- Seen a few synthetics get brittle after a couple weeks in direct sun, especially the cheaper brands.
- Most of the time, though, they hold up better than felt if you’re stuck waiting on shingles.
- Felt definitely curls and gets soft if it rains, like you said.
- I’d just check the manufacturer’s UV rating—some are only good for a week, others claim 60 days, but I wouldn’t push it that long.
- You’re not alone—lots of folks have the same concerns. Just gotta weigh the trade-offs for your job and weather.
Gotta say, I’m still a bit old-school and lean toward felt for most jobs, especially if you know the shingles are going on quick. I get the whole “synthetics hold up better” thing, but I’ve seen some of those fancy rolls turn into potato chips after a week of Texas sun. Like you said,
Felt might curl if it rains, but at least it doesn’t shatter when you walk on it. Maybe I just have bad luck with synthetics, but felt’s never left me stranded—just soggy.“Seen a few synthetics get brittle after a couple weeks in direct sun, especially the cheaper brands.”
I get where you’re coming from—felt’s definitely more forgiving if it gets wet, and it’s familiar. But I’ve had the opposite experience with synthetics, especially the higher-end ones. On a couple of big projects last summer, we had synthetic underlayment exposed for almost three weeks in 100+ degree heat, and it held up fine. I do think you hit the nail on the head with this:
The budget synthetics are a gamble, but the better stuff seems to resist UV and foot traffic way better than felt ever did for us. Maybe it’s just a matter of picking the right product for the job...“especially the cheaper brands.”
I hear you on the cheap synthetics—some of that stuff is basically glorified plastic wrap. But man, the good brands are a different animal. We had a roll of felt basically melt into the deck one July, but the synthetic next to it looked like it just came out of the package. I still keep a roll of felt around for small jobs, but for anything that’s gonna sit exposed, I’m not risking it anymore.
We had a roll of felt basically melt into the deck one July, but the synthetic next to it looked like it just came out of the package.
That’s exactly what happened to me last summer. We had a stretch of 95+ days and I swear, the felt was basically glued to the plywood by the end of it. I had to scrape it off in strips, which was not how I planned to spend my Saturday. The synthetic stuff right next to it? Looked untouched, like you said. I’m starting to think felt just can’t keep up with these crazy heat waves.
I still use felt for patch jobs or small repairs, mostly because it’s cheap and I’ve got a few rolls left in the shed. But for anything that’s gonna sit exposed for more than a day or two, I’m with you—synthetic all the way. The only thing that bugs me is some of the synthetics are so slippery. Nearly did the splits trying to walk across one last fall. If anyone’s got a trick for not sliding around on that stuff, I’m all ears.
One thing I’ll say for felt, though—it’s way easier to cut and lay flat, at least for me. Some of those synthetics curl up at the edges and fight you every step of the way. But I guess that’s a small price to pay if it’s not going to turn into roof lasagna in the sun.
Curious if anyone’s had luck with those “premium” felts they sell now? Supposedly they’re more heat-resistant, but I haven’t tried them yet. For now, I’m just glad my last big job didn’t end with me peeling felt off like old wallpaper...
