Sunday, March 22, 2009

Your Roof

When it comes to the roof on your home you must be careful to ensure that it is functioning at 100%. A leaking roof can be costly and ultimately destroy hundreds or thousands of dollars of your property. Some times a roof can be leaking for a substantially long period of time before the water damage becomes noticeable, and throughout this process roof boards and other structural parts of your house have been compromised. That is why it is essential that once you finally realize that there is a need for replacement, you make the proper investment by choosing a professional roofing contractor who is qualified to repair damages and install your new roofing system. This investment will be costly and usually range in the thousands of dollars. Moreover, it is not a procedure you want to be cutting corners on by hiring some fly-by-night roofer who does the job for a substantially lower rate. Remember! This is your roof. It's comparable to buying a car -- you get what you pay for...

Roof shingles are the most common application here in Wisconsin and are designed to last for at least 25-30 years and protected by a manufacture warranty. There are also better grades of shingles that have a 40 year or even lifetime warranties. However, this warranty in incumbent upon proper installation by the home improvement expert or roof contractor. In the event that the shingles are not properly installed the manufacturer warranty is void and any defects will have to be addressed to the contractor who installed them. The most common form of defect in installation by many installers is improper fastening, i.e., not enough nails, nailing too low on the face of the shingle, or a combination thereof.

Another essential component to a sound roof system is valley metal and the metal flashing(s) which transition water from vent stacks, walls, or the chimney, onto the roof shingles. Flashings are designed to direct and shed water away from the object and over the top of the shingles. If flashing's are improperly installed and do not shed water over the top of the shingles or efficiently direct it to the gutter, your roof will inevitably leak! Like improper installation, these potential defects are not covered under the shingle manufacturer's warranty.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Home Owners Guide To Understanding Roofing Warranties

Greetings!


I have discovered that there is an essential need for factually accurate information which can enable home owners to fully understand the roofing warranties offered by most home improvement experts and roofing contractors. To accomplish this
I will contact and otherwise do extensive reviews and searches; making inquiries from various roofing contractors in the Milwaukee and Waukesha metro area and objectively delineate my independent findings. I will also define and describe the most common types of roof warranties available, and which warranty provides the most protection for a home owners new roof installation.
It is my ultimate goal that this information helps enable the consumer who needs a new roof on their home
to receive the best and most economical roofing installation and the best roofing contractor warranty in the Waukesha and Milwaukee metro area!