So when I bought my house 5 and a half years ago I knew it was going to need a new roof. Between other things taking precedent and the shitty teaching market meaning my wife has master sized student laons without the pay means it didn’t happen.
Today I get a call from my homeowners insurance company saying they did an inspection and if I don’t replace the roof (among other things) