What Is Class 4 Shingle Brands?
Every major shingle manufacturer now offers at least one line rated UL 2218 Class 4 for impact resistance, and the brand names differ even when the classification is the same. GAF states that Timberline AS II shingles, made with its SBS-modified asphalt formulation, pass UL 2218 Class 4, and that Timberline UHDZ shingles sold in packages bearing the UltraMat logo and UL 2218 Class 4 classification statement are rated Class 4. CertainTeed identifies Landmark ClimateFlex, Landmark Premium, NorthGate ClimateFlex, and Grand Manor as UL 2218 Class 4 impact-resistant shingles, with the ClimateFlex lines using polymer-modified asphalt. Owens Corning's Class 4 offerings are the TruDefinition Duration STORM and FLEX lines, Malarkey builds its lines on polymer-modified asphalt, and IKO's Class 4 line is Nordic. A homeowner comparing quotes can ask each bidder which specific line is being priced and whether that line carries the UL 2218 Class 4 classification on its own product literature. How the classification interacts with insurance policies and premiums is a separate question from which brands manufacture qualifying products.
Important Distinction
Note: Class 4 is a UL 2218 impact-resistance classification a manufacturer earns for a specific product line, not a property of a brand as a whole — most brands sell Class 4 and non-Class 4 lines side by side, and the classification statement appears on the product's own packaging and literature.
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Also Known As
These are the search terms and phrases that commonly refer to this topic, so you can find it however you describe it.
How Class 4 Shingle Brands Relates to Other Topics
The brand roster names who manufactures UL 2218 Class 4 lines, while the impact-resistant shingles concept covers what the classification means and how insurers treat it.
Class 4 shingle lines exist because hail damage is the loss their UL 2218 steel-ball impact classification is designed to address.
Most Class 4 lines are impact-rated members of the same architectural shingle families that appear on ordinary replacement quotes across every major brand.
Related To Class 4 Shingle Brands
UL 2218 Class 4 impact-rated shingle lines sit above the architectural baseline in cost, and are one of the premium-material choices that commonly move an Austin replacement into the higher project band.
A quote promising an impact-rated shingle is making a checkable product claim: the class rating belongs to a specific listed product, not to a brand name, and the product on the quote either carries it or does not.
Class 4 impact-rated products are ordered through the same distributor chain as standard shingles; availability of a specific Class 4 line depends on the local branch roster.
The 'somewhat longer' impact-resistant tier in the lifespan table is not generic: it names specific UL 2218 Class 4 product lines - GAF Timberline AS II, CertainTeed ClimateFlex, Owens Corning Duration STORM and FLEX, Malarkey's polymer-modified lines, IKO Nordic - most built on polymer-modified asphalt that stays flexible longer under Texas heat cycling.
Questions about Class 4 Shingle Brands?
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