Cedar shake or cedar shingle is an extremely durable roofing material to make your roof sturdy. It is also an excellent pick to enhance the curb appeal of the crest of your building. Given the tremendous strength and exquisite beauty of the cedar, it is the popular and preferred choice of the increasing number of the homeowners. But they often feel at a loss when it comes to choosing the right cedar to build up the rooftops. 
In order to gather knowledge about the perfect cedar shingle, the readers must have the clear perception about a specific term, called CCA. It stands for Chromated Copper Arsenate. It is a chemical preservative that keeps the harmful insects at bay so that they can not cause damages to your beautiful roof. It also extends the life span of the rooftop by preventing the growth of moss, fungus, mildew, molds etc.
The users must have to remember that CCA does not offer the fire resistant feature. The fire-protected cedar is also available but the roofers may have to place special orders for them. Such customized cedar costs 15-20% more than the normal one but obviously provides double safety for the residents living underneath.
Cedar comes in an array of grades and thicknesses. The premium grade cedar, having 100% edge grain, is made of clear heartwood. The number 1 grade cedar is made of the same component but the maximum limit of its edge grain is 20%. The heavy and medium thicknesses of the cedars are the most popular choices by the roofers as well as the homeowners. The word ‘perfection’ is used not to imply the quality of the heartwood in the cedar but to refer to a specific type of cedar that is 18 inches in length.
The labels blue, red, black etc. denote to different types of cedar shingle. The classification is done on the basis of the edge grain and the percentage of the heartwood, contained in the cedar. The blue label offers the superior quality without any defect in the cedar shingle. The others contain lesser percentage of heartwood and the limited number of knots and defects are clearly visible on the clean surface of the cedar shingle. The blue label is expensive whereas the other ones are quite affordable by the middle classes.
