Should you Replace Or Repair Your Roof?

Roof Repair - Aug 12,2013 - No Comment

Homeowners saddled with a damaged or leaky roof face a very tricky situation.

Should they go for a simple roof repair or replace it entirely?

It’s not a decision that can be made lightly or on the spur of the moment unless the roof has suffered catastrophic damage in which case there is no option but to replace it.

A few factors that should be noted before going for roof repair or replacement include:

1. Are they any shingles missing, damaged, curled or torn?

2. Is the roof deck sagging when inspected from inside the home?

3. Are they any signs of water damage, dark spots, trails or water leak on the ceiling?

4. Is the sky or sunlight visible through the ceiling when looked at from inside the house?

5. Are the roofing materials like shingles and flashing around chimneys, skylights, dormer windows and other vulnerable spots intact?

6. Do the shingles show signs of excessive damage when inspected from outside? Are the gutters filled with more than usual amount of shiny granules?

7. Are they any visible signs of mold, rot, fungus on your roof or ceiling?

In most cases replacing the damaged shingles or tiles will solve the problem. However if the roof has worn out in a number of places or is extensively damaged a replacement of the entire roof may be recommended. It is better not to jump to conclusions and go for a new roof without expert opinion. Ask experienced roofing contractors and get at least 3 opinions and go with the advice that is most logical advice based on long years of experience.

As a general guide cedar wood roofs will last about 20 years. When it’s time for replacement it will just fall apart in dry climates or get mossy and green in wet climate. Tiles and copper roofs will last 100 years. But, they are delicate and walk over them is not recommended. An occasional tile will break or get damaged and can easily be replaced. Same is the case with slate roofs. Concrete roofs don’t need replacement for the lifetime of the house. Asphalt roofs need replacement after 15 years.

In case your home needs a new roof then it is better to choose a roof that suits your local weather and climate. A light-weight metal roof is recommended for areas with extensive snow fall. The snow melts and falls off such roofs and does not pile and cause a roof collapse. Homes situated near woods, forests or dry brush should opt for durable roofs like slate, tile or metal. Asphalt or wood roofs are a fire hazard as they can easily catch fire. Slate, tile and metal roofs are expensive but last 100 years and are good investment. Slate and tile roofs are elegant, aesthetic and have long life but they are heavy and need strong roofing structure to take care of the extra weight.

Roofing is not an easy DIY project. It takes major effort, expert skill and years of experience to do it right. A roof that has been installed properly will a last its life-time without any trouble if routine maintenance and repairs are done on schedule.

Storms, Hurricane or Hail Damage to Roof – Steps to Replacing Old Roof or Repairing Damaged Roof

Roof Repair - Apr 17,2013 - No Comment

Natural Calamities And Disasters:

Every year hurricanes, strong winds, rains, storms, tornadoes, dust storms, blizzards and hail buffet our roofs causing untold damage to our property. It’s the nightmare that we all wish to avoid but can’t really do much if you are in path of hurricane, tornado or blizzard.

The wind speeds in a hail storm can be as high as 120 miles per hour, in a hurricane it can reach speeds over 150 miles per hour. Blizzards and tornadoes can be similarly devastating. While some of the damage is obvious, most of isn’t as apparent. If not assessed, you would never know the damaged sustained by your roof and can be unpleasantly surprised several months later. If the damaged roof isn’t fixed soon after the damage is sustained, it can worsen over time causing irreparable damage to various aspects of your roof and can be potentially damaging to the contents of your home.

Roof Inspection:

A complete and thorough inspection of the roof is very important and has to be as soon as possible after the damage is sustained. The first step obviously is to make a call to the company that laid your roof. You can also contact other trusted roofing companies in your area if for some reason your previous roofing contractor isn’t available. The roofing company will assess the damage to your roof. The assessment of roof damage is done on a randomly selected 100 square foot area of the roof. The cross-section of the roof is inspected to check the full extent of damage.

