This 20-year-old architectural shingle roof had missing ridge cap, missing shingles, extreme shingle degradation and an extremely underventilated attic. We replaced it in one day with Owens Corning TruDefinition Duration Designer shingles in Black Sable and corrected the attic ventilation with Master Flow dome vents.
Project Facts
- Location: Downie Pl, West Lake Hills, TX 78746
- Completed: September 2025
- Job type: Roof replacement, retail (homeowner-paid, no insurance claim)
- Roof size: 60 squares
- Pitch: 6/12
- Stories: 2
- Time on site: 1 day
- Shingle: Owens Corning TruDefinition Duration Designer, Black Sable (Class 3 impact rating)
The Situation
The homeowner called us after noticing missing ridge cap on their 20-year-old architectural shingle roof. At that age, we inspected the full roof system, not just the ridge.
What We Found
- Missing ridge cap
- Missing shingles
- Extreme degradation of the shingles across the roof
- Unsealed roof penetrations
- An extremely underventilated attic: the main house had 32 linear feet of ridge vent, only about 24 feet of it effective, and the detached garage, with its own separate attic, had zero ventilation
- During tear-off: two sheets of rotted decking
With degradation across the entire roof, a repair would not have bought real time, so we recommended a full replacement.
Correcting an Underventilated Attic
The previous contractor relied solely on ridge vent, but this roof didn’t have enough ridge for a ridge vent to properly ventilate the attic. The main house had 32 linear feet of ridge vent, but only about 24 feet of it was effective, roughly 432 square inches of net free area at best, and several attic areas were landlocked with no path to the ridge. The detached garage has its own separate attic, and it had zero attic ventilation.
We closed the existing ridge vent and installed five Master Flow HCD144 dome vents on the main roof and two on the detached garage, each rated at 144 square inches of net free area. Unlike ridge vent, dome vents can be placed anywhere on the roof plane, so we positioned them to capture the previously landlocked areas. The existing soffit vents provide intake.
| Net free area (exhaust) | Before | After |
|---|---|---|
| Main house | About 432 sq in (about 24 lnft of effective ridge vent) | 720 sq in (5 dome vents) |
| Detached garage | 0 | 288 sq in (2 dome vents) |
| Total | About 432 sq in | 1,008 sq in |
What We Installed
- Full tear-off down to the decking
- Replaced two sheets of rotted decking
- Owens Corning ProArmor synthetic underlayment
- Owens Corning WeatherLock ice and water barrier around the chimney and roof accessories
- Starter shingles at the eaves and rakes
- Owens Corning TruDefinition Duration Designer shingles in Black Sable
- Owens Corning RIZERidge hip and ridge shingles
- New lead pipe flashings
- 2×2 drip edge
- Existing ridge vent closed; seven Master Flow HCD144 dome vents installed (five main roof, two detached garage)
The Result
A full roof replacement completed in one day, with every roof penetration sealed and 1,008 square inches of exhaust net free area, up from about 432. That includes the detached garage attic, which previously had no ventilation at all. We finished with a final roof inspection, a full cleanup and a walk-through with the homeowner.
Project Photos
Need a New Roof in West Lake Hills?
Caden Roofing is a family-owned Austin roofing company, and we regularly work in West Lake Hills. Call (512) 364-0278 for a free roof inspection.
