How to Put Up 3-Tab Shingles on a Gable Roof
- 1). Start at one of the lower corners of one side of the gable roof. Lay a three-tab shingle on the corner so that the tabs are facing up-slope, as this will be the starter strip. Ensure the shingle overhangs the edges of the roof by 1/8 inch.
- 2). Place a roofing nail at the top of each tab just below the tar strip, as this will ensure the nails are not visible when the next course is installed. Drive the nails in with a hammer. Continue installing shingles in this fashion along the lower edge of the roof. Cut the last shingle to length with a utility knife.
- 3). Start laying the first row of shingles directly over top of the starter strip with the tabs facing down-slope. Nail the shingles into place with roofing nails in the same fashion as the starter strip. Cut the last shingle to length with a utility knife.
- 4). Check the package that the shingles came in for instructions regarding the amount of exposure, or the amount the first row of shingles will be showing when the second row is placed over them. Note that this measurement is usually just below the end of the gaps between the tabs. Mark this measurement on both sides of the roof and snap a chalk line to connect the marks.
- 5). Start laying the second row of shingles over the first course. Line up the bottom of the edge of the shingles on the chalk mark. Ensure the gaps in the tabs fall in the middle if the tabs on the first row. Nail the shingles into place with roofing nails in the same fashion as previously.
- 6). Measure the exposure of the second row and make a chalk mark in the same fashion as previously. Lay the bottom edge of the third row of shingles on the chalk mark, ensuring that the gaps in the tabs fall in the center of the tabs in the second row. Nail the shingles into place.
- 7). Continue adding rows of shingles and nailing them into place in the same fashion. Cut the ends of the shingles off at the edges of the roof with a utility knife so that there is 1/8 inch of overhang.
- 8). Shingle the other side of the gable roof in the same fashion.
- 9). Cut the tabs from several shingles with tin snips. Place one tab cross-ways over the gap at the ridge of the roof where the two shingled halves meet. Ensure the tab covers the ridge and the gaps at the top of the roof on both sides. Place a roofing nail at each inward corner of the tab and drive them in with a hammer.
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Place the next tab over the previous one. Overlap the tab so that it covers the nails in the previous tab. Nail the tab into place in the same fashion. Continue adding tabs until the entire ridge is covered. Place a dab of roofing tar over the two exposed nails in the last tab to prevent water intrusion.