The Bel Air hills are in the Very High fire zone, and every re-roof here is Class A.
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If the roof still has good years left, the report tells you.
Roof replacement and free written roof inspections across Bel Air. After the 1961 fire, the Los Angeles Fire Department counted what the lost buildings had on their roofs, and most were wood. The same fire led to the city’s first mountain fire district. Today the Bel Air hills are in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, and every re-roof here is Class A.
Deck, underlayment, then shingles or tile. The underlayment keeps the water out, and you can only check it from up on the roof.
What we check on a Bel Air roof
The roof decided the odds
The fire department’s own report found that nearly 30 percent of wood-roofed buildings in the fire area were destroyed. Of the buildings with other roof coverings, fewer than 12 percent were.
The fire zone began here
The city created its Mountain Fire District in January 1963 as a direct result of the Bel Air Fire. It became today’s Very High zone in 1999, and portions of Bel Air Estates and Beverly Glen are inside it.
Not only history
In December 2017 the Skirball Fire came up from the Sepulveda Pass, destroyed six homes in Bel Air and damaged 12 more, according to the LAFD. The report records the roof edges, vents and gutters where embers land.
Before the rain in Bel Air
Canyon streets, mature trees and large hillside roofs.
Canyon lots and runoff
Homes along Stone Canyon and the side canyons sit above and below steep ground. Where the roof water goes in a long storm matters as much as whether the roof holds.
Valleys under the trees
Big roofs have long valleys, and mature trees fill them with leaves in fall. A blocked valley sends water sideways under the roofing instead of down to the gutter.
After the wind
Late fall wind through the passes loosens ridge pieces and edge metal. The winter rain then works into whatever moved, so we look right after the wind, not after the first leak.
Before the first big storm: book the free roof check, or read our winter storm roof guide.
From our roofs
Recent MAMOS roofing work: shingle re-roofs, flat ADU roofs and tile.
The rules that apply to a Bel Air roof
City of Los Angeles rules for the Very High zone. They follow the parcel, not the street name.
Inside the Very High zone a new or replacement roof must carry a Class A rating. Permits come from the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety.
Replace more than 10 percent of a roof in twelve months and the whole roof has to conform. Wood shake and shingle are not permitted.
Brush clearance around structures is required in the Very High zone and is inspected by the fire department.
We get on the roof, photograph what we find and write it up.
Get my free reportWhere a large Bel Air roof shows its age
Most Bel Air homes are detached houses on hillside lots, and the median one was built in 1970. On roofs that size, the valleys, skylights and later additions are where age shows first. The report puts each one in writing, with dated photographs.
of the 505 structures destroyed in the 1961 Bel Air Fire had wood roof coverings, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department’s report on the fire.
Roof questions in Bel Air
Repair or replace?
Usually the underlayment decides it, and you have to get on the roof to check that. The report gives you the answer, with photos.
What does a new roof change for my insurer?
Most letters name roof age. The permit and completion papers show the new roof’s date; what the carrier does with them is its decision.
My roof is tile. Is it already Class A?
Often, but the rating belongs to the whole assembly, not the tile alone. The underlayment, the edges and any older sections all count. The report tells you what is on the roof and where it falls short, in writing.
Know what is on your roof, section by section.
Roof age, remaining life and fire zone status for your parcel, with dated photographs. On a large roof that can mean a full replacement, or one section now and a few more years from the rest.
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Request your report
Fire zone status, Class A assembly and remaining roof life for your parcel. We call back within 15 minutes: 8am to 5pm Monday to Thursday, 8am to 2pm Friday.
Got it.
Rather talk? Call (818) 934-0075.
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Bel Air · Stone Canyon · Beverly Glen · Holmby Hills
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