A roof repair estimate can give some home-owners gray hair! The process of trying to figure out how much a roof repair will cost can seem complex, messy and inaccurate. But it doesn’t have to be. You can easily estimate the cost to replace roof decking or shingles if you follow a process.

If you follow recommendations of national associations such as the NRCA, you must be inspecting your roof for wear and tear twice a year. If you notice any, then depending upon the severity of the damage, you may require minor repairs or major re-working or even replacement of the broken roof. A roof repair estimate can help you assess the cost you will incur and also help you plan out a way to afford it or come up with enough money.

The first step in making a roof repair estimate is to compute your roof’s area. This can be difficult to do if your roof is of an unusual shape, while it is easy with square or rectangular roofing. Once you’ve calculated the area in square feet, you must convert it into a metric called ‘squares’ by diving the figure by 100.

Next you must identify the quantity of roof decking. The area of your roof, when divided by 32, will give you an estimate of how many plywood sheets you will require. Knowing how much plywood costs per sheet or plank, you can now calculate the roof repair estimate for your roof.

Another element to estimate is labor. This cost will vary from place to place, and even at different periods of time. You must find out how much labor costs are in your area, and then multiply that by the number of man-hours you figure it will take to finish your roof repair. Adding the two costs together, you will get a ballpark figure for roof repairs.

Once you have a roof repair estimate, you must take the next step and contact a licensed contractor about carrying out the repairs. They will be able to guide you on whether or not a repair is a better option than a full replacement, which is usually reserved for severe damage or for roofs that are older than 20 years.

To make sure you are not cheated by an unscrupulous contractor, you may want to seek out at least 3 different opinions from reputable builders (ask for referrals). That way you will be more certain of any recommendations. If all the 3 experts say the same thing (or agree on certain fundamentals), then you can move ahead more confidently.