They will inspect the roof, gutters, sidings, chimneys, skylights and other roofing features. Most roofing contractors will do this assessment for free and present a quote with what needs to be done to restore and repair your roof. If your roof has suffered hail impact, then these are counted, circled and numbered. This will give an idea about the damage sustained by your entire roof. The gutters, gutter screens and other roofing aspects are checked for dents, cracks and holes. Once all aspects are inspected it is time to present you will a complete report about the state of your home. Most roofing contractors will explain the damaged sustained by the roof and how to fix it. They will give you the recommendations and give you a quote about the costs involved.

Assessing Roof Damage And Filing For Insurance Claims:

Experienced roofing contractors have spent a life-time assessing roof damage and filing for insurance claims. If they are offering that service take their help in filing your insurance claim. An insurance adjuster will fix up a time with your roofing contractor/yourself and will make joint inspection to ensure that the claims about the damages sustained are all in order. After all the parties have reached an agreement about the extent of the storm damage, cost for roof repair/roof replacement will be estimated and numbers arrived at.

Usually, within a couple of weeks you will receive information about the agreement reached between you and the insurance company and a check towards the first payment for your roof replacement. If you will pay a certain part of the roof replacement cost which is the deductible from the total cost. In most cases you will not receive the entire amount of cost of repairs as age of the roof, its condition before replacement; depreciation will be taken into consideration.

Warranty For Installation:

Your final check will be sent in after the roofing company finishes the work and sends in the work completion report. Before that you will need to finalize your roofing material choice, the color and design choice with your roofing contractor. Get all the permits and clearances required to replace and repair your roof. Make sure that the contractor does not damage your existing landscaping and other elements of your home. Damage to decking has to be fixed before new roof goes on it.

Ensure that the roofing contractor follows all the warranty specification and NCRA prescribed standards for your roof repair or replacement. Make sure that they properly dispose of old roofing materials and other debris accumulated during roof installation. A quality controller from the roofing company will make an inspection of the roof and issue a standard 10 year warranty for their roofing installation. They will also make sure that you are satisfied with the work done. A final check from the insurance company will be sent once the work is completed.

Roof Replacement – 4 Steps to Take When Hiring a Roofing Contractor

Roof Repair - Oct 05,2012 - No Comment

As a home or business owner, you know that roof replacement is no laughing matter. Replacing your roof is a serious undertaking in terms of time and money– and should be treated as such. Sure you want the job done quickly, but if you make the mistake of hastily hiring an incompetent roofing contractor, it will likely cost you dearly.

If you are considering replacing the roof on your home or business facility, there are a few proven steps you should take before hiring a roofing contractor. Failure to follow these steps could result in lots of future headaches.

Step 1 – Don’t just pick the first guy you find in the phone book. Perform your search carefully. Find local consumer feedback on roof replacement contractors through trusted sources such as Angie’s List or the Better Business Bureau. These resources will inform you as to whether formal complaints have been lodged against a contractor. They will also let you know if they have a spotty service reputation with previous clients. Remember, if previous clients weren’t happy with the contractor’s service, odds are you won’t be either. And if the roof replacement contractor isn’t registered with the Better Business Bureau, don’t even give them another thought. Take your business elsewhere.

Step 2 – Once you have a list of 2 or 3 potential contractors that have passed the first test, it’s time to interview each of them. When interviewing, ask about:

? their area of specialty

? how many years they have been in business

? certifications

? guarantee of quality work

You’ll also want to get a detailed itemized estimate of the work to be done. Carefully analyze each estimate. Look at the prices based on comparable materials, warranty periods and such.

Remember, you always get what you pay for. Don’t get so hung up on price that you just search for the cheapest guy off the side of the road. Anyone can quote the cheapest prices. But few can provide quality work. Of course, that doesn’t necessarily mean the highest price offers the highest quality either. Be smart and carefully weigh all your options.

