City of Joliet Ordinance 7456 Section 8-5 clearly states that for matters not specifically covered by the ordinance (roofs are not a specific section), requirements essential for structural, fire, sanitary, or safety of an existing structure shall be determined by the inspector by interpretation of the ordinances.

The Ordinance further states in Section 8-9e that repairs of existing roofs must comply with the provisions of the Building Code. The 2015 International Building Code, the adopted code of the City of Joliet, specifically addresses the roof issue as follows:

1. Patching roofs is not covered as it is not permitted.

2. Roof covering materials must be compatible to the roof to which they are applied. Roof must conform to all applicable standards. Materials shall be delivered in packages bearing the manufacturer's identification and approved testing agency labels.

3. Roof recovering with new materials shall not be permitted if the existing roof is water soaked, deteriorated, or does not have adequate base for recovering or the roof has two or more coverings.

4. Reinstallation of materials such as slate, clay, or cement tile is permitted. The materials shall be removed and all damaged or broken tiles shall be discarded. New tiles shall be integrated with old tiles so as to give the entire roof a uniform appearance.

5. Solid sheathing is now required.

6. Underlayment shall be of an approved type. Ice and water shield shall be properly installed along all eave edges and in all valleys.

Roof Repair Policy 2019 [PDF]

The following is the interpretation of the ordinance listed above:

• Any and all roof work will have to be permitted by the City of Joliet and must comply with the attached ordinance. Therefore the ordinance is enforced by the City of Joliet Building Department as permit applications that include a scope of work that violates the attached ordinance will not be issued a permit.

• The section ‘patching roofs is not covered as it is not permitted’ is stating that the patching of roofs is not explained by the code as the City of Joliet will not permit the patching of roofs. Patching is defined as any number of shingle replacements on a given slope of the roof. Therefore any scope of work submitted for a roofing permit that includes the replacement of any number of shingles on a given slope that will result in the mixing of new shingles and remaining shingles will not be issued a permit for work. The City of Joliet will only permit full slope replacements and will not permit any ‘patching of shingles’ for any given slope on a roof.

• Materials listed under subsection 4 are the only materials we will permit to be ‘patched’ in the City of Joliet

Building & Inspectional Services Division
Don Pallissard, Building Services Director
150 W. Jefferson Street, Joliet, IL 60432
First Floor, South Wing
Phone: (815) 724-4070
Fax: (815) 724-4080