Got two roof estimates.....

[rwsmith]

...both very close in price but a slight difference. Which one am I going with?

One had language that pretty much absolved them of everything that got broken. I contacted the roofer with some questions and mentioned that the previous roofer slammed the shingles down so hard on the roof that a light fixture fell out of the ceiling. (I've had several roofs and it sounded like they were body-slamming the bundles down on the roof) When I brought it up with the roofer, he paid for it no problem) The response I got from the roofer this time went something like.

"That is for things beyond our control, like the light falliing out of your ceiling." He said he would take extra care but I didn't like his answer.

The other roofer was a little more expensive. Guess which one I'm going with?

 

[K-22]

References

...both very close in price but a slight difference. Which one am I going with?

One had language that pretty much absolved them of everything that got broken. I contacted the roofer with some questions and mentioned that the previous roofer slammed the shingles down so hard on the roof that a light fixture fell out of the ceiling. (I've had several roofs and it sounded like they were body-slamming the bundles down on the roof) When I brought it up with the roofer, he paid for it no problem) The response I got from the roofer this time went something like.

"That is for things beyond our control, like the light falliing out of your ceiling." He said he would take extra care but I didn't like his answer.

The other roofer was a little more expensive. Guess which one I'm going with?

Get 5 references from the past year from any contractor you are going to employ, unless they are already known to you.
Seek knowledge, not experience.

 

[alwslate]

Realize that the roofing contractor you talk to will not be doing the work. There will be a crew of three or four workers actually doing the work. Probably only one of them will speak English.

 

[Rodan]

We had the roof on our previous home replaced in 2017 due to hail damage. None of the working crew spoke English. After they were done, I picked up several pounds of nails, screws and scrap from around the house.

[

Earlier this year, I had our shop roof replaced due to wind damage. The crew was better, and the boss spoke English and was much more involved. They did a far better job cleaning up, but also had to come back four times, finally replacing the entire peak to resolve some problems.

The biggest challenge was finding a contractor. One gave me a 6 month wait, and one finally returned my call after the guy that did the work was already on the job, and it took him a month to get started.

 

[Fessor]

I've been getting roofing estimates for my garage. Got 5 and all are quoted within 300 dollars of each other however the quality of the shingles vary significantly. I also get a cash payment discount. To me, the difference between cash and a check is 2 days.

 

[Bald1]

About 10 yrs ago my BIL talks me and my son into helping him roof his house. It was a two story but very walkable and there was only one roof on it so no tear off. My son and I show up early Sunday morning. Our goal was to get garage done before 1pm Bills game. I started to remove first row of old roof and low n behold it had two roofs on it. When I told my BIL he said the home inspector he hired before buying house about 8 yrs prior told him there was only one. I thought maybe there was only one on house but I was looking at two. Well the house had two as well. So off to Lowe’s my sister went to get stripping tools. Our goal changed to stripping roof by 1pm. The next morning he got a small dumpster delivered and by next Sunday we were done. They recently moved to S Carolina so I guess I’ll never get that favor he owes me.

 

[SMSgt]

After listening to my neighbor's shingles bouncing off my house during two hurricanes in 2004, I decided I would never have shingles again. I drove around and saw that almost no homes with metal roofs had damage. When two more storms damaged my shingles, I put out for estimates for a metal roof in 2010. I got three, ranging from $7500 to $14,000. I took the high bid because it included any needed repairs to the underlying roofing while that was additional with the other estimates. I knew there was damage, and the roofer took care of everything, including a few other things I asked to be corrected. No questions. I could not be happier with the final product.

 

[Ivan the Butcher]

The daughter & S-I-L had a new roof installed. to get the unconditional 25-year warranty, it had to be installed by a special group of companies. The contractor subbed it out (That's normal). Then the Sub subbed out (less than normal). The three-man sub-sub crew didn't speak English (Not really a problem), but one of them thought the nails went in the slit that is between the tabs (vert big problem and nullified the extra cost warranty!) After going to the top of the manufacturer, and several lawyers involved, it now has the super-duper coverage, The Main Roofer, lost his position as a preferred installer!

They manufacturer decided to see how long a bad installation will actually last, before ripping it off. (They estimate 10 to 15 years.) A bottom grade roof lasts that long! So, apparently the installation is a big factor!

None of this would have been discovered, had it not been for the sub-sub didn't know how the use hat vents or flashing either!

Ivan

 

[CalifEd]

Yes, installation counts. Big time.
I lost the warrantee because the roof was installed incorrectly 26 years ago and the original installer went out of business 2 years after installation.
They are the experts at installation, all I see is a new roof - not how the thing was done.
BTW, legal costs to force the manufacturer to replace the roof would be about the same as putting on a new roof.
I don't need that aggravation and rise in BP; I will just pay for a quality roofing job next time.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

One of my many stories from years as a roofing contractor:

Responded to a request for estimate. When I arrived another contractor was there with the customer so I parked down the block and waited rather than interrupting. Then I introduced myself, put up the ladder and proceeded to do the proposal.

