How do you deal with different production dates

how do you deal with different date codes? being a shingle dropper i try to use the different dates on a smaller roof on the house so i can match the dates on the same roof but what do you do when you cant match the dates and they need to be put on the same roof slope. OC doesn’t matter since there no dates or codes but everyone else sure does and dont always match in color. we have a job on monday that i saw the pallets delivered had two different dates. there atlas storm master shakes not sure how they are for color matching, i think i can get the dates to match up for different roof lines but i am curious what you would do if you had to mix and match on the same slope. also do shingle companies pre rot pallets before they put the singles on them?
thanks jeff
jeff

[quote=“pbycatalina”]how do you deal with different date codes? being a shingle dropper i try to use the different dates on a smaller roof on the house so i can match the dates on the same roof but what do you do when you cant match the dates and they need to be put on the same roof slope. OC doesn’t matter since there no dates or codes but everyone else sure does and dont always match in color. we have a job on monday that i saw the pallets delivered had two different dates. there atlas storm master shakes not sure how they are for color matching, i think i can get the dates to match up for different roof lines but i am curious what you would do if you had to mix and match on the same slope. also do shingle companies pre rot pallets before they put the singles on them?
thanks jeff
jeff[/quote]

Your friendly neighborhood roofing supplier is supposed to manage inventory in such as way that no 1 job has mixed date codes.

When you receive mixed codes you should send them back to the supplier that they came from.

Don’t deal with it. On your purchase order, include a line specifying the date/factory codes are the same for all the field shingles delivered for the order. If the date codes vary when delivered, call the supplier immediately to fix the problem. If the supplier repeatedly screws this up, get a new supplier. This simply shouldn’t be a problem.

I picked up a bundle of GAF Timberlines in the color Shakewood from Home Depot the other day for a repair job. During the repair a larger than expected area had to be torn out and that left me about a half bundle short.

One of the local regular type roofing suppliers was close by so I went there and got another bundle of the Shakewood. The shadow line was much darker than the first bundle and it stood out so much that I had tear the half bundle back off and go back to Home Depot. Sigh!

You should tell your boss that the supplier is delivering mixed date codes and let him deal with it. If he says it doesn’t matter, then start nailing them to the roof and let him worry about it after. I was told by an employer once that if I wanted the shingles switched out it was going to be my time and energy that did it.

But if your pride gets the best of you, and your employer won’t do anything about it, then yeah, try to save one date code for each piece if you can. Use odd date bundles for valleys, or the top two rows of a section. Pick a piece of roof that can’t be seen from the ground (if one exists) and put the mix on there.

If you have to use them, make sure you mix up the shingles between the two batches when you apply them. It is a pain, but the result isn’t terribly bad.

Try not to put them on the same roof
Try not to put them on the same roof slope.
However, i know You can be very satisfying if you make sure that all the shingles stay in different roof slopes.

my boss often gets discounts for taking mixed dates and the fact that i drop them i go tru painful planning making sure we have enough of each dates the go into each slope or separate roof, usually i ask him to order 20% extra when he does this but i like i idea of using them in a valley or keeping them in the first few row if we fell short. just curious how much extra do others order when you know the exact roof sqft. not just the guessing method and adding in for pitch.
thanks jeff

[quote=“pbycatalina”]just curious how much extra do others order when you know the exact roof sqft. not just the guessing method and adding in for pitch.
thanks jeff[/quote]

5 - 15% depending on the roof style.