The Zone®: Malarkey’s Laminate Nailing Area

Malarkey architectural shingles are manufactured with The Zone® - a patented 1 3/4" nailing area over 3x larger than other laminate shingles that dramatically improves correct fastener placement.

Malarkey Roofing Products was ahead of the game when it announced in December 2000 that it was issued a patent for the development of a unique laminate shingle design called The Zone®. This was a groundbreaking technology that increased the shingle nailing area to three times the size of traditional laminated shingle nailing areas.

Greg Malarkey, SVP at Malarkey Roofing, really understood the perspective of roofing contractors and was a driving force behind creating this innovative design. “After looking at laminate shingle installation, we realized we had to do something to help the roofer,” stated Malarkey. “Improper installation invalidates the warranty and could significantly reduce the life of the roof.”

The motivation behind developing The Zone was that incorrectly driven nails represent the cause of improper shingle installation. This leads to a flawed roofing project that can decrease home values and lead to voided warranties. With an average-sized roof requiring more than 6,000 nails that means the contractor has more than 6,000 chances to make a nailing mistake.

Malarkey’s goal was to create a shingle that provided contractors with a nailing method that would dramatically increase nailing accuracy. That was achieved with The Zone, which exceeds the minimum nailing area recommendations presented by the Asphalt Roofing Manufacturer’s Association. Malarkey’s architectural shingles feature The Zone nailing area to facilitate correct nail placement.

Improperly installed roofs not only lead to the voiding of manufacturer’s warranties but can also produce a condition called troughing. Troughing is caused when the bottom, laminated layer of an architectural shingle, known as the shim, abruptly ends and the top layer of the shingle dips down in the empty space created. The troughing effect is magnified when the shingle is improperly high-nailed and penetrates only the top layer of the shingle, pulling it down and creating a visible trough in the roof design.

When it rains, runoff on the roof can move laterally along the trough and make its way between shingle layers, resulting in potential leaks, especially when fasteners are high-nailed and sit in this trough.  Laminated shingles installed using The Zone have a much larger overlap and fastening area that helps prevent the development of troughing.

The Zone also reduces the chances of a roof experiencing blow-back leaks. When an architectural shingle’s rain seal degrades and loses adhesion, blow-back leaks become a risk. Precipitation amounting to no more than a half inch can penetrate the separated layers and move up the back of an architectural laminated shingle into the roof deck. Combined with troughing, moisture blow-back can prompt the failure of the entire roofing system. The Zone diminishes the blow-back issue by increasing the amount of overlap between shingle layers. In addition to extra overlap coverage, The Zone also creates an additional rain seal for enhanced blow-back protection.

Watch this video to learn more about The Zone and Malarkey Roofing Products

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