
What is the difference between 15 pound and 30 Pound felt?
The Main Difference As mentioned, the main difference between the two is how much 100 square feet of the felt originally weighed. Historically, 15-pound felt underlayment weighed 15 pounds for this amount while 30-pound felt weighed 30 pounds. As such, the 30-pound felt weighed twice as much.
What is the difference between 15 felt and 30 felt roofing?
Compared to No. 15 felt, No. 30 felt is typically thicker, stronger, and may be less prone to tearing or ripping off during installation or weather events. The main advantage of using felt roofing underlayment is cost.
What is the difference between 15 lb and 30 lb underlayment?
15lb vs 30lb Felt Underlayment 1 The Main Difference. As mentioned, the main difference between the two is how much 100 square feet of the felt originally weighed. 2 Roof Slope. In the case of roofs with a steeper slope, you should always opt for 30-pound felt instead of 15-pound. 3 Tear Resistance. ... 4 Thickness. ... 5 Wear. ...
How much does felt underlayment weigh?
Historically, 15-pound felt underlayment weighed 15 pounds for this amount while 30-pound felt weighed 30 pounds. As such, the 30-pound felt weighed twice as much. Over the years advancements in technology have made changes that reduced the weight, although the names have stuck.

Should I use 15 or 30 pound felt?
If your roof does not have a steep pitch, you can use #15. This weight of felt is a good economic choice if you have a standard roof. But if your roof has a steep pitch, #30 is a better option because it is thicker and tears less during installation. With #30 you get a thicker layer of underlayment and protection.
What weight of roofing felt should I use?
Most residential rooftops use 15 or 30 pound roof felt. In drier areas, lighter roofing felts may be used.
What is #15 felt used for?
#15 Specification Felt is a specification grade felt roofing underlayment used between the roof deck and the shingles.
What is meant by the term 15 lb roofing felt?
Roofing felt is similar to fleece made from polyester or fiberglass and then soaked in waterproofing agent. 15 pound and 30 pound refers to the thickness of the felt, with the numbers indicating the weight of 100 square feet of this paper back when they were originally developed.
Is 30 pound felt waterproof?
Is Roofing Felt Waterproof? Roofing Felt is the support material that is required to develop roll roofing and roof shingles. Being used as the waterproof coverings in commercial as well as residential roofs for decades, these membranes comprise two layers, signifying it is waterproof.
What does 30lb felt mean?
& 30 Lb. Felt is an asphalt-saturated organic felts designed for use as an underlayment with asphalt shingles in commercial and residential applications. A shingle underlayment is used to protect roof structures and the interior from water penetration.
What felt 30?
#30 Saturated Roof Felt The roof felts are asphalt saturated and are manufactured with a high-grade organic mat. #30 Saturated Felt underlayment is specified for use as an underlayment between the roof deck and the shingles.
What roofing underlayment is best?
Synthetic Underlayment This is currently the most popular choice for roof underlayment, and with good reason. Made with an asphalt-saturated basemat and fortified with a mix of fiberglass, this product is not only extremely water-resistant, much stronger and more resistant to tears than other types of underlayment.
What is the difference in roofing felt?
It's a generic term and sometimes used synonymously with roofing felt because they are used the same way. Tar paper is less wind and sun resistant than other underlayment systems. And because they are organic, the humidity and the heat will deteriorate them is much less time than Synthetics which are in-organic.
How many square feet does 15 lb felt cover?
432 ft²DimensionsCoverage Area (sq. ft.)432 ft².03Product Width (in.)36 in144
How thick should roof felt be?
Roofing Paper Thickness The most commonly used felts are #15 and #30, with weights of 8 and 20 pounds per 100 square feet, respectively. The most commonly used is #15, which comes in rolls 3 feet wide, is 144-feet long and covers approximately four squares per roll, or approximately 400 feet of roof.
How thick is 15 pound felt paper?
1 mmSpecificationsSQ FT/ROLL432LENGTH144 ftWIDTH36 inTHICKNESS1 mmWEIGHT PER ROLL30 lbs6 more rows
How thick is 15 pound felt paper?
1 mmSpecificationsSQ FT/ROLL432LENGTH144 ftWIDTH36 inTHICKNESS1 mmWEIGHT PER ROLL30 lbs6 more rows
How much does a roll of 30 lb felt weight?
The “30# ASTM” felt does weigh 26 lbs.
Can you put two layers of felt on a roof?
In low-slope conditions -- that is, from 2:12 up to 4:12 -- felt courses should overlap a minimum of 19 inches. This will provide a double layer of underlayment across the entire roof.
What's the best roofing underlayment?
Synthetic Underlayment This is currently the most popular choice for roof underlayment, and with good reason. Made with an asphalt-saturated basemat and fortified with a mix of fiberglass, this product is not only extremely water-resistant, much stronger and more resistant to tears than other types of underlayment.
How thick is roofing felt?
Roofing felt is similar to fleece made from polyester or fiberglass and then soaked in waterproofing agent. 15 pound and 30 pound refers to the thickness of the felt, with the numbers indicating the weight of 100 square feet of this paper back when they were originally developed. Now, however, they weigh less, although the names stuck.
How many square feet does roofing felt cover?
Roofing felt comes in rolls that are three feet long and will typically cover around 400 square feet. By contrast, synthetic rolls usually cover about 1,000 square feet and are about four feet long. The larger rolls of synthetic felt can make it ...
What is felt underlayment?
Before we get into the comparisons, you need to have a clear understanding of the various options. The felt and synthetics are all types of roofing underlayment. Underlayment offers an additional layer of protection in case water penetrates the shingles on the roof. It also provides protection to the inner structure and the decking when the shingles are not in place, either during installation or repairs. It can also boost your home’s fire rating and provides roofers with slip protection as they install the shingles.
How much does synthetic underlayment weigh?
Ten square feet of felt has an average weight of about 130 pounds, while an equivalent amount of synthetic would be just 23 pounds. This obviously makes synthetic underlayment easier to get up to the roof.
Why does synthetic felt get hotter?
Synthetic also capture less heat due to their color, which is gray compared to the black color of felt. This results in felt getting hotter, which can be unpleasant at times.
Can you compare felt and synthetic underlayment?
You can compare synthetic and felt underlayment to start, then if you opt for felt, you can compare 15- and 30-pound options. If you were to complete a three-way comparison, there would be too many similarities between the two non-synthetic options.
Is synthetic underlayment better than felt?
It is common , although not always the case, for synthetic underlayment to have a lower perm rating than felt. As such, moisture within the attic finds it significantly harder to escape via the roof. This means that while attic ventilation is always important, it is absolutely crucial when dealing with synthetic roofs and just very wise for felt ones.
What is the difference between 30 and 15 felt?
In the “old days”, common felt was 15 lb felt and 30 lb felt, and a roll of the first held 4 squares and weighed 60 lbs, while a roll of the second held 2 squares and weighed 60 lbs. “15” came perforated for use as a ply sheet for built up roofing use, and non-perforated. “30” was used as a base sheet for built up roofing and underlayment under slate, tile, and shingles. As time passed, the weights of the rolls dropped significantly. The last time I weighed a roll of “30”, it weighed 47 lbs and I presume a roll of “15” weighed the same. Today, these materials are call No. 15 and No. 30 because they don’t weigh what they once did. In fact, No. 15 is not asphalt saturated felt, but rather paper, like kraft paper that has a thin asphalt coating on it. It is still used as a cheap underlayment, but shrinks and wrinkles if it get overnight dew on it or goes through rain. No. 30 is still asphalt saturated felt and is still safe underfoot and performs much better as a temporary roof as shingles are being applied. It is preferable to me because it “breathes” or has a higher permeability than the newer synthetic underlayments, which don’t breathe and are like putting a vapor barrier over a roof deck.
What is roofing felt?
Roofing felt is commonly known as tar paper. It comes in several brand names but essentially it is tar-impregnated felt paper. It is installed usually with hammertacked’ glavanized 3/8″ t50 staples or better, by rolling it out along the bottom of the roof, and adding overlapped layers sequentially up the roof.
How long does a pea shingle roof last?
If we are talking in the UK then this is a common roofing material and our weather is such that it has a limited life, normally quoted as 10–15 years but this depends on weather exposure, sunshine, whether it is coated with pea shingle to limit sun damage etc., etc. However, the most common cause of failure is poor workmanship in the firat place.
How many layers of paper are needed for a 60 minute paper?
Marketed as 30 minute and 60 minute paper, this is to indicate the length if time it takes before it becomes water saturated. Normally two layers of 30 are required or a layer of 60. Good roofers always add an extra bottom layer because they know the water stays longer and penetrates longe
What is the difference between a residential roof and a commercial roof?
1. Design: The main difference between residential and commercial roof is its design. Commercial roofs are a low slope or complete flat design, it created in a way that utilises the space inside the building. While residential buildings have a pitched roof with a higher slope that’s simpler to install.
Why use felt on shingle roof?
As mentioned, if you are replacing a roof, the felt is likely to come off as part of the strip off.
What type of roofing material is used for residential roofs?
Wood, Metal, Ceramic, and Solar shingles. While in the commercial place, most of the professionals are prefer the top use of single-ply membranes and metal panel roofing.