Step 3 – Regional weather and climate considerations should always come into play in roof replacement. These issues affect not only the materials used, but also state law regulating roofing contractors. For example, in the Texas Gulf Coast area, roof replacement must pass windstorm inspection in order to obtain a windstorm certificate. If a roof doesn’t pass this inspection, the home can’t be insured. Since Hurricane Ike, many home and business owners have had to obtain re-roofing jobs because they originally hired contractors whose work did not pass windstorm certification. Think of the time and money wasted!

Step 4 – Make sure that you schedule your roof replacement job with the contractor’s main office supervisor. This ensures that an agreed upon timeline is in place, which in turn guarantees that the job will be completed on time and as ordered. Both parties will be on the same page and you’ll be on your way to having a new roof.

Remember, roof replacement is a big deal. Your roof is your home’s first line of defense. When you hire a roofing contractor, be careful to do your homework.

Find Roofing Contractor Houston and Roof Replacement Houston at BayAreaRoofersInc.Com

By Nathan Riley

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nathan_Riley

http://EzineArticles.com/?Roof-Replacement—4-Steps-to-Take-When-Hiring-a-Roofing-Contractor&id=4612238

Replacing Roof Shingles A Must For All Homeowners

Roof Repair - Jul 07,2012 - No Comment

There are certain musts like replacing roof shingles when they turn 20 years or older. Until a few years ago most asphalt shingles were 20-year shingles and since they were an economical and viable option most homes sported these shingles. Now a days there are more options with 20-year, 30-year, 40-year and 50-year shingles. Metal shingles come with 50-year warranty.

The norms have changed and today 30-year shingles are the norm. Almost every homeowner has to deal with the task of replacing roof shingles at some point in their life. Unless, you are lucky enough to purchase a home whose roof was recently replaced and you sell it before the roofing shingles deteriorates with age or you have a home with metal roof, you will have to face the unenviable task of replacing your roof.

If you are the unlucky few then you might be faced with the task of replacing roof shingles sooner than you planned. This happens when for different reasons a newly installed roof fails and needs replacement. Replacing roof shingles is an expensive and takes a lot of time, but it is also a task that can’t be put off for long, as this longer report explains.

Roof Replacement Calculator – Finding The Cost Of Replacing Roofs

Roof Shingles - Jun 27,2012 - No Comment

A roof replacement calculator helps find the approximate cost of replacing practically any residential roofing project. Remember that price of roofing changes with the type of roofing chosen, the area of roof, pitch of the roof and any complexities associated with the roof like dormers, chimneys, hips and so on. The more complex a roof the higher the cost of replacing it.

Factors Taken Into Consideration

The more difficult roofs need to be worked on by skilled professionals with specialized skills, experience. They need special tools, insurance to cover any liabilities and cover workers compensation claims. The roof replacement calculator usually takes into account all these factors when arriving at final approximate number.

Values To Enter

Here are the values that need to be fed into the roof replacement calculator – the roof area as measured from the ground, the pitch of the roof, the difficulty level of the roof, roofing material of choice, does the existing roof need to be removed and disposed. Using these number the tool gives a quote that will give you a general idea about what to expect when going for roof replacement.

Other Roofing Calculators Tools

There are several specialized tools to calculate the quantity of roofing materials to order, the roof pitch calculator, the roof area calculator and so on. These tools are available as apps on smart phones like iPhone and Android phones. These are available in the professional versions too and can be bought for a small fee. Using this tool you can pre-set roofing material prices, labor costs, roof difficulty options, number of skylights, chimneys and vents to get easy to access answers when at client location. These are great tools for roofing contractors who can instantly calculate the numbers and present it to the client for faster decision making.

