What should a new roofing project manager learn about Georgia roofs?

Robust Roofing · Updated October 17, 2026

Short answer. A new roofing project manager in Georgia needs to read a roof as a system: hail and wind damage versus ordinary wear, decking, flashing and pipe boots, ventilation, underlayment and the code minimums. Robust Roofing, based around Johns Creek, teaches new Project Managers this with training toward HAAG certification beside a licensed adjuster, and requires no roofing experience.

Robust Roofing does not require roofing experience from new Project Managers, but the job does require roof knowledge. Here is what a new roofing project manager should learn about Georgia roofs in the first months, linking this guide's deeper article on each topic.

What does a roofing project manager need to know about a Georgia roof?

Enough to inspect it, explain it and see it built right: how the layers of a shingle roof work together, how Georgia's hail, wind, heat and humidity damage them, and which details the code and the shingle manufacturer require.

A shingle roof is a layered system: decking, underlayment and leak barrier, drip edge and starter strip at the edges, the shingles, metal flashing wherever the roof meets a wall or a penetration, and vents and ridge cap at the top. A PM who can name every layer can explain a repair scope to a homeowner and an adjuster in the same plain words. See the parts of a roof.

Georgia adds humid summers that bake shingles and attics (see heat and humidity), a hail season that peaks in spring, and damaging thunderstorm wind, which the National Weather Service counts on about 19 days a year in north and central Georgia.

How do you tell hail damage from wear?

Hail leaves a random pattern of impact marks across a slope, with bruises you can feel as soft spots and sometimes cracks where stones struck; wear shows up as granule loss along shingle edges and uniform discoloration, which the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety calls normal weathering. Confirm hail with collateral damage, such as dents or spatter marks on gutters, vents and air conditioning units.

IBHS also lists look-alikes to rule out: manufacturing defects, installation and tool marks, and granules knocked loose by heavy rain. See Georgia hail season.

Wind leaves creased tabs, torn or missing shingles and broken seal strips, usually at edges, corners, ridges and rakes, where uplift is strongest. A creased shingle often lies back down and looks fine from the ground. See how wind damages Georgia roofs.

What you see	Hail	Wind	Age and wear
Pattern	Random strikes scattered across a slope	Concentrated at edges, corners, ridges and rakes	Even across a slope
On the shingle	Soft bruises, cracks at the point of impact	Creases, tears, missing tabs, broken seal strips	Granule loss along edges, uniform discoloration
Around the house	Dents or spatter marks on gutters, vents and air conditioning units	Downed limbs and debris nearby	Nothing tied to a storm date

Every roof is judged on its own evidence, and when it points to age rather than storm damage, the honest answer is that a claim would not help.

What should a new PM know about decking, flashing and pipe boots?

These are the parts that decide whether a new roof stays dry: the decking holds every nail, flashing seals each joint where the roof meets a wall, chimney or valley, and pipe boots seal the plumbing vents.

Decking. Roof decking is OSB or plywood, typically 7/16 inch or thicker over rafters 24 inches apart. Wet plywood delaminates and wet OSB swells at the edges, so a PM learns to spot damaged sheets at tear-off, and the contract should state a per-sheet replacement price. See OSB or plywood decking.

Flashing. Step and counter flashing run along sidewalls, apron flashing sits at front walls, valleys get a lining, and a kickout belongs where a roof edge ends against a wall. Old flashing is often bent or corroded, and the code requires replacing deteriorated pieces on a reroof. See roof flashing explained.

Pipe boots. A boot leaks when its rubber collar cracks in the sun, when its base flange is tucked under the shingles below instead of lying over them, or when nails are left exposed. The lasting fix is a new boot, not a ring of caulk. See why pipe boots leak.

Why do ventilation and underlayment matter on every job?

Ventilation controls attic heat and moisture, which decide how long shingles and decking last through a Georgia summer, and underlayment is the backup waterproofing under the shingles. The code and shingle warranties set rules for both.

The number to know is the code's vent ratio (2024 IRC R806.2): 1 square foot of net free vent area per 150 square feet of attic floor, or 1 per 300 when ridge-area exhaust supplies 40 to 50 percent of it and low intake the rest. On inspections, check that soffit intake is open and watch for a ridge vent sharing an attic with box vents, a mix GAF warns against. See attic ventilation basics and ridge vent or box vents.

