The Men With Tools replaces residential shingle roofs in Summit, NJ (07901) and across Union County. We install with expert installers, back every job with a lifetime warranty, and run a 60-point installation checklist on every roof.
Founded in 2014, we've completed over 10,000 installations across Staten Island and New Jersey. Our work is residential shingle replacement only; we do not do flat, low-slope, or commercial roofing.
For Summit homeowners with older, established homes on wooded lots, where mature oaks, decades of freeze-thaw, and steep original rooflines all shorten a roof's life, the difference between a crew that respects the house and one that treats it like a tear-off is the whole job. Every estimate starts with a full inspection and a written scope, not a number scribbled at the curb.
Summit roofs age differently — and it's usually the trees
Drive through the streets off Springfield Avenue or up toward the northside and you're under canopy the whole way. Summit's mature oak and maple cover is part of what makes the town, and it's also the single biggest reason roofs here wear out early. Leaf litter and seed debris hold moisture against shingles and in valleys. Overhanging limbs drop grit that abrades the granule surface every time it rains. Shaded north-facing slopes stay damp long enough to grow moss and algae that lift and cup shingles from underneath.
None of that shows up as a dramatic leak. It shows up as a roof that's quietly ten years past its real service life while still looking "fine" from the street, right up until a wind-driven storm finds the weak seam. On an established Summit home, by the time water reaches the plaster, it's already been in the deck for a while.
Older homes deserve a crew that reads them, not just re-shingles them
A lot of Summit's housing stock predates 1960, center-hall colonials, Tudors, and older capes with original framing, multiple planes, and rooflines that were built by hand, not stamped out. Those roofs don't come apart like a 2005 subdivision. Skip-sheathing, layered old work, brittle flashing at the chimneys and dormers, and decking that's seen sixty winters — a crew that isn't paying attention creates more problems than it solves.
That's why we send expert installers. The person on your roof works for The Men With Tools, has been vetted and trained here, and answers to our standard, not a day-rate handoff to whoever a broker could book that week. On an older home, that difference is the roof.
What "done right" actually means on a Summit replacement
Our 60-point installation checklist governs every job, and on established homes the details that matter most are the ones nobody sees from the ground:
- Deck inspection and repair — we pull the old roof, look at what's underneath, and tell you the truth about the decking before we cover it back up. No re-roofing over rot.
- Flashing done in metal, not caulk — chimneys, valleys, dormers, and wall transitions are where older Summit roofs actually fail. We re-flash them properly.
- Full underlayment and ice-and-water protection — Union County's freeze-thaw cycle drives ice damming at the eaves; we detail for it.
- Ventilation corrected — a lot of older homes have starved attic ventilation that cooks shingles from below. We fix the system, not just the surface.
- Clean site, every day — magnetic nail sweep, protected plantings, and a property that looks better when we leave than a job site.
And when it's finished, we're not gone. Our lifetime labor warranty means if anything ever moves, our founder's team stands behind the work, for as long as you own the home.
See Our Work
Residential shingle replacement only — and that's on purpose
We replace residential shingle roofs. That's it. We don't do flat, low-slope, TPO, rubber, or commercial work, and we don't pretend to. Specialists beat generalists, and on a house you plan to keep, or hand down, you want the crew that does one thing every single day.
If your Summit roof is showing its age, the right move is a real assessment before the next storm makes the decision for you.
Union Roof Replacement FAQs
Yes — established homes are most of what we do in Summit. Older colonials, Tudors, and capes with original framing and multiple rooflines need a crew that inspects the decking and re-flashes properly rather than shingling over problems. Our employee crews handle that as standard, and the 60-point checklist covers it.
The honest answer comes from an inspection, not a phone quote. We look at granule loss, flashing condition, decking, and ventilation, then give you a written scope. On heavily shaded, tree-covered lots common in Summit, roofs often age faster than the shingle warranty suggests, so a roof that looks fine can be near the end.
It covers the material for as long as you own the home.
No. We do residential shingle replacement only, no flat, low-slope, TPO, rubber, or commercial work. We keep our crews specialized so every roof gets a team that does this every day.
Your Summit home is worth doing right.
Free assessment, written scope, employee crews, lifetime labor warranty.