Roofing crew installing shingles on a house in Stony Brook, New York

Alec's Construction repairs and replaces roofs in Stony Brook (11790) — leaks traced to the cause, flashings and valleys, wind and ice-dam damage, and full tear-off replacements — working out of the yard in East Patchogue. Repairs and sheet-metal work run straight through the winter; replacements go on with the warm days.

Roofs in Stony Brook

Stony Brook roofs face the Sound. The harbour at the bottom of the hill is shallow and opens north, and a northeast wind comes straight across the water and up the slope. Up toward the university the streets are 1950s to 70s colonials and splits on wooded lots under some of the biggest oaks and tulip trees on the North Shore, and their north-facing roofs and gable ends take the wind first. Those same north slopes get the least sun, so under that canopy they stay damp, collect moss and wear differently from the south side of the same house. Around the village green and the Grist Mill are 1700s and 1800s houses with steep roofs, chimneys and wood details. The Villages of Head of the Harbor and Old Field on either side run their own building departments. On a Stony Brook house, the north slope is the one to watch.

What We Look at First in Stony Brook

On a Stony Brook colonial we compare the north and south slopes side by side. If the north side is soft, mossy or losing granules while the south side is fine, that tells us shade and wind are the problem and a repair may hold. If both sides are worn, it is a replacement. Then gable ends, ridge and chimney. We confirm whether the address files with Brookhaven or one of the villages next door.

North Shore Roofs: Steep, Old and Facing the Sound

The harbour hamlets have some of the oldest and most complicated roofs in Suffolk — steep pitches, several valleys, dormers and chimneys — and a northeast wind off the Sound and the harbour that finds every weak flashing on the north side first. On a roof like that, the shingles are the easy part. The roof is mostly its flashings and valleys.

A leak on an older North Shore house is traced, not guessed at. Water often enters at a chimney, a dormer cheek or a valley and runs along the sheathing before it shows on a ceiling several feet away. The repair is at the entry point: step flashing woven with the courses, counterflashing let into the mortar joint, a proper valley rather than a bead of roof cement.

The north-facing slopes on these hills hold snow longest and see the least winter sun, which is where ice dams form. A roof that ice-dams every winter has an attic problem underneath it, and the roof repair includes saying so.

Failed step flashing and old roof cement where a chimney meets the shingles

Leaks Are Flashing Problems Until Proven Otherwise

The open field of a roof almost never leaks. Water gets in where the roof meets something else — a chimney, a wall, a dormer, a valley, a vent pipe, a skylight — and on a great many Long Island roofs that flashing was done once, failed, and has been covered in roof cement ever since. Roof cement goes brittle within a few winters and hides the failure while the water keeps getting in.

So a repair starts by finding where the water actually enters, which is often several feet from where the stain shows, and fixing the flashing there. Repairs, flashing and sheet-metal work run all winter. Full asphalt replacements go on the warmer days, and shingles laid in the cold are hand-sealed so they hold in the first wind.

Permits in Stony Brook

Stony Brook hamlet files with the Town of Brookhaven at Independence Hill in Farmingville; the Village of Head of the Harbor and the Village of Old Field on either side run their own building departments. The harbour-front streets are in the mapped flood zone. Roof replacement is permitted work in most of Suffolk, and the limit on shingle layers decides whether the old roof has to come off — on our jobs it comes off regardless. We file the permit.

Alex walks the house in Stony Brook, photographs what he finds and gives you a written scope in the order the work has to happen — whether or not you hire us. Call (631) 312-7441 to set up a time.

Frequently Asked Questions

The north slope of my Stony Brook colonial stays green and wet. Is the roof failing?

Not necessarily, but it is wearing faster than the south side. On a north-facing slope under oaks and tulip trees the sun rarely dries it, so moss and algae grow, hold water and lift shingle edges. Then the wind off the Sound gets under those edges. If the shingles are still flat and the deck is firm, clean it, cut back the canopy and add zinc or copper strips. If they are curling or soft underfoot, plan to replace that slope.

Where does a roof in Stony Brook usually leak?

At the flashings, not the field. Chimneys, valleys, dormer walls, skylights, plumbing vents and roof-to-wall joints are where water gets in, and roof cement over an old flashing is the most common failed repair on Long Island. The entry point is often not above the stain, so the first job is tracing it.

Does a new roof fix ice dams on a Stony Brook house?

Not by itself. Ice dams come from attic heat melting snow that refreezes at the cold eave. Ice-and-water membrane at the eaves limits the damage, but the cure is air sealing and ventilation in the attic so the roof deck stays cold. We look at the attic on every roof walkthrough.

Who issues the permit for roofing work in Stony Brook?

Stony Brook hamlet files with the Town of Brookhaven at Independence Hill in Farmingville; the Village of Head of the Harbor and the Village of Old Field on either side run their own building departments. The harbour-front streets are in the mapped flood zone. Roof replacement is permitted work in most of Suffolk, and the limit on shingle layers decides whether the old roof has to come off — on our jobs it comes off regardless. We file the permit.

Related Guides

Work With Alec's Construction

This page is written by the crew that does the work. See Alec's Roofing service — tear-offs, repairs, flashing and storm damage across Suffolk County. One crew from the first walkthrough to the last inspection.

Also in Stony Brook through the cold months: Seamless Gutters and Attic Insulation.

Also Serving Stony Brook

Talk to Alec's Construction About Roofing in Stony Brook

We come out, look at the house, photograph what we find and put a written scope in your hand. No pressure, no obligation. Working across Suffolk County since 2018.

Or call (631) 312-7441

No cost, no obligation. We reply the same day.