How to Build a Roofing Material Order From a Measurement

A roofing material order is your measurement turned into the lines a supplier ships: each product in the unit the yard sells it, plus where, when and how to drop it. Build it line by line from the measured area, edge footage and counts, round each line up once, and read it back against the roof before you send it.

What a supplier-ready order contains#

The counter can pull it without a callback when it has:

• Product line and color for the shingles, cap in the same color.
• Quantity in the yard's unit: bundles, rolls, 10 ft sticks, pieces, boxes.
• Profile or size where it matters: drip edge profile and color, pipe boot sizes.
• Job name, PO number and delivery address, written out.
• Drop type: boom delivery to the roof or a ground drop, and where on the lot.
• Date, time window and an on-site contact; gate codes and overhead wires go in the notes.

How each line comes off the measurement#

Every line starts from an area, a footage or a count. Divide by what one unit covers and round up.

Coverage changes between products, starter and cap most of all. The wrapper and the manufacturer's instructions beat every figure here.

Waste and rounding#

Waste covers field off-cuts: courses cut at hips, valleys and rakes. It goes on field shingles and nails, and on underlayment, which gets cut at hips and valleys too. Waste factor by roof type covers picking the number. Linear lines start at straight footage ÷ coverage, rounded up; carrying the field percentage onto them is the cautious option, not a rule. Counted lines get counted.

Round each line once, at the last step, in the unit it ships in. The exception is step flashing: it rounds per wall, because each wall's last course needs a whole piece of its own.

A worked example#

The measurement: a hip roof with a gable wing at 7/12, 2,630 sq ft true area (26.3 squares), 192 lf of eaves, 26 lf of rakes, 88 lf of hips, 52 lf of ridge, two closed-cut valleys totaling 31 lf (no valley metal), three plumbing vents (two 1½ in., one 3 in.) and a chimney with two 3 ft sides. Waste: 12%. Coverage figures are assumptions.

• Shingles: 26.3 × 1.12 = 29.46 squares × 3 bundles a square = 88.4 → 89 bundles. Rounding to 30 squares first buys 90.
• Synthetic underlayment: 2,630 × 1.12 = 2,946 sq ft ÷ 1,000 sq ft a roll after laps = 2.95 → 3 rolls. If your roll nets less than 982 sq ft, order 4.
• Starter, eaves and rakes: 192 + 26 = 218 lf ÷ 105 lf per bundle = 2.08 → 3 bundles.
• Hip & ridge cap: 88 + 52 = 140 lf ÷ 25 lf per bundle = 5.6 → 6 bundles. Rounding hips (3.52 → 4) and ridge (2.08 → 3) separately buys 7.
• Ice & water, one 36 in. course: 192 lf of eave + 31 lf of valley = 223 lf ÷ about 66 lf per 200 sq ft roll = 3.38 → 4 rolls.
• Drip edge, eaves and rakes: 218 lf ÷ 9.83 ft (a 10 ft stick less a 2 in. lap) = 22.2 → 23 sticks.
• Step flashing: 36 in. ÷ 5⅝ in. exposure = 6.4 → 7 a side → 14 pieces.
• Coil nails, four a shingle: 89 bundles × 22 a bundle × 4 = 7,832 ÷ 7,200 a box = 1.09 → 2 boxes.
• Pipe boots: two 1½ in. and one 3 in.

Check the order against the roof#

• Starter matches the edges you start on: eaves only is 192 ÷ 105 = 1.83 → 2 bundles, eaves and rakes 3.
• Cap covers hips plus ridge. Ridge vent goes on the ridge only.
• Ice & water covers every valley and the eave band. How far up the eave is the manufacturer's and local code's call.
• Flashing: step flashing on every sidewall, a boot for every pipe, and the chimney apron and back pan, or a note that you bend them on site.
• Drip edge is eaves plus rakes: the same 218 lf as the starter line when you start the rakes.

When a line runs short on the day#

Call the branch that morning with the job address, the original PO number, the line and the quantity. Then find out why. A short field line usually means the waste was low for that roof; a short linear line means a missed footage or the wrong coverage. Fix the input, not just the order.

Where RoofStruct fits#

RoofStruct gives you free, unlimited self-serve measuring and PDF reports, no card. You trace the roof yourself on satellite imagery or your own drone or phone photo, and the measurement gives you the true area and the footage of every edge type, flashing runs included.

On Pro, the Material Order Builder fills shingles, starter, cap, underlayment, ice & water, drip edge, valley metal, flashing, nails and sealant from that measurement, at the waste % saved on it, so set the waste there first. Pipe boots you add yourself. Smart Waste suggests the percentage from the roof's valleys, facets, hips and pitch; you apply it or not. Every line is editable and carries no price until you type one. Add the delivery date, time window, address, contact and drop notes, and it emails the order to a supplier you've saved.

Two catches. The builder carries the waste onto starter, cap, drip edge and ice & water too, so those lines run above straight footage; edit them if you order at footage. And a saved order doesn't follow later measurement edits: create a new one.

Where you trip#

• Copying last job's order. Same squares, different roof: valleys, rakes and walls move lines the square count never shows.
• Leaving the drop to the driver. No drop type and no spot on the lot, and the pallets land on the driveway you need for the dumpster.
• Ordering off plan area. A footprint shorts every pitched roof; order from true area.

FAQ#

How do I convert squares to bundles?#

Order squares × the bundles per square on the wrapper, rounded up once in bundles. Three a square is common for laminated shingles; heavier lines can take more.

Do starter and hip & ridge cap get the waste percentage?#

Not by rule. On the example roof, 12% on the cap is 140 lf × 1.12 = 156.8 lf ÷ 25 = 6.3 → 7 bundles, one more than straight footage.

Do prices belong on the order I send?#

They don't have to. The yard needs products, quantities, units and delivery details to pull it; pricing is between you and your account rep.

The short version#

Divide, round once in the yard's unit, read it back against the roof, send it.