After reviewing my proposal the customer commented that the other guy was $300 cheaper for the same job, and he gave a 5-year workmanship warranty (mine was 2 years). I thanked the man and was ready to leave, but he followed me to my truck and asked "What am I missing here?".

I smiled and told him the first thing he missed was the out of state license plates on the other guy's truck, but if he'd rather have a 5-year warranty from a guy who lives 1000 miles away than a 2-year warranty from a guy whose name, address, and home phone number were in his telephone book, that was his decision to make.
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A few common practices following hail and wind storms:

1. "Storm Troopers" (professional commissioned sales people) flood the area for weeks cranking out estimates and signing up as many jobs as possible. Some will promise anything because they know they will be far away before the job is done or any warranty issues come up.

2. "Gypsy Roofers" drift in and out doing sub-contract work. Some don't care what the contract calls for or what the building codes require, they just bang them out, pick up their pay, go on to the next storm area.

3. Small contractors (like me) with local licensing and some name recognition start receiving calls from out-of-state companies wanting to buy our business for a few months, sometimes with a large payment up front (to get the trade name and local phone number), then sell it back at the end of the season for a buck. They have no intention of being around for the warranty period, just long enough to cash in.
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Caveat emptor (let the buyer beware).

 

[ladder13]

Truth^^^^^^ along with the guy who just happened to pass by your house…”we have so and so amount of blacktop from a cancelled job so I can give you a great price today”.

 

[Nevada Ed]

It depends on how old your home is and the area.

Some homes that are 70 years old will need sub roofing repaired or replaced, to hold up to the weight of a new roof and a good surface for the nails etc, to hold the materials down.

My Tahoe cabin has a "Snow Pitch" which adds to the cost of putting a new roof on, or repairs.

Lots of little things that can add on to your cost.

Generally, you get what you pay for, in the end.

 

[raljr1]

Had a guy walk our concrete barrel tile roof and tell us he could get the insurance company to replace it. My roof ia 30 years old but in good shape with no leaks. I called his boss on the phone and asked what kind of bs was this, trying to defraud my insurance company, especially in Florida where I would lose my home owners policy the next renewal .

Ended up with a small contract to recover the lead valleys and seal a skylight. $1200 instead of $50k...

Sent from my Pixel 7a using Tapatalk

 

[sheepdawg]

Had a roof replaced in 2017. i was in the construction business so I dealt with a roofer I knew. Naturally about 6 men showed up. No problem, I'd seen their work and it was good. After their first day I put two cases of beer in a cooler out in the yard and told them to have at it when they were done. The second day I left about 35 baseball caps in a box from various casinos, bars, baseball teams, paint companies and such and told them to take what they wanted. When the whole job was done they cleaned up the mess and the place looked better than when they started. I never found a nail or anything. One cap from Horseshoe Casino seemed to be top prize.

 

[jeffrefrig]

I've had the driveway guys here, too. Last time, "Skippy" came to my door, his clothes were as clean as off the store shelves, telling me he & his guys just did a driveway "down around the corner" from me and had extra material. Well, your clothes sure are clean for just doing pavement...
See ya !!!!!

 

[JMD999]

Hows that new spray on product you see on TV?

 

[Bekeart]

Storm Chasers - Roof Roof Roof - Real Dogs ...

Recently my area had a wind storm.
Lots of tree down.
I had seen no damage.

Three Storm Chasers arrive in a pick-up with Name and Logo.
No Address on truck.
All three had very nice well marked with company and occupants name shirts.
Business card was well made plastic with Name and Logo.

But - Their card had a thick layer of white-out with a phone number written over the white-out.

I thought that Dewey, Cheatem, & Howe were Lawyers.

Bekeart

 

[Bekeart]

We had the roof on our previous home replaced in 2017 due to hail damage. None of the working crew spoke English. After they were done, I picked up several pounds of nails, screws and scrap from around the house.

[

Worked one summer for a roofer.
Sweep ware house - clean trucks - load trucks - carry shingles
and Drag a THREE FOOT WIDE MAGNET around job sites.

Ask potential roofer about his magnet.

Bekeart

 

[rwsmith]

'Slurry seal'...

Hows that new spray on product you see on TV?

We had a CEO inspection of our mill every 10 years. They were a big PITA. Our parking lot was in terrible shape, all broken up and the president was scheduled to go in there. We thought, this is chance to get the lot repaved. Oh, we'll put 'slurry seal on it. They did and it 'looked' great for the inspection, but in 2 weeks it was right back to where it was.

 

[rwsmith]

After the storm that caused this....

I know that I've had at least 20 'roofers' come by wanting to 'take a look'.

I had horrible time when Hurricane Hugo dropped a tree on our house. I got a local guy to do it but he hired crummy people to do the job. Had to get the roof replaced.

All of these stories of woe point to the fact that when it comes to roofing, paving, etc. you can COUNT on getting ripped-off even if you are careful.