T-Lock Shingle, TLock Shingles, tlock Locking Shingle
No matter where one lives in Colorado, T-lock shingles have always been a part of the scenery up to the last few years. With the winds we have here, many homes had a T Lock shingle roof. This roofing system was popular between the 1930s and the 1980s, not just in Colorado, but also in other windy areas of Wyoming, Texas and New Mexico, especially in the then new Front Range subdivisions of Littleton and Lakewood, with those roofing contractors working in areas of Golden and Wheat Ridge as well.
Originally, these shingles were high in asphalt content, so when they locked together, they were strong and didn't blow off. However, as time went by, many companies who made T-lock shingles used less and less asphalt and the quality of the product began to suffer. As a result, the wind could more easily lift the wind resistant but more fragile shingles off the roof. They were also much more susceptible to hail damage due to hollow areas formed at the locking points.
T-lock shingles have not been manufactured for a number of years, and the repair stock nationally has been depleted as well, so it had become impossible to repair these types of wind resistant shingles. If any damage, no matter how small a area, occurs to a TLock shingle roof it is understood by insurance carriers and roofing contractors that the entire roof will have to be replaced. As a result, many insurance companies will not even insure a home with these kinds of shingles. Even if the roof is still in good shape many companies still will not insure it. In fact, many insurance underwriters have instructed their inspectors to report the presence of T-lock shingles as a "major insurance hazard" subject to exclusion or cancellation.
On the other side, if you have a T Lock roof now and your insurance company has not excluded coverage, this may be a good time to get a no cost professional roof inspection. The average in Colorado is that a roof will get hit by hail every nine years, and the tlock shingles have been discontinued over a decade... so chances are there may be hail or wind damage to the T Lock shingles regardless, which in most cases means an entire roof replacement.
If you make an offer on a home with a T-lock roof, make a full roof replacement a contingency of the contract. If the seller doesn't have the money to replace the roof, lower your offer amount accordingly so you can have the roof replaced. If you are selling a home with a T-lock roof, your pool of buyers will be greatly reduced if you don't replace the roof prior to listing. To get the greatest interest in your home, get a new roof if at all possible. If the seller doesn't have the money to replace the roof, you may be able to get a credit at closing to replace it. Always call us first to get the real deal low down on any questions regarding Tlock roofing shingles.
