Five Things Your Roofers Won't Tell You
I’ve been in the roofing industry for over 30 years and I’ve seen a pretty consistent pattern within the residential side, which is contractors really don’t educate the consumer on maintaining the roof. There are simple and inexpensive things that can be done to protect your roof, such as an annual inspection. All of the roofing manufacturers such Owens, Corning and the numerous others, and even the National Roofing Contractor Association, all say you should inspect your roof at least once a year. They really suggest twice; spring and fall.
That’s to catch things before they start to go bad and it’s obviously much easier to repair your roof or catch a problem early on. It’s also much less expensive. If you let a problem persist for too long, it’s kind of like not changing the oil on your car. Eventually your motor blows up.
In commercial property, owners are all into proper roof maintenance, having roofs inspected two and even more times a year. This is because they understand the importance of lifecycle cost for any component on a building structure, whether it be a roof, or something else.
Roof maintenance is a subject that homeowners are just not educated on and there are a number of reasons for that.
The Roof Revivers Mission
What makes Roof Revivers unique, is that we don’t replace roofs. We only do what is in the customer’s best interest. We want to promote the best—and in order to do that we have a few incentives.
One is to educate consumers on how to properly maintain their roofs and show them how we can give them an additional 7 to 10 years of service life. The average roof is being replaced at minimum 7 to 10 years premature in the marketplace. And it’s all because the industry is not educating homeowners. So that’s where we’re stepping in.
The Five Things Your Roofer Doesn’t Want You to Know
1. Maintaining your roof will save you money. Quite simple.
2. The average roof shingle doesn’t last 30 years without maintenance.
3. Your roof warranty may be void.
4. Those black streaks on your roof, that’s roof mold.
5. The average roof leak takes up to 2 years before it shows up as a roof stain inside your home on your ceiling.
#1 – Maintaining your roof will save you money
It’s something as simple as having a tune up. Maybe you have some loose shingles replaced. You have some caulking repair around the chimney. These minor things will stop a roof leak.
If you neglect it over several years, all of a sudden you start to get roof leaks.
Roofers don’t want you to know about this because over half of all roofers don’t even offer repair, and about 95% don’t offer any kind of a maintenance plan or package for residential homeowners.
They’re incentivized to sell roof replacement. The average ticket is roughly $10,000 to replace a roof, while the average repair is $300 to $400. They would much rather have the larger ticket.
#2 – The average roof shingle doesn’t last 30 years without maintenance
The average roof shingle has changed over the years because they put less asphalt in it and add more fillers. These fillers consist of crushed limestone, which actually causes the shingle to create black streaks on the roof.
When you purchase shingles, they’re specified and roofers will tell you these shingles will last 30 years. They’ll often even tell the homeowner that he or she is getting a 30 year warranty. But there’s almost an out in any situation for a manufacturer not to give you a warranty or for that warranty to be void. They have a lot of loopholes.
#3 – Your roof warranty may be void
This brings us to number three. If your roof is not installed to manufacturer specs the warranty is easily void. A simple discrepancy in the required number of fasteners—nails to hold the shingle down— is the most common. But also, improper placement of those nails, under ventilation, and many more small issues.
#4 – Those black streaks on your roof, that’s roof mold
It’s gloeocapsa magma, to be exact. This is a fungus that grows on the back of a tree, on the side of homes, on the side of chimneys, and also attaches to roof shingles. It thrives on the oils in the asphalt and the crushed limestone.
This mold is slowly is eating that shingle. But there are products out there to help get rid of the mold. The products we use are pet friendly, plant friendly, and eco friendly.
#5 – The average roof leak takes up to 2 years before it shows up as a ceiling stain
Most people assume when they have a roof leak that it just started, and that’s not the case. Rain has to get through the shingle. Then it has to get through the felt underlayment. Ice and water shield barriers. Plywood. And then up to a foot of insulation.
By the time the water shows up inside the home there’s other damage that’s been caused. Plywood damage and so forth.
Your Roof Inspection
For people out there who are good with DIY, a lot of this maintenance can be done on your own. As long as you’re comfortable getting on a roof. It’s just a matter of being educated on properly maintaining the roof.
If you’re not a do-it-yourselfer, or you just want to learn more, we invite you to sign up to receive our blog updates. We have a thorough and detailed 19-point inspection for $129. But for readers of this blog, we’re giving you an inspection at no charge. Simply call us at 855-532-5767 or your local number, listed at the top of the page — let us know you read this article and we’ll waive 100% of the fee.
Either way, we encourage you to do a full roof inspection. If you have a maintenance issue, it’s going to be less expensive to fix it today than it is down the road.
