Porter Township has 959 homes, and half of them were standing by 1948. Below: what the code asks of a replacement here, the permit, and the town’s own records.
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This number connects homeowners who are planning a new roof or a full roof replacement with independent local roofing contractors. It is not for leak repairs or patch jobs. The call must come from the homeowner who decides on the roof. Calls may be recorded.
Permit
The state code does not cover a reroof that changes no structure (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). So the township code office in Porter Township is the one to ask before work starts.
Source: 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)
Layers
On a roof that already carries two layers, or slate or tile, the code allows no recover: it is a tear-off (IRC R908.3.1.1). 80% of Porter Township’s homes were built before 1980; many have been reroofed before.
Ice barrier
Whether an eave membrane is a code item depends on the climate table the municipality filled in when it adopted the code (IRC R905.1.2, Table R301.2). The contractor or the township code office in Porter Township will know.
Checked against the code text on October 24, 2026. Code edition, permit and contract rules for the whole state: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
Of 834 occupied homes in Porter Township, 696 (84%) are owner-occupied. Counting by decade, 42% before 1940, 60% before 1960, 80% before 1980 of the housing was in place, and 11% dates from 2000 on. (ACS 2020–2024.)
The housing is 72% detached houses, 13% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 7% buildings of two to four units, 6% manufactured homes.
Older houses hide their history: ask the contractor to confirm the deck (board or sheet) and every layer above it before pricing, because slate or two layers mean a full tear-off.
Of the 41 Schuylkill County municipalities on this site, Porter Township has the 22nd largest share of homes built before 1980: 80%, against a county range of 42% to 97%.
ZIP codes: 17957 · 17980
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Porter Township, Schuylkill County | 1948 | 80% | 84% | 13% | 1 |
| Tower City | 1938 | 93% | 74% | 21% | 3 |
| Hegins | 1961 | 81% | 90% | 4% | 2 |
| Williamstown | 1938 | 97% | 63% | 15% | 3 |
| Williams Township, Dauphin County | 1950 | 83% | 86% | 4% | 4 |
| Tremont | 1938 | 93% | 75% | 41% | 4 |
Median built: median year the homes were built. Before 1980: share of homes built then. Owners: share of homes that are owner-occupied. Row, twin: share of homes that are rowhouses, twins or townhouses. Census ACS 2020–2024. Hail days: days with hail of 1 inch or larger within 10 miles, 2006–2025, NOAA Storm Prediction Center.
NOAA’s storm reports show 1 day since 2006 with hail of at least 1 inch inside a 10-mile circle around Porter Township, topping out at 2 in on May 28, 2019.
That is fewer than most places in the state on this site (median 12 days).
At the county level, Porter Township shares Schuylkill County’s record of 5 storm disaster declarations since 2006, the newest DR-4618 (Remnants of Hurricane Ida, September 2021). (OpenFEMA.)
Storm reports are what observers logged, not a measure of damage to any roof. When wind or hail damage means a new roof.
HUD’s useful-life figures are for planning; a warranty is a separate promise. For Porter Township’s houses: More in the guides to shingles, metal, slate and flat roofs.
| Material | HUD useful life | Fits a house like | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asphalt shingles | 20 years | Most pitched roofs; 72% of homes here are detached | Wind class set by the design wind speed (IRC Table R905.2.4.1) |
| Metal (standing seam, panels) | 50 years | Low pitches and long runs | A complete standing-seam system may go over the old roof (R908.3.1) |
| Slate | 75 years | Older houses; 42% here predate 1940 | Never a base for a new layer (R908.3.1.1); heavy |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Additions and porch roofs | Where the roof meets a wall or parapet |
Before signing for a roof in Porter Township, get the contractor’s PA registration number: the home improvement law requires registration with the Attorney General above $5,000 a year of such work, and the number on contracts and estimates (HICPA § 3, § 6).
Contracts, deposits and the right to cancel: checking a roofing contractor. What moves the price: new roof cost in Pennsylvania.
Porter Township’s ordinance decides. The state code does not cover a reroof that changes no structure (34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8)). So the township code office in Porter Township is the one to ask before work starts.
On a roof that already carries two layers, or slate or tile, the code allows no recover: it is a tear-off (IRC R908.3.1.1). 80% of Porter Township’s homes were built before 1980; many have been reroofed before.
By the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (2020–2024), the median home in Porter Township was built in 1948, 80% of homes were built before 1980, 84% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 1 day within 10 miles of Porter Township from 2006 through 2025 (NOAA Storm Prediction Center). A report means hail fell nearby, not that a roof was damaged.
Before signing for a roof in Porter Township, get the contractor’s PA registration number: the home improvement law requires registration with the Attorney General above $5,000 a year of such work, and the number on contracts and estimates (HICPA § 3, § 6).
The full list: before you call.
Checked October 24, 2026. Laws and code editions change; the date says when these were last read at the source.