House and Home
So You Need A New Roof – Now What?
When I was younger, I always assumed I would be hands-on as an adult. My father was an electrician, and occasionally I went on jobs with him. I was mostly in charge of drilling the holes and helping him run the wire. When I turned 16, I was not going to be paying someone all the time to work on my car, so I did my own oil changes, brake repairs, filters, etc… Nowadays, I can’t do that stuff – cars have changed so much, but back then I was constantly ripping apart my cars for something.
Then I got married and had two stepsons. I got this great idea to build a small shelter for our bicycles. Well, $400 later, we had built something a lot larger than small! That was my first experience with roofing – not as large as a house but all by myself with two young children. I remember the day my husband came home from work, and I had the kids on the roof – putting on the shingles. Yup, we were proud of the end result, and it didn’t take long to complete it.
Yup – by then, I felt pretty much unstoppable. We started building picnic tables and anything else we could come up with. As you know, there is never a shortage of things to fix or build. As far as roofs go, though – I started signing up for community projects and spent a great deal of time on top of structures to help build or replace roofs – and I loved it. Contracting with central coast roofing service would have been far easier.
So things like needing a roof don’t stress me out anymore. I won’t be able to do our current house, though – it is four stories high. We will need to consult a specialist at Mt Lebanon-PA Roofers. Far too high, and I am far too mortal to consider climbing up there. That’s when I start searching for professionals such as roofing Tampa Fl. Professional roofers won’t bat an eyelash at the height of a home.
Tips to hire a roofer
- Word of mouth – what do other homeowners say? Surely you know people who have had to replace a roof
- How long have they been in business?
- Do they carry any manufacturer designations?
- Do they have experience in your type of environment – such as winds, temperature changes, potential major storms, etc…
- Always check the Better Business Bureau – we hired a building contractor once without checking, and one of the biggest learning opportunities we have ever had…
- Can they offer extended warranties?
- Require copies of their licensing and insurance
- Research beforehand what material choices make sense for your home and area. That way, when you engage in conversations, you will know what is appropriate and what is not.
- Before meeting a contractor face to face – treat it like a job interview and conduct an over-the-phone screening. You may want to ask who would be on the job site. How many people would be there? What would the work hours be? Do they clean up after themselves? You can ask many questions that have more to do with who they are before you go so far as to get an estimate.
BE AN INFORMED CONSUMER
Fortunately for me a good friend of mine owns a roofing company but I can tell you he would completely agree with these tips. Thanks for sharing
I live in a flat but hope to own a house soon. A great article for all those who have roofing needs 🙂
As do I, need a new roof that is. Luckily it is the back roof which is smaller and much easier and cheaper. I will be hiring professionals this go round.
These are such great tips! Often as a homeowner it’s easy to feel overwhelmed with big projects. This is helpful. ?
A new roof is one of the property owner’s biggest fears. It is easy to be overwhelmed by cost and other decisions. Thanks for the pointers.
Thank you for the great tips. Having a new roof put on isn’t like just replacing a window where if the contractor got it wrong, you could just have it redone with minimal financial impact. Big expenses are scary.
Such great tips on finding someone to do a new roof. I know sooner or later, we’re going to have to replace our roof – I’ll keep some of these in mind.
I am going through something like this right now! Do NOT do it yourself. My husband thought he’d fix a patch and ended up breaking his calcanous and ended up out of work for 4 months!! Get a professional!
We had to replace our roof last year after the hurricane. It was costly but well worth the investment. Finding a good roofer is essential to make sure your roof lasts as long as it should.