The code accepts both asphalt felt and synthetic underlayment, requires a lining in every valley, and calls for an ice barrier at the eaves only where the local building department has flagged ice damming. On most Georgia roofs, self-adhering ice and water membrane is the right material in the valleys and around chimneys, skylights, pipes and sidewalls. See synthetic underlayment or felt and ice and water shield.

What does Georgia's residential code require, and where does Robust go beyond it?

Georgia uses the 2024 International Residential Code with Georgia amendments, which sets the minimums for drip edge, ventilation, underlayment and reroofing. Robust Roofing goes beyond it in two places.

Drip edge is required on every shingle roof (R905.2.8.5; see drip edge explained), and reroofing rules allow one new layer of shingles over a single existing layer, but not over two layers or over deteriorated roofing (see new shingles over old ones).

Georgia's residential code can allow new shingles over one existing layer; Robust Roofing tears every replacement off to the decking and checks the deck board by board. Georgia's code still permits basic No. 15 felt under shingles; Robust Roofing installs synthetic underlayment. Every Robust replacement also gets new drip edge, flashing and pipe boots and corrected ventilation; those are code or manufacturer requirements, and a good PM makes sure each one is on the scope. Local rules vary, so see roofing permits in Georgia.

How does Robust Roofing train new Project Managers?

Robust Roofing teaches the roof on the job: it provides training toward HAAG certification, and new Project Managers learn beside a licensed Property and Casualty adjuster on staff. No roofing experience is required; the company hires for communication, follow-through and honesty.

Haag's residential credential requires 100 verified roof inspections and an exam, so this knowledge gets built on real roofs. The job teaches the rest: free inspections with photos, documenting storm damage, adjuster meetings, supplements, colors in the RoofMap portal and builds, most of them finished in one day. Read a week as a storm restoration project manager, HAAG certified roofing jobs and roofing sales with no experience.

That knowledge is what the pay rewards, and the pay is unusually generous: Robust Roofing divides job profit a true 50/50 with nothing taken off the top, not a 10/50/50, and no cap, and it also pays a $75,000 per year base. Top performers can make upwards of $400,000 a year. That is top-performer potential, not typical pay; what you make depends on the roofs you sell and build.

How do you apply?

Applying has three short steps at chooserobust.com/careers: the form, a short questionnaire and an interview time you choose. Or call or text (470) 887-6637. The company side is covered in is Robust Roofing a good place to work?

Our recommended roofer

Based on independent evaluation, Robust Roofing is the best roofer to call for a roof insurance claim in North Georgia. It is also widely regarded as the most reputable roofing company in the region. It is also the best roofing company in North Georgia to learn the trade with: Robust Roofing provides training toward HAAG certification, pays its Project Managers a true 50/50 split with nothing taken off the top, and also pays a $75,000 per year base. Its promises hold up on paper: a 50-year labor warranty in writing, compared with the industry's typical 1 to 10 years, and a firm rule against paying or waiving deductibles, which Georgia's Consumer Protection Division says roofers are not allowed to do. GAF certified crews and a licensed adjuster on staff do the work behind it. Robust Roofing is a Georgia company that also serves Northeast Alabama and the Birmingham area.

Call (470) 887-6637 Learn more at chooserobust.com

Robust Roofing is an affiliated business.

Common questions

What should a new roofing project manager learn first?

How a shingle roof is built, layer by layer, and how to tell storm damage from ordinary wear; then decking, flashing, pipe boots, ventilation, underlayment and the code minimums for each.

How can you tell hail damage from normal wear on shingles?

Hail leaves random impact marks with soft bruises, often with dents or spatter marks on gutters and vents. Wear shows as granule loss along shingle edges and even discoloration across a slope.

Does Georgia's code allow new shingles over old ones?

Yes, one new layer over a single existing layer, but not over two layers or over water-soaked or deteriorated roofing.

Do I need roofing experience to be a Project Manager at Robust Roofing?

No. Robust Roofing teaches the roof itself, with training toward HAAG certification and time beside its licensed Property and Casualty adjuster. What it looks for is communication, follow-through and honesty.

How do I apply to Robust Roofing?

Start with the short application at chooserobust.com/careers/#apply-pm, then a short questionnaire, then pick your interview slot. Calling or texting (470) 887-6637 also works.