Tile Roof Repair,
Relay & Installation
The tile on a Florida roof usually outlives the roof itself. Knowing which one has failed — the tile or the membrane beneath it — is the difference between a repair, a relay at a fraction of the cost, and a full replacement you may not need.
The Tile Isn't the Roof.
The Underlayment Is.
Concrete and clay tile is remarkable material — a well-made tile can last fifty years or more in Florida sun. But tile is not what keeps water out of your house. It's armour for the waterproof membrane underneath, and that membrane is what actually fails, usually somewhere between year fifteen and twenty-five.
This is why "my tile roof is leaking" almost never means the tile has failed. It means the underlayment beneath it has reached the end of its life while the tile above it still has decades left.
And that changes the economics completely. If your tile is sound, we can lift it, replace the membrane with modern peel-and-stick underlayment, and relay your original tile — for roughly 60–70% of what a full replacement costs. No new tile to buy, no colour-matching problem, no six-month manufacturer lead time.
Roof Replacement by Expert Roofing Services
Three Kinds of Tile Work.
Very Different Price Tags.
Most companies quote whichever one pays them best. The honest answer depends on two things: the condition of your underlayment, and whether your tile profile is still made.
Tile Repair
Cracked or slipped tiles from foot traffic, fallen branches, or storm impact. Broken ridge caps, failed valley flashing, deteriorated mortar or foam at the hips and ridges. If the underlayment beneath is intact, this is a repair — not a project.
Lift & Relay
We remove your existing tile, stack and protect it, replace the underlayment with a modern self-adhered membrane, replace flashings and battens as required, and relay your original tile. New roof underneath, same roof on top.
Full Replacement
Tear-off to the deck, decking replaced per sheet at a price agreed up front, new underlayment, and new tile in the profile and colour you choose. Permit filed, inspections scheduled, warranty registered in your name.
Tile Profiles for Florida Homes
Concrete and clay, barrel and flat. Every profile below carries Florida Product Approval and is installed to the fastening schedule your wind zone requires.
Barcelona 900
The classic high-barrel Spanish profile. The strongest shadow lines of any concrete tile and the signature Mediterranean look.
Barcelona 900 → Westlake RoyalVilla 900
A softer double-roll barrel — Mediterranean character with a lower, more uniform profile than Barcelona.
Villa 900 → Westlake RoyalSaxony 900 Slate
Flat profile with a split-slate texture. The estate look of natural slate in engineered concrete.
Saxony 900 → Westlake RoyalEstate
Clean flat profile with crisp edges — the contemporary choice for modern and transitional architecture.
Estate → EagleCapistrano
Eagle's double-barrel Mission profile — one of the most widely installed tiles in Florida, which makes matching easier.
Capistrano → EagleBel Air
A medium flat profile with a subtle surface texture — versatile across Spanish, ranch, and contemporary homes.
Bel Air →What Tile Work in Florida Actually Involves
—Attachment: foam, screws, or both
Florida allows mechanical fastening, foam adhesive, or hybrid systems — and your wind zone decides which. High-Velocity Hurricane Zone work carries its own approvals and schedules. We match the attachment method to your address, not to whatever's on the truck.
—Weight and structure
Concrete tile runs 900–1,100 lbs per square — roughly four times shingle. Moving from shingle to tile means verifying the structure can carry it. Our general contracting licence (CGC1533052) covers the engineering conversation and any structural work, so the job doesn't stall between two contractors.
—Discontinued profiles
Plenty of Florida tile is no longer manufactured. For repairs we source reclaimed tile where we can, and harvest matching pieces from hidden slopes when we can't. When too little is salvageable, we'll show you the arithmetic that says relay or replace.
—Coastal fasteners
Salt air doesn't hurt the tile — it attacks the fasteners, flashings, and valley metal holding the system together. On barrier islands and riverfront work we specify stainless fasteners and aluminium flashings as standard. See our underlayment & SWR page for what goes beneath.
—Foot traffic is the #1 killer
More tile is broken by AC technicians, pressure washers, and satellite installers than by storms. Every crack is a future leak path into the membrane. If trades have been on your roof, an inspection afterward is cheap insurance.
—Insurance and wind mitigation
A relay with modern peel-and-stick underlayment can qualify as a Secondary Water Resistance credit on your wind mitigation report. We document it properly — see wind mitigation inspection — because most owners are paying premiums that ignore features nobody recorded.
Two Things You Can Check From the Ground
Look along the ridges and hips. Crumbling mortar or lifted ridge caps are the most common entry points on an ageing tile roof — and among the cheapest things to fix early.
Look for tiles that don't match the plane. A slipped or rotated tile reads as a shadow break in the pattern. One slipped tile is a five-minute fix; the same tile ignored for two rainy seasons is a decking repair.
Tile Roofing FAQs
My tile roof is leaking. Does that mean I need a new roof?
Usually not. Tile leaks are almost always a failure of the underlayment, flashing, or ridge mortar — not the tile itself. If your tile is sound, a repair or a lift & relay solves it for far less than replacement. The inspection tells us which, and you keep the photo report either way.
What does a lift & relay cost compared to replacement?
Typically 60–70% of a full replacement, because the largest single line item — new tile — disappears. You're paying for labour, new underlayment, flashings, battens, and replacement of whatever tile breaks in handling (some always does; we price an allowance up front rather than surprising you later).
How long does the underlayment under tile actually last?
Traditional felt underlayment under Florida tile runs roughly 15–25 years depending on ventilation and installation quality. Modern self-adhered membranes are a different class of material — which is why a relay isn't just a patch, it's a genuine reset of the roof's working life under tile that goes on to serve for decades more.
My tile profile is discontinued. Can you still repair it?
Usually. We source reclaimed tile from salvage suppliers, and for small counts we harvest matching tiles from low-visibility slopes and substitute the closest match where nobody sees it. When the salvageable count is too low, we'll show you the numbers on relay versus replacement rather than guessing on your behalf.
Can I switch from shingle to tile?
Often, but not automatically. Concrete tile weighs roughly four times what shingle does, so the structure has to be verified first. We hold both a roofing licence (CCC1332394) and a general contracting licence (CGC1533052), so if reinforcement is needed, it's one contractor and one permit path — not a stalled job while you find a second company.
Is foam adhesive or mechanical fastening better?
Neither is universally better — your wind zone, roof geometry, and the tile's Florida Product Approval decide what's permitted at your address. High-Velocity Hurricane Zone work has its own schedules entirely. We spec the attachment to the approval, and it's documented in the permit file you keep.
Will a relay help my insurance?
It can. A relay installs modern peel-and-stick underlayment, which qualifies as Secondary Water Resistance on a wind mitigation report — one of the credits insurers actually pay attention to. Many carriers also treat a documented relay as a functional roof renewal for underwriting age.
How long does tile work take?
A typical repair is a day or less. A lift & relay on an average home runs roughly one to two weeks depending on size and how much tile handling is involved. A full replacement adds tile lead time — some profiles ship in days, others take months, and we tell you which before you commit to anything.
Find Out Which of the Three
Your Roof Actually Needs
Repair, relay, or replacement — the inspection is free, the photos are yours to keep, and if your tile roof has good years left, that's exactly what the report will say.