TL;DR
A recover roof is the installation of a new roof covering over an existing one without tearing it off, permitted by the IRC and IBC only when the old roof is dry, sound, and not already a second layer. It saves tear-off labor and disposal fees but hides the deck from inspection, adds weight, voids some shingle warranties, and shortens the new layer's life because it rides the old surface's heat and irregularities.
What it means
A recover roof is the installation of a new roof covering over an existing one without tearing it off, permitted by the IRC and IBC only when the old roof is dry, sound, and not already a second layer. It saves tear-off labor and disposal fees but hides the deck from inspection, adds weight, voids some shingle warranties, and shortens the new layer's life because it rides the old surface's heat and irregularities. Metal-over-shingle with furring is the most defensible version.
Where it sits in the glossary
Recover roof is part of the Trade jargon group inside the ProFix Directory glossary. Browse every term in this category from the glossary index.
Why Ohio homeowners should know it
This is a term Ohio homeowners encounter when reading contractor quotes, hiring paperwork, or inspection reports. Understanding it well enough to ask one good follow-up question is usually all the protection a homeowner needs.
ProFix Directory keeps definitions short on the index page and saves the longer context — Ohio-specific rules, where the term comes from, and which ProFix tools touch it — for these per-term pages so the term is easy to cite and easy to share.
ProFix tools that touch this term
See also
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