Expectations Of A Roofing Job
Replacing a roof can be a daunting task and is usually a once in a lifetime experience for your roof. Knowing what to expect is something where an experience can be drawn from. This article will provide insight into what can be expected on your installation day.
Of course the first thing you will want to decide is the company that will install the roof. Refer to this page to help understand the process of hiring an experienced and competent roofing company. The company should have proper licenses for the town and state in which YOU live. Before any work can be done, the company should go to the local town or city hall to apply and receive proper construction permits.
Should the company or homeowner get the permit? Almost always, the roofing company should pick up the permits as this will provide a layer of protection for the homeowner. If the insurance or licenses are not up to date, city hall can discover this. The town or city is approving the permit. Homeowners can call the company’s licensing board and insurance company to also determine if they are up to date. There are roofers that DO let their insurances lapse. Do not let anyone on your roof that is not properly insured. This will result in your homeowner’s insurance being liable for any unfortunate situations. Homeowners are also protected by a State Liability Fund, in some cases, to protect against shoddy workmanship and incomplete work. This may not be enforced it the homeowner gets the permit in their name.
The job should take one to two days depending on the size of the job and the degree of difficulty. Most normal homes can be finished in a day and this is usually the goal of roofers. The roofing company should send enough crew to properly install the roof. Weather, size, difficulty, and previous damage to the decking of homes can cause the project to last an extra day or two. The project manager or foreman should keep the homeowner appraised on all situations and potential delays.
Before the roof can be stripped and prepared for shingles, the home has to be protected with tarps to prevent damage to windows, shrubbery and siding. These are large tarps that hang from the eaves to the ground to guide the shingles and nails to the ground where they can be picked up and disposed. Once the home is protected, the shingles are stripped away with big metal claws that remove nails and shingles. This will sound loud and potentially scary to children and pets. Prepare your family for this situation! The shingles are taken down to the ground over the tarps.
There is usually a dedicated worker to take the debris to the dumpster which is usually dropped off at the house on the previous day. The worker uses his hands, shovels, brooms and wheelbarrows to take this debris to the dumpster. The nails are picked up at this time and then the area is swept with a large powerful magnet to pull the nails off of the ground.
A way to help your property and the crew would be to trim back any hedges that can be in the way and mow the lawn before your install day. This will help the nails from being “lost” in the grass. There is almost no way to retrieve all of the nails. There are thousands of nails coming off of the roof and being dropped 10 to 20 feet to the ground. Even with a 99.9% accuracy, there will be some nails that are overlooked. Watch out when walking around the property for the next few weeks for nails. Make sure pets and children are protected after the job is done.
The roof is prepared after it is stripped. The crew looks for and identifies any issues with the decking. Are there any rotting boards? Are there any significant gaps between the boards? These will have to be addressed before the work can begin. The crew makes sure that the decking is secured and tight before proceeding.
Ice and water shield is applied to the eaves and valleys of the home. This material is designed to protect the decking from ice dams. The ice melting on this material protects the decking of the house. The melting ice drains from the eaves and valleys. This material is also used around piping, chimneys, dormers and skylights.
After the ice and water shield is installed, the underlayment is applied. This is what is placed under the shingles on most of the roof. There are different materials used for this but the most familiar is tar paper. This is not recommended anymore as the synthetic versions are far superior. The roofing company can certainly show the different choices to the homeowner.
The drip edge is installed on the eaves and peaks of the house. There are basically two types of drip edge. The most common drip edge takes water away from the edges of the house and guides it to the gutters and away from wood. Another kind of drip edge includes a venting system to help with keeping the shingles cool. This works in conjunction with the ridge vents. The shingles are installed after the roof has been prepped. The crew will bring the bundles up to the roof usually by a ladder elevator. This is designed to lug up the heavy loads. The shingles are put on with a hurricane nailing, which uses 6 nails per shingle instead of the standard 4 nails per shingle. This provides the best protection during storms and high winds.
At this time, the chimney lead will be addressed. If the lead is ok, it will be incorporated into the roofing job. If it needs to be replaced, the old lead will be removed and new lead will be installed. If the lead looks good but will need to be replaced in the next few years, most installers will replace it when the roof is installed to protect the integrity of the installation and shingles.
As the day progresses, the shingles are moving up the roof to the peak! The ridge vent is being installed and a cap covers the vent.
The crew is at the point where they clean up the job site. Nails are being swept for again with the magnets and the dumpster is being secured for pickup.