher end bids come from the contractors who are not strictly residential. The $7,000 estimate came from an established home-roofing company, but they declined to go up on the roof to examine the roof and rest of the house structures which are affected by water and that can be seen from the roof and not the ground. The estimates which are in the $12,500-14,000 provide the most in details for what removal and installation of the roof, quality of the materials & workmanship, guarantees, details things needing to be done (include things Not need doing), "what if" extra work is needed provisions, etc. Any suggestions?