Which is better for shingles, roofing nails or staples?
Why nails win
- Holding power. A roofing nail's wide 3/8 inch head clamps a large area of shingle. A staple crown is narrow and pulls through more easily when wind lifts the tab.
- Forgiveness. A staple only holds well if its crown sits parallel to the shingle edge and is driven flush. A staple crooked or overdriven cuts into the mat, and one underdriven leaves the shingle loose.
- Code and warranty. The residential code's shingle fastener section calls for nails with set gauge and head sizes. Shingle warranties assume the installation instructions were followed.
Older roofs
Staples were allowed by older codes and some older installation instructions, and you may find stapled shingles on older Georgia homes. Those roofs tend to lose tabs in moderate wind, and repairs often fail because the surrounding shingles are poorly fastened too.
How to tell what is on your roof
From the attic, look at the fasteners coming through the deck. Nail points look like single sharp spikes. Staples show pairs of thin legs. On the roof, lifting a tab gently in warm weather will show the fasteners, though that is best left to a roofer.
Where staples are acceptable
Some synthetic underlayments allow cap staples to hold the sheet until shingles go on, per the maker's instructions. Housewrap and insulation also use staples. Shingles do not.
A stapled roof with repeated blow-offs is often a candidate for replacement rather than patching. See wind damage to roofs in Georgia and roofing warranties explained.