Roofing Service
The roof is one of the most important structural elements of your home and it is very important that you let professionals take care of almost all aspects of your roof care. From installation, inspections, maintenance, repairs, and demolition, a roofing service is crucial to the well being and value of your home. Roofing services can take care of all of your roofing needs as well as some additional outdoor maintenance tasks, The only roofing service job that you might consider doing yourself is clearing away debris from your roof in the spring and late fall. This will be completed by the roofing service as part of their annual roofing maintenance package, but you can do it yourself in the times when your roofing maintenance contract is not applicable. But overall, you need roofing services for all your roofing needs.
New Roof Installation
If you are in the process of building a home then you want to hire a roofing service to do the roof installation and even to help with the roof design. If you have hired a general contractor, make sure that he is subcontracting the roof work to a certified roofing expert. They can look at the plans for your home and based on those observations, make recommendations about the best material to use for your roofing. You have several different options and factors like the pitch of the roof, the shape of the roof, the weather in your area, and your budget will be part of the decision making process.
Asphalt shingles are by far the most popular roofing material used by roofing services today because they are the least expensive and can be used in the widest range of circumstances. In addition, they are lightweight and easy for the roofing service personnel to work with versus heavy material like slate or ceramic tile. Asphalt shingles are made of a material called bitumen mixed in a fiberglass mat. The mat is then coated with a ceramic grit. The ceramic grit is what is visible once the roofing service has finished the roof installation. It can come in many different colors. The lifetime of an asphalt shingle roof is anywhere from twenty to fifty years depending on the climate. Sunlight and extreme heat will degrade the materials much more quickly so asphalt roofing lasts longer in cooler and cloudier environments.
Tile roofs come in either slate tiles or ceramic tiles. Both of these materials are very heavy and difficult to work with so it is important that the pitch of your roof is not too steep. That is something that the roofing service can investigate. If you have the right conditions for a slate or ceramic tile roof according to your roofing service, then you are going to have a roof that will last a lifetime, literally. Ceramic tiles roofs will last anywhere from twenty to one hundred years and slate roofs will last from fifty to two hundred years. In addition to checking the pitch and structure of your roof to make sure it can handle tiles, the roofing service will also need to check the structural quality of the rest of the house to make sure that the frame can support the weight of these heavy roofing materials. These roofs are quite a bit more expensive than asphalt shingle roofs, but they are more durable and will last longer
Metal roofing systems are another roofing option that you might discuss with the roofing company. Homeowners often choose a metal roofing system from their roofing company because they offer a chance for some energy savings and they have several safety advantages. They are somewhere in between asphalt shingles and slate tiles in terms of price. The metal roofing system will be coated with a heat reflective coating that will reflect sunlight away from your home so that it is easier to keep your house cool in the summer. They are also quite durable so they can withstand strong winds, heavy hail, and other weather extremes. Plus, they offer a bit of protection against fire because if a neighboring house is on fire, the sparks that fly onto your roof will not meet flammable materials causing your roof to catch on fire.
A roofing service does not always have to start from scratch. They should also be part of the demolition crew when it comes time to remove an old roof. The roofing professionals will have a good idea about how to get rid of the old roof and making sure that no part of the structure is damaged in the process.
Roofing Repairs and Maintenance
Once you have a roof, you need to think about maintaining it and occasional repairing it. Roofing service companies offer a full line of roofing maintenance packages as well as emergency repair services if needed. A maintenance contract with your roofing installation company is a good investment because proper maintenance can mean the difference between your roof lasting twenty years and fifty years. Your roofing company will come once or twice a year to make sure there are no areas of your roof that need to be repaired, check for possible leaks or weak spots, and clear away any debris that might be collecting on your roof. If you do happen to notice curling shingles, granules in your gutter system, or obvious leaks, then you should call your roofing repair service right away.
You may think that you do not have to worry about regular maintenance because your roof has a warranty, but many warranties become void if you do not have regular maintenance reports to show the warranty company. It will be well worth the investment in a regular roofing maintenance contract in order to avoid major roof repairs.
As part of your regular maintenance, the roofing service can perform a full roof inspection to show you the status of your roof and any possible roofing repairs you may want to complete on different timelines. They can usually also do inspections at other times if you need it, like when you are applying for homeowner’s insurance, selling your home, or buying a new home. Many prospective buyers want to make sure that they roof is in good condition and that they will not need to pay for roofing services above and beyond regular maintenance for quite some time after they purchase the home.
Other Roofing Services
Some roofing companies will offer services that go beyond roofing services. They might offer things like gutter cleaning, cleaning of solar lighting, outdoor lighting installation, or power washing of siding. Since the roofing service works need to climb ladders to access the roof anyway, it is easy to stay up there to clean out a gutter system. They may also be able to level or reattach your gutters if need be. They can use a garden hose to clean off the solar collecting panels that you have installed on your roof for solar light fixtures. Or, they could use a more powerful piece of equipment and power wash your siding while they are high enough to reach all parts of your siding.