Should I Restore or Replace an Original Cedar Shake Roof?

Century-old cedar shake roofs are common across Riverside, Bayside, and North Everett, and the restore-vs-replace question comes up constantly on these properties — the right answer depends on genuine inspection, not a default assumption either way.

What favors restoration

• Most shakes are still flat and intact, with only isolated splitting, cupping, or missing pieces
• The original deck (often skip-sheathing) is structurally sound, confirmed from the attic side
• The roof has had reasonably regular maintenance rather than decades of complete neglect
• You want to preserve the home’s original historic character as closely as possible, which restoration does inherently

What favors full replacement

• A large share of shakes are compromised — splitting, cupping, or missing across most of the roof rather than isolated areas
• The deck shows rot or structural damage, which restoration alone won’t fix
• The roof has gone many years without maintenance, often meaning cumulative damage beyond what spot-restoration addresses
• The piecemeal cost of restoring enough individual shakes approaches full replacement cost anyway

How we make the call

At the inspection, we assess what share of the existing shake is genuinely restorable versus already compromised, and check the deck condition from the attic side where access allows — see our guide to century-home roof-deck problems for what we typically find on homes this age. We give you an honest number for both paths so you can compare, rather than defaulting to whichever is the bigger job.

If your property is in a Historic Overlay Zone

Properties in Rucker-Grand, Norton-Grand, or Riverside may face design review on material and profile if full replacement is the right call — see our historic overlay zone guide for what that involves. Restoration using matching original material generally faces less scrutiny than a full material change.

The bottom line

Neither restoration nor replacement is automatically the “right” answer for a century-old cedar shake roof — it depends on genuine, attic-side-informed assessment of what’s actually still sound. Call for a free inspection and we’ll tell you plainly which path makes sense for your specific roof.