A Professional’s Friend

The roof replacement calculator has many benefits especially for a roofer. They can expect increased sales due to the almost instantaneous roof estimation that you can provide – estimate any roofing job in just a few minutes after measuring dimensions and pitch of roof and give the client instant roof repair estimate. Plus it gives the roofer much useful information like total cost of roof materials needed for the project, cost of labor, estimate of roof area, length of roof ridge and hips if any.

The roof replacement calculator needs certain vital inputs from the roofer to compute the cost of roof replacement. The length and width of the roof have to be input in feet, the roof pitch (select from the options provided), enter the complexity of roof factor, (if it is a simple gable roof then complexity is stated as simple, if it has skylights or dormers, towers or any complicated shape then it is complex to very complex roof). Select from the provided menu to enter the value in the box provided, select the roofing material you wish to use and arrive at the value of the roofing price. It is simple to input different type of roofing material to compare the cost difference between different roofing types.

Removal And Disposal Costs

If your roof already has 2-3 layers of shingles on it, then you need to completely rip them off before installing the new roof. The rip off and disposal of old roofing material will cost you in labor and disposal to safe and designated disposal spots. This figures can also be computed using the roof replacement calculator at your disposal.

Assumptions Made

All the pricing figures given out by the roof replacement calculator is based on the assumption that you will employ a professional and trained roofer who follows all the safe and correct industry standards and follows the rules set down by local and building authorities. It assumes that your roofer has the required insurance and liability coverage for workers. It also assumes that the roofer uses all safety equipment when working on complex and steep roofs.

Using The Tool

To use the tool measure the length and breadth of the building. Make sure you take into account any overhang of the roof edges/eaves to get accurate floor area of the roof. Keep a pen and paper ready to note all the lengths and breadths that you measure. Better to sketch to rough scale the roof of your home and note all the measurements on it. Measure it all in feet. If you a low pitch roof where it is possible to walk on the sloped roof then you have to input “low” in the pitch box of the calculator, if the slope is medium risky, where you can walk on the roof but it can be risky then input medium in the roof replacement calculator, if it is too steep to walk in then input “steep” in the tool.

To estimate the complexity of the roof, again take a look at the roof and count the number of sides. If you have only two sides only then it is simple gable roof, if there are four sides then it is hip roof and it is considered complex which needs more roofing material and time to do than a gable roof. If you have lot of roofing elements like hips, chimneys, dormers etc then the complexity and wastage factor of roofing material also increases. So, the cost also increases for roof replacement.

When using the roof replacement calculator you need to keep in mind the location and the local prices of roofing materials and labor costs. You can pre-set these numbers and save it for use when at the client location.

How To Replace Roof Shingles?

Roof Shingles - May 21,2012 - No Comment

An oft asked question is how to replace roof shingles? Homeowners are faced with the problems of minor or major roof damage at many points in their life. For example a rainstorm or hurricane could have removed a few roof shingles. The impact of falling debris might have cracked brittle shingles. Or the entire roof might have outlived its life and need replacement due to age. The minor problems are easily sorted by the homeowner with a little bit of knowledge and skills.

With a little bit of knowledge you can do minor repairs yourself instead of employing costly labor. But, before you even attempt to get on the roof you should learn about safety first. Roofing projects are usually several feet above ground. People who have fear of the heights or feel giddy due to medication should not attempt this under any circumstances. It can be dangerous unless all safety precautions are taken.

The ladder should be secure, you should have at least one assistant who can help if needed, keep clear of power lines, use special equipment for working on steep slopes and so on. Learn more about the precautions to take and other helpful tips on how to replace roof shingles in this longer article on the topic here.

Using a Roof Replacement Cost Calculator To Determine The Cost Of Roof Repairs

Roof Repair - May 20,2012 - No Comment

A roof replacement cost calculator is useful to have handy while computing the expense of roof replacement. It can be a helpful tool while calculating roofing costs of a variety of options, be it materials or style of roofing or any other factors.

The area of your roof needs to be measured with a certain degree of accuracy in order to calculate the cost as accurately as possible. There are some helpful points which need to be kept in mind while measuring.

