Facing the possibility of having to get your roof replaced can be quite a daunting task for most homeowners. It’s a big job, no matter what size of house you have, but having it done properly is essential for ensuring that you have a warm, dry and safe house! You need to ensure that you are working with a contractor who is not only able to replace your roof in a timely manner and to a high standard, but also at an affordable rate.
There is a lot that can go wrong when you roof your home, so making sure that you have at least a basic understanding of what the process will be and what materials will be used can help you notice if things are not quite right before you discover that the whole thing needs to come off and you need to start all over again. Looking through websites or talking to a My Roofing Advocate expert can help get you to not only the information you need in order to make the best roofing decisions, but also to help you follow the progress as your contractors work.
Assessment
The first thing any roofing contractor should be doing is actually climbing up on your roof to have a look. Even if you know that you will need to have your entire roof replaced, they still need to be able to confirm whether eaves or bracing will need to be replaced.
If you are looking at changing the type of roofing material that you are using, they will also need to be able to confirm that your roof structure will be able to support it. For example, corrugated iron is significantly lighter that slate tiles, and wooden tiles need a different framework compared to an asphalt roof.
One of the other reasons for a contractor to assess your roof is for access. They will generally use scaffolding, and need to plan where it will be placed. For your own piece of mind this is something homeowners will discuss with the roofing contractor before they turn up ready to start work. If you have particular plants or area of your home that you want to keep secure make sure to mention this to the roofer before they have the scaffold installed (as this is often done by a separate contractor). https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3150/osha3150.html
Quote
You’ll probably want to get more than one company to quote – replacing a roof can be an expensive job! However, when you do so, make sure that you are comparing apples with apples. When you are arranging the quote make sure that you are asking for the same work to be completed:
- Is the type of material the same?
- For example, ceramic and slate tiles are not the same, have different maintenance requirements, different initial costing, and different lifespans)
- Is the timeframe similar?
- You may find that one roofing contractor is a sole trader so takes a lot longer to complete the work than a roofing contractor with a team of 5 roofers – but this speed may also come with an additional cost.
- Is the cleanup cost included?
- You do want to make sure that your contractor takes the old roofing material away and cleans up your yard from any debris. Make sure that this is actually noted in your quote and job description or you may find yourself with a clean-up job.
- Are any repairs included?
- You will often find that you will need to have barge boards replaced when you have your house re-roofed, and possibly repairs made to eaves as well (see here), your roofer should be able to tell you ahead of time if this is the case, so you will want to make sure that these repairs are included in the price.
Actual Work Process
You should be given a clear indication of how long the job will take, but this may change with unexpected weather conditions.
Your contractor should make sure that any areas of your house that need to be protected are covered. Only once this is done will they start to remove the old roofing material.
Once the old material is off they may come to you with any problems they weren’t able to see in regard to the framing, but most expert roofers will have had a good idea and warned you if they felt there was likely to be damage to the framing that needed to be replaced.
The whole process of removing, repairing and replacing your roof should take up to two weeks.