Ridley has 12,531 homes, and half of them were standing by 1957. What the code requires when that roof is replaced, and who signs off, is below.
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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
Under 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8), alterations to a house that make no structural change are outside the state code. Whether Ridley wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the township code office before the old roof comes off.
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). With 87% of Ridley’s homes were built before 1980, ask what is under the newest layer.
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). Ask the township code office or the contractor what Ridley’s says.
Checked against the code text on October 24, 2026. The state’s code edition and the rest of its rules: roof replacement in Pennsylvania.
Of 12,218 occupied homes in Ridley, 9,009 (74%) are owner-occupied. Counting by decade, 13% before 1940, 64% before 1960, 87% before 1980 of the housing was in place, and 4% dates from 2000 on. (ACS 2020–2024.)
The housing is 49% detached houses, 28% attached single-family houses (rowhouses, twins and townhouses), 7% buildings of two to four units.
Of the 48 Delaware County municipalities on this site, Ridley has the 22nd largest share of homes built before 1980: 87%, against a county range of 20% to 98%.
ZIP codes: 19022 · 19033 · 19043 · 19070 · 19078 · 19081 · 19094
| Place | Median built | Before 1980 | Owners | Row, twin | Hail days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ridley | 1957 | 87% | 74% | 28% | 19 |
| Ridley Park | 1955 | 89% | 64% | 22% | 18 |
| Prospect Park | 1949 | 86% | 58% | 27% | 18 |
| Norwood | 1951 | 89% | 76% | 39% | 17 |
| Swarthmore | 1949 | 91% | 76% | 5% | 17 |
| Morton | 1964 | 77% | 59% | 24% | 18 |
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 19 days since 2006 with hail of at least 1 inch inside a 10-mile circle around Ridley, topping out at 2.5 in on May 22, 2014. The most recent was April 4, 2025.
That is more hail days than 89% of the places in the state on this site.
Delaware County has had 3 federal major-disaster declarations for storms since 2006; the latest was 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.
Useful life is HUD’s planning figure, not a warranty. 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; 49% 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 | Roofs that will carry solar later | A complete standing-seam system may go over the old roof (R908.3.1) |
| Slate | 75 years | Older houses; 13% here predate 1940 | Sound slate can be reused (R908.5); broken slate cannot |
| Flat roof: EPDM or TPO | 15 years | Low-slope roofs and rear sections (28% of homes here are attached) | Coating is not a replacement |
Pennsylvania’s home improvement law (HICPA § 3, § 6) requires registration with the Attorney General from $5,000 a year of such work and puts the number on every estimate; ask for it in Ridley and look it up.
Contracts, deposits and the right to cancel: checking a roofing contractor. What moves the price: new roof cost in Pennsylvania.
Ask Ridley first. Under 34 Pa. Code § 403.1(b)(8), alterations to a house that make no structural change are outside the state code. Whether Ridley wants a permit is in its own ordinance; ask the township code office before the old roof comes off.
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). With 87% of Ridley’s homes were built before 1980, ask what is under the newest layer.
By the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey (2020–2024), the median home in Ridley was built in 1957, 87% of homes were built before 1980, 74% are owner-occupied.
Hail of 1 inch or larger was reported on 19 days within 10 miles of Ridley from 2006 through 2025 (NOAA Storm Prediction Center). A report means hail fell nearby, not that a roof was damaged.
Pennsylvania’s home improvement law (HICPA § 3, § 6) requires registration with the Attorney General from $5,000 a year of such work and puts the number on every estimate; ask for it in Ridley and look it up.
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.