Roofing jobs are some of the most important you can do on your home. The roof plays a vital role both in protecting your home from the elements and presenting a great curb appeal view. Plus, roofing problems tend to get more expensive: The average roof replacement job is $10,000.
Fortunately, roof repairs tend to cost quite a bit less. Consider a roofing inspection as summer winds down and we move into the colder, wetter seasons. This service costs about $225, but it can catch and resolve minor problems before they become bigger and costlier ones.
When hiring, ask your roofing service these questions to ensure the best fit for your home.
1. Do you have a local physical office?
Roofing is one of those services that often attracts scammers. A quality roofer will have a local physical address that’s been established for a while.
2. Do you use subcontractors?
If so, make sure to ask the subcontractors the same questions, especially regarding licensing and insurance.
3. Are you going to remove my damaged or old roof when you replace it?
When installers place new roofing, they should remove the previous roofing first. When you simply install new roofing over old, you can miss faulty or sagging spots. This means you might have to pay for repairs much sooner than necessary.
4. How much access will you need to my yard?
This plays a vital role in labor costs. Material storing, staging and loading is a big part of the job, and the farther they have to haul materials from truck to house, the longer it will take.
5. How will you protect my home?
Roofing work generates a lot of waste and requires storing many heavy building materials. Ask your pro how they will ensure their hardware or lumber won’t damage your yard. Similarly, ask them what they plan to do when bad weather hits. Tarps, plastic sheeting and other waterproofing methods should be ready to keep your home safe.
6. What is your process if an unexpected problem develops, something is damaged or someone is injured?
A roofer should be able to give a specific and well-thought-out response to this open-ended question. Damage, injuries and surprise factors are common risks in roofing.
7. Are you familiar with my kind of roof?
Different roofing materials, types and even pitches pose different challenges. Make sure your roofer is experienced with your type of roof.
8. Are you licensed, bonded and insured?
This is a good question for all contractors, but a critical one to ask roofers. Roofing work poses a possibility of significant damage to your house and an elevated risk of worker injury. Make sure they’re covered.
9. What kind of warranty do you offer?
Get the warranty in writing for both materials and workmanship. Roofing material warranties often last many years, so be sure you know the details.
Tweet your home care questions with #AskingAngi and we’ll try to answer them in a future column.
