Roofing Contract - When it's Time to Replace or Repair Your Roof

When your roof is in trouble, so are you. Your roof protects your home from the elements including water, harmful UV rays, and the local wildlife such as bats from taking root in your home’s attic. So when your roof is damaged or needs to be replaced, it is something you shouldn’t put off acting on as quickly as you can afford to. Once your roof becomes susceptible to the elements it can cause even more costly damage to your home including your home structure itself to develop dry rot which can be very expensive and extensive to restore.

If you know or suspect you have a roofing problem the first place you want to start is with a roofing contractor who can tell you exactly what type of damage repair or total replacement cost you are facing.

If you’re ready to replace your roof take into consideration several factors about the type of roof you want to replace it with. Metal roofs are incredibly cost effective and economically friendly for several reasons. One major appeal to metal roofs is the fact that they can be put on quickly by a roofing contractor. The old roof doesn’t need to be ripped out and put in a landfill because a metal roof can go very effectively right on top of your old roof, regardless of the condition your old roof is in. This means less money to spend on a roofing contractor to rip the old roof out and less money to have your old roof sitting in a landfill for twenty years. It is also more ecologically friendly because your old roof isn’t adding to the growing pile of garbage we create as a nation.

If you prefer to stay with a more traditional residential roofing material consider all of your material options with your roofing contractor. You should strive for a material that is going to be as energy efficient as possible and at the same time find a material that will stand up to the climate demands of your particular area. Your roofing contractor should be able to help guide you towards what works and what doesn’t last well in your area to ensure your roof replacement won’t be an annual event.

Before you hire any contractor make sure you have a written bid and a written contract. You want to see in writing exactly what part of your money is going for materials and what is being allotted for labor. You also want to make sure your contract includes a start date and an estimated completion date. Completion dates are subject to change so you need to be realistic with your dates. Weather, material supply delays and other unforeseen events can alter even the best contractor’s ability to meet a strict deadline. However it is not unrealistic to expect your actual end date to be within a few days of your agreed upon end date and to have a built in penalty fee if your job isn’t done on time.