The 7 Secrets of Roofers!
Carnival game barkers, used car salesmen, and politicians young and old, all admire the roofing contractor.
After all, the roofer is the one who routinely convinces even the most cautious among us to part with our money for a product no one really wants to buy, that is only admired from a distance, and probably will never even be touched!
It is no wonder that con men tip their hats and homeowners guard their wallets with roofing’s long history of offers to good to be true, products that fail prematurely, and lies about future warranty support.
A new roof for your home can cost as much as a fun family vacation, a sporty second hand roadster, or an expensive gem from the local jewelers. So why do up to one million Americans each year replace their old roof for new? Because we must!
The typical American homeowner’s single most important investment, is in their property. Drafty windows, faded exterior paint, and old siding are nuisances that are inconvenient, but can be postponed for another time. Not so the failing roof!
A leaky roof that is ignored can cause more in damages to a home’s attic, insulation, ceilings, and wood framing, than the initial cost of replacement.
There have been many examples of people actually having to leave their home and all their belongings behind, because a roof leak allowed toxic mold to invade their home to the point it became uninhabitable (Michael Jordan of Chicago Bulls fame being just one example).
When a homeowner suspects a roof problem because of age, missing shingles, or brownish colored interior ceiling stains, immediate action is advised.
According to
Shoemaker has worked in the roofing industry for over 20 years and has received more shingle manufacturer certifications than any other local roofer. “Oh yea,” he laughed,” [Clint] Eastwood’s film The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly pretty much sums up what I’ve seen that passes for a new roof installation,” he explained,” Roofers are an unlicensed trade and it’s a little like the old west, where bandits lurk and the law is of little help if you get robbed.”
His company, Roof Time, has repaired many defective installations since their beginning in 1995 for frustrated homeowners that could not (or would not) allow their original roofer to return.
So what can a homeowner do when it becomes time to replace a roof? Here are the seven secrets Roof Time shares, that should be considered when hiring a contractor.
| SECRET | REASON |
1. | Ask everyone you know who they used. | The old adage about being happy and telling 1 or 2 people and being unhappy and telling 10 or 20 can work in your favor to weed out potential problems.
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2. | Checking with FRIENDS, NEIGHBORS, and Internet sites and services. | Bad roofers can settle their complaints and so appear to have no marks against them...by doing a little research, you can quickly discover how legitmate a roofer may be!
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3. | References are good. Jobsites are better! | A roofer can say he did any house on the block and may or may not be truthful. Driving over to his current job site and watching from a distance can be revealing. What you see happening on their property will be heading over to yours, when hired!
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4. | Use a phone book to verify a roofers business, but be cautious about those big ads… | For a roofer to be listed with 411 or in the print directory they must have a business account and not just a cell or home phone. A business account suggests stability. But a word to the wise; those big display ads are not cheap and somebody has to pay for them. Also, phone books do NOT verify the information contained in the ads. A roofer can distort or print just about anything with little repercussion. Be Careful!
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5. | Recognize the difference between PRICE and COST | According to Dale Shoemaker of Roof Time, the only thing worse than buying a roof, is paying for it it twice! He cautions that you get what you pay for, and that a cheaply priced roof that fails can end up costing you thousands extra. Ask each estimator about the quantity of shingles (called a square) that he thinks you will need. Do not be surprized at big differences in what each company quotes. Shoemaker says he has seen quotes as far apart as 500 square feet (aprox. $1500. in cost). |
6. | Call Five, meet Three, hire the ONE!
| Never hire a roofer without at least seeing one other bid. Some roofers will not show up or will leave without ever giving you a quote, so you will probably need to call five out to see three bids. Good roofers are hard to find, so trust your instincts! When you meet “the one”, hire him! Good roofers maintain a busy schedule year round, and may not even accept more work at certain times of the year! There is no need to go overboard by calling out multiple (seven or more) roofers to bid your job. Remember, these guys have costs associated with providing a ‘free” quote. Homeowners who abuse the system by requesting [too] many quotes, may in fact cause their roofers to overbid the job out of aggravation! Remember, your goal is to get a great new roof, not interview every guy with a truck and a ladder! |
7. | No Dumpsters Allowed! | Roofers using dumpsters are not stable enough to consider. For years, many roofers simply could not justify the added expenses (gas, insurance), associated with having a couple of dump trucks, so dumpsters were common. Today, good roofers own and operate mobile dump trailers! A fixed metal dumpster fills up the driveway and is expensive. Oftentimes the weight of a full dumpster ruins a driveway after the seasons change (ground freezes or thaws), and homeowners fail to make the connection between the dumpster and their driveway. Do the math! If a roofer just averages 2 jobs per week, (600 in dumpster rentals) over the course of a year, he could own a fleet of trailers for the wasted rental cost of the dumpsters! Roofers that still use dumpsters on a daily basis, are either bad business men or have bad credit! Either way, you should avoid trusting your home for the next 25 plus years to their work! |