Finding the right roofer can bring peace of mind, while failing to do so can leave you out a lot of money and dealing with endless trouble.
So it’s very important to know and follow best practices when choosing a roofer. These tips can help.
Get recommendations
Reputation is an important aspect of making any hire. That certainly includes choosing the roofer who will be working on your most important investment.
“Check the yellow pages under “Roofing” only if you can’t get a recommendation from a neighbor, a friend or someone at your local lumberyard or home builder’s association. Gather at least two prospects. Make sure each has been in business at least five years — roofers who do shoddy work usually don’t last that long,” according to Today’s Homeowner.
Understand exactly what will be done
Get a thorough understanding of exactly what will go into the job.
According to the Better Business Bureau, “What exactly is the roofer going to do? Will they be doing spot repairs or replacing the whole roof? Will they be removing the old roof or covering it with the new roof? Make sure you understand the pros and cons of the solutions and that everything is detailed in your contract.”
Check out recent work
Part of being thorough is eyeballing previous work from your perspective roofer.
“Check that the spaces between individual shingle tabs, known as water gaps, line up laser-straight as they alternate shingle rows. Make sure that shingles are trimmed in a clean line along the valleys where they overlap the valley flashing. On roof ends, shingles should also be neatly trimmed so they align with the roof edge. Ragged lines mean slipshod work. Also look for neat, tar-free flashing at roof valleys and eaves,” Today’s Homeowner advises.
What’s the warranty?
One way to protect yourself is to make sure your roofer stands by their work.
“Not all contractors can offer manufacturer warranties that include coverage of the contractor’s workmanship. If a contractor installs the roof incorrectly, it may take months or years for the damage to show up—and insurance won’t pay for it. If the contractor won’t fix it (or worse, has gone out of business), your only recourse is to pay for their mistake yourself,” the GAF Pro blog points out.