How is it possible to inspect a shake or shingle roof from the ground or eaves? It isn’t!
>
> As someone who spent well over 40 years in the shake and shingle manufacturing industry, including product inspection and certification I know that this sort of roof inspection is not credible, and at best is nothing more than wild guess as to actual compliance with product standards and building codes. I was called in behind these sorts of inspections on many occasions throughout my 20 years with Intertek Testing Services and in most cases found that the “inspector” that doesn’t get on a roof to check it out ends up providing inaccurate findings regarding compliance and/or noncompliance.
>
> If an inspector can’t get on a roof or doesn’t want to properly inspect, then they shouldn’t be commenting on it at all. There have been far too many homeowners that have ended up with noncomplying wood shake and shingle roofs due to some home inspector telling them it was okay based on what he/she could see from the top of a ladder. To take this a step further, most home ispectors that do get on a roof know very little if anything about the actual product standards, therefore many product deficiencies end up being missed or ignored.
>
> Regards
> Larry Badke
Larry, your point is moot.
Our standard of practice does not include commenting on manufacturer or code compliance. Thus, nothing in your post has anything to do with a home inspection.
If you have experienced home inspectors who have provided incorrect analysis of code compliance or manufacturer’s recommendations…they are in error in the mere fact that they provided it, whether or not their information was correct or if they did it from a ladder, from the roof, or from an aerial photograph.
You are probably going to cause damage by walking on a shake roof, especially if it has any age to it the wood gets brittle and can crack with the weight.