Roofing Before & After in Philadelphia, PA
We’ve been up on Philadelphia roofs since 2016, and we’ve learned one thing: homeowners want to see the work, not just hear about it. These projects show what happens when a crew that knows this city’s building stock gets its hands on a problem. Every photo is from a real job, in a real neighborhood, with a real result.
Recent Transformations
Complete Roof Replacement: Fishtown Rowhouse with Century-Old Cedar Shakes
The homeowner on Thompson Street called us after finding water stains spreading across their bedroom ceiling every time a nor’easter rolled through. The original cedar shakes were 94 years old, rotted through in the valleys, and the skip sheathing underneath had turned to sponge. We stripped to the rafters, installed plywood decking to modern code, and laid a complete GAF system with proper ice-and-water shield at the eaves. The ridge line is what we’re proudest of - that’s where a roof proves itself, and this one sits dead straight. Done right, and if it’s not, we make it right.
Emergency Storm Repair: West Philadelphia Dormer Torn Open by Microburst
A live person answered when this homeowner called at 11:30 PM - that’s our standard, not an exception. The microburst that hit West Philadelphia that July had peeled the dormer roof back like a sardine tin, and water was running down the interior wall. We tarped it that night, returned at first light, and found the real problem: the original builder had skipped step flashing entirely and caulked the joint instead. We rebuilt it properly with copper step flashing, matched the Owens Corning Duration color to the 12-year-old field shingles, and sealed it for good. The homeowner’s mother was staying in that third-floor room. We’d hold ourselves to the same standard.
Flat Roof Recovery: South Philly Truss Roof with Ponding and Interior Collapse Risk
This South Philadelphia homeowner on Wharton Street had been patching a flat roof for six years, and the ceiling below was starting to bow. The original roof had been laid dead flat with no drainage strategy - a common shortcut on postwar truss construction in this part of the city. We stripped the failed modified bitumen, installed tapered iso-board to create positive slope toward new scuppers, and laid a GAF EverGuard TPO system with full adhesion. No more ponding. No more patches. The number on the estimate was the number on the invoice, and the crew finished in four days.
Slate Restoration: Chestnut Hill Historic Home with Failed Flashing and Biological Growth
Chestnut Hill has some of the finest residential architecture in Philadelphia, and some of the most abused original roofing. This 1927 home had a slate field that was fundamentally sound but suffering from a century of band-aid repairs. The galvanized valleys had rusted through, letting water run behind the slate and rot the skip sheathing. We hand-selected Vermont Purple slates to match the weathered field, replaced the valleys with 20-ounce copper, and re-hung every slate with copper nails the way the original roofers would have. Historic roofing isn’t about replacement - it’s about knowing what’s worth saving and what’s not. We’ve trained apprentices on jobs like this for forty years.
Gutter System Integration: Manayunk Twin with Rotten Fascia and Improper Pitch
The gutters on this Manayunk twin were doing more harm than good - water was running behind them and rotting the soffit, while the reversed pitch sent overflow straight toward the basement. We see this constantly on Philadelphia’s steep-pitched rowhouses and twins, where original installation was often an afterthought. We replaced the fascia board, hung 6-inch K-style aluminum with hidden hangers rated for the snow load we get in this city, and set the pitch precisely. The downspouts now terminate on splash blocks, not the foundation. It’s not the flashiest job we’ve photographed, but it’s the kind of detail that protects everything below it.
Solar-Ready Replacement: East Passyunk Home with End-of-Life Asphalt and Future Panel Plans
This East Passyunk homeowner called us two years before they planned to install solar panels, which is the smart way to do it. Their existing three-tab shingles were brittle and shedding granules - typical for the cheap builder-grade asphalt common on 2002 construction in this neighborhood. We installed CertainTeed Landmark Pro with the reinforced nailing zone specifically rated for future solar racking attachment, and specified the Solaris reflective granule option to cut attic heat load. The solar company they’ll hire next year won’t have to penetrate a compromised roof, and this homeowner won’t be the person we get called about in 2028 with panel leaks. We plan to be in Philadelphia in thirty years. We roof like it.
Want Results Like These?
Every project here started with a phone call to a live person who actually answers - (855) 554-5116, day or night, including weekends and storms. We’ll send a background-checked, uniformed technician to document your roof with photos from the actual surface, not a scary speech in the driveway. The price we quote is the price you pay, and everything we do carries the 90-Day Done Right Promise: if it’s not right, we come back and make it right, no paperwork, no arguing. Call (855) 554-5116 or ask about our $89 Seasonal Tune-Up if you’re not sure what you need yet.
Written by Ned Calloway, Owner at Ridgeline Roofing Co. of Philadelphia, serving Philadelphia since 2016.