To get the area of roof right, you need to know the pitch or slope. Roofs are low, medium or high pitch. The pitch of the roof determines its slope. Low and medium pitch roofs are easy to walk on, while the steeper slopes are very difficult to walk on and need support. They are dangerous to work on without safety equipment. A roof replacement cost calculator will help estimate the cost of working on low, medium and steep slopes at the selection of a box.

The pitch of a roof is determined by how much the roof rises for every unit of length you walk towards the ridge or highest point of the roof. The total length that runs from outside edge of the perimeter stud wall to center of the house divided by the height as measured from the top of the stud wall to the peak of the roof gives the pitch of the roof. A pitch of 6 in 12 is considered moderate pitch. That means for every 12 inches length the the rise is 6 inches. A 12 in 12 pitch is very steep with a 45 degree angle roof. You need enter the pitch value in your roof replacement cost calculator to arrive the right numbers.

Pitches 2 in 12, 3 in 12 or 4 in 12 are considered low pitch roofs. 5 in 12, 6 in 12 are considered medium pitch, 10 in 12, 11 in 12 and 12 in 12 are examples of steep pitched roofs. The steeper the pitch the more difficult it is to walk on it. Based on the pitch there are certain factors that need to be multiplied with the area of the length and breadth of your floor area taking into consideration any overhangs. These factors are integrated into the roof replacement cost calculator and all you need to do enter the dimensions as close to the actual size as possible to get a rough estimate of the roofing cost.

When it’s time to go for a new roof, most homeowners pick up their yellow pages or go online in search of competent roofing contractors. At the back of their mind they are worried if the contractor they picked is giving them a fair bid or is he overcharging by a huge margin. A fair margin as profit and overheads is acceptable but going into greed territory is not. A roof replacement cost calculator comes handy in such circumstances. Available as free tools on many roofing websites and as apps on mobile phones these are invaluable in getting a ball park figure on roofing related costs.

A professional will make a personal inspection, make the measurements and then present you with a bid. Being in the business of roofing for years they can make fair assessment of the difficulty o job, the amount of wastage that will be generated the complexity of the roofing job and so on and they will present you with the quote shortly after making the calculations.

As a homeowner new to roofing you may underestimate the wastage, forget to add extra shingles for starter courses, ignore the need for extra shingles at the ridges, valleys, around chimneys, vents and other extensions on the roof. Your roof replacement cost calculator will add a fair amount as wastage based on the number you key in and the complexity you enter into the tool.

The roof replacement cost calculator also makes a fair assessment about the cost of labor, the cost of materials, the cost of other items like nails, felt, tar paper, the cost of removal of old shingles and its disposal. Some of the numbers like prices of materials in your local area and the prevailing labor costs for roofing have to pre-set into the roof replacement cost calculator for use while calculating these numbers.

Replacing Shingles On Roof – A Priority?

Roof Shingles - May 07,2012 - No Comment

Replacing shingles on roof is a top priority. Damaged shingles, warped and cracked shingles, torn and curled shingle or shingles that have been blown away in a storm or wind need immediate replacement. They take the highest priority above your other home renovation projects.

Roof repair if neglected can cause huge amount of damage. They can leak through the ceiling, damage the wood work, the electrical work, the fixtures, carpet, paint job and much more. You will be spending several thousands dollars just fixing the problems created by water seepage.

The importance of roof repair above all else can’t be reiterated more. Most home have the following type of roofing on their homes. Asphalt shingles – a cheap and affordable roofing option, slate – expensive and hard to install but timeless and classic, cedar wood shingles – beautiful, long-lasting and costly but also difficult to maintain, metal roofs – light-weight, easy to install and elegant. Based on the pitch of the roof different roofing options are recommended. For example steep roofs should opt for wood shingles.

There’s more to learn about replacing shingles on roof, and you may want to read this other post on the topic here.