# Nail pops through shingles?



## ASIinc. (Jun 4, 2008)

I was up on my roof today hanging gutter when I notices a nail popped up through the shingle, looked around and noticed they are everywhere! Its like someone went in my attic and stared hammering the roofing nails back up. atleast 50 or so have popped through and I can see a bunch more getting ready to. I put the roof down no more that five years ago. Certainteed architectural, 1.5" nails. I know nails a few nails will sometimes pop but the whole freakin roof. Whats causing this.


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## apkole (Mar 18, 2006)

Were the nails hand driven or nail gun? What is your roof decking . . . OSB , plywood or dimensional?

Infrequent nail pops usually caused by failure to set nail into wood and failure to seat nail flush to shingle surface. 

Improper function of nail gun or inadequate air line pressure are causes of nails not seated. Operator error is another possibility.

I looked at a similar situation a few weeks ago. Nails peeking through shingles all over the roof. Investigation revealed nails not driven flush and nails driven crooked, all with roofing nailer.


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## jamesfl (Sep 4, 2007)

hows the roof ventilated?


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## ASIinc. (Jun 4, 2008)

all nails were gunned down, maybe a couple werent seated properly but a handful at most. I hung all the shingles myself, if one of my guys nailed it I might have second thoughts. The only ventilation is a ridge vent. The roof only sees a few hours of sun a day. deck is 1/2 cdx. Some of the nail heads are up 1/4- 3/8 completely above the shingle above it.


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## MJW (Jan 27, 2006)

IMO, it's a combination of the longer nails, the plywood, and maybe some ventilation problems.

Plywood is terrible for any kind of moisture, or even if it simply dries out too fast. Nails just won't stay in it for crap. 

The nails are a little long, especially if you are using a thinner shingle like TL, even though they are laminates. They work side to side and back an forth until they start easing out.

How is the soffit ventilated? If there isn't enough NFA coming through the soffit to "feed" the ridge vent....sometimes there is a problem. The air gets sucked in one end of the house and goes right back out the ridge vent, not pulling much of the moist hot air out of the attic.

How is the insulation? Any poly on the walls and ceiling?


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## RandyB1986 (Jan 2, 2009)

Was it installed in cold or hot weather?


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## ASIinc. (Jun 4, 2008)

Actually the nails were 1.25" just pulled a couple out. I have 2' overhangs so plenty of vent in soffits. And there is one gable vent. I put the roof down in the fall I believe. maybe 60 degrees. The original 3tab didnt have any nail pops that I remember and that was with no ridge vent.
Whats the best way to repair. I was thinking flashing cement with tar paper of something on top then more cement(under the shingle)?


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## RandyB1986 (Jan 2, 2009)

Gun nails or hand drives? I looked at a house recently that is 3 tabs and hand nailed and it had nail pops everywhere......I am sorry, but I just don't have an answer. I have been at this a long time, and been told different causes....and honestly, none of them made me a believer!

As for repair, if there is a bunch you are going to have a new roof in your future, sooner rather than later. You can repair them by replacing shingles, if that is not an option then use Eterna bond or similar product and cut small 3" squares, after repairing nail pop put E bond over it, then maybe some sealant to hold shingle down.....but the hole is still going to remain unless you fill them with sealant and sprinkle granulars over the adhesive.


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## jmiller (May 14, 2010)

ASIinc. said:


> Whats the best way to repair. I was thinking flashing cement with tar paper of something on top then more cement(under the shingle)?



Loosen shingle(s), remove nail, re-nail and seal. 

My least favorite repair.


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## MJW (Jan 27, 2006)

RandyB1986 said:


> Gun nails or hand drives? I looked at a house recently that is 3 tabs and hand nailed and it had nail pops everywhere......I am sorry, but I just don't have an answer. I have been at this a long time, and been told different causes....*and honestly, none of them made me a believer!*


Good man! :thumbsup: Once you start "believing", you stop thinking.:thumbup:


To the OP,
I still say it's the plywood. Maybe it was a bad grade of plywood you were not aware of.
Seal up the gable vent also. The ridge vent will work much better pulling air through the soffits.


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## ASIinc. (Jun 4, 2008)

Well it looks like im gonna be spending my next few weekends up on the roof. hopefully I dont get to many more, cant afford a new roof every few years. thanks for everyones help


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## JWRoofing (May 5, 2011)

ASIinc,

I have never seen anything like what you are describing. If the raised nails are coming out easily, you might want to consider replacing them with a good ring shank nail with a dab of bull over the head.

JW
___________________

Miami Lakes roof coating
Safety Training Florida


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## tekwrytr (Sep 11, 2007)

*Popped nails*

Popped nails used to be common when most shingles were driven by hand. Especially on wood shingles and shakes. The reason is oil--to make the nails easier and faster to drive. Typical procedure was to use baby oil as "suntan lotion" and put a few squirts into a box of nails. The ruse of "suntan lotion" was the explanation if someone caught you greasing your nails. "Oh, my ... it must have been that handful of nails I grabbed right after I used my suntan lotion that did it."

Rockers still use oiled nails. So do a LOT of hand nailers. If you were too enthusiastic while lubricating your nailgun, that could be the cause. Or if you have an inline oil reservoir that keeps a bit of oil in the air line, that could be the cause.


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## bkb0000 (Feb 1, 2009)

anything's possible, obviously.. but i seriously doubt oiled nailed will cause the nails to push up through asphalt shingles. the oil would loosen the nail in the hole, not PUSH it up through a pretty tough substance.

i've seen plenty of nails/staples popping through shingles, here in the pacific northwest... in every case where i've bothered to investigate why, i've concluded it was from wet/damp felt during install. the felt swells and "bubbles" up off the deck... if you don't slash the felt to flatten it out (GASP!), the shingle will sit off the deck, and so will the nail head. then, after 3-5 years or so, the heads, with shanks firmly locked into the substrate, start to melt up through the shingles. seems to happen worse with staples, as they're thinner and cut through easier.. but nails to it to.

best fix is to pull the affected nails, pull both shingles, and re-nail (in different spots). but you could just as easily get away with beating them down and sandwiching karnak between the shingles- that's how most roofers seem to handle it. since the nails haven't actually moved since the day they were installed, you shouldn't have any more problems, once the affected nails are dealt with.

contrary to popular myth, slashing the felt is of absolutely zero detriment to the roof, now or ever. if it was, you'd need to tape the seams and would have to glue the shingles down, rather than nail them.


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## roof-lover (Sep 19, 2008)

bkb0000 said:


> contrary to popular myth, slashing the felt is of absolutely zero detriment to the roof, now or ever. QUOTE]
> 
> correct! and your reasoning for slashing the felt.
> cutting through a wrinkle is imperitive!
> ...


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## CompleteW&D (May 28, 2011)

Like others have said, nail pops don't seem to have a rhyme or reason why they happen. Hand nailed, gun nailed, plywood, osb, great ventilation, poor ventilation.... I've seen nail pops on all of them.

The only suggestion I would offer that hasn't been given yet.... I would highly recommend Geocel 2300 Tri Polymer sealant to re seal your shingles. Most guys think regular roofing tar is fine, but it gets brittle eventually and will fail. The 2300 will stick to ANYTHING, stays flexible and is impervious to water. Plus, it's fully approved for use on shingles by all of the roofing manufacturers.

A little more expensive than tar (or roof cement if being politically correct), but a whole lot better for sealing the shingles and any nail holes.


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## johnny37406 (Jan 6, 2012)

The are quite alot of reasons for nailpops. Sometimes just walking on the roof causes them. How far apart are your rafters? As far as fixing them I would recommend not using roofing cement or any other caulk type of sealant incase this revisits you and you have to go back and fix these again. Reset the nail an inch higher and to the left or right. Place a small piece of ice and watershield over the hole thats underneath the exposure.

http://jhurst.blogspot.com


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## smalpierre (Jan 19, 2011)

johnny37406 said:


> The are quite alot of reasons for nailpops. Sometimes just walking on the roof causes them. How far apart are your rafters? As far as fixing them I would recommend not using roofing cement or any other caulk type of sealant incase this revisits you and you have to go back and fix these again. Reset the nail an inch higher and to the left or right. Place a small piece of ice and watershield over the hole thats underneath the exposure.
> 
> http://jhurst.blogspot.com


reset it an inch higher??? High nailing is the most common cause of problems around here. Dimensionals will delaminate and slip down the slope. Probably no a problem if it's only 1 nail in a shingle, but I don't do it.

I like the ice / water shield idea, but once you break the seal strip, you're supposed to reseal it. I use a blob of Geocel 2300 on the hole, and a thin line of it at the seal down.


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## smalpierre (Jan 19, 2011)

roof-lover said:


> bkb0000 said:
> 
> 
> > contrary to popular myth, slashing the felt is of absolutely zero detriment to the roof, now or ever. QUOTE]
> ...


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## bkb0000 (Feb 1, 2009)

smalpierre said:


> How about installing it without wrinkles, it's not difficult.




It doesn't get installed with wrinkles. It becomes wrinkled when it gets wet from dew or rain.


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## Maxon100 (Feb 11, 2015)

Most likely a ventalation problem, probably should figure that out before replacing any shingles or it will be a waste of your time.

http://stormproofroofing.org/


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## blacktop (Oct 28, 2012)

No one mentioned soaking wet OSB?


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## hardtroofing (Jan 23, 2015)

Wow, it does seem to be a combination problem. More than likely after you fix the nail-pops you will only have a couple here and there. I am wondering if the nailer shot straight or at a angle, anyways we take 4in squares of ice-&-water shield carefully lift tab bang it down or pull it and then a nice dab of geo seal. I never had this happen before on a new roof, I have seen it on old 3-tabs oh wel I think I should pay more attention after hearing this!
Thanks,
David


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## muskoka guy (Nov 16, 2013)

Any chance it was shingled with a little ice on the roof. We were doing deficiencies for a large general on a new build they had completed.It was determined that this was the cause of lifted shingles in the case I saw. The shingler had failed to clean the roof properly. Spring came and the ice melted under the shingles, leaving the nails raised when the shingles settled. What we did to fix it was take two six inch drywall knives, sliding one under the shingle on top of the nail. We laid the second one on top and hit it with a hammer. This put the nail down without causing any damage to the shingles. The shingles would reseal with a little sunshine. Took a while as it was about a four hundred bundle roof and there was lots of raised shingles.


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## hardtroofing (Jan 23, 2015)

Have you checked the felt under to see if it is wrinkled? When we install on wrinkled felt we cut slices through the felt to lay it down. This is another thing to consider.
http://www.hardtroofing.com/


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## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

smalpierre said:


> roof-lover said:
> 
> 
> > ice/water on the whole deck prevents the roof from breathing.
> ...


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## madrina (Feb 21, 2013)

Do the nail pops seem to follow a line? Or are they just random? Did you terminate all your decking over rafters? Can we get a picture?


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## oldfrt (Oct 10, 2007)

A lot of times the old pine [email protected] will split when the shingles are nailed on and pop up,especially around the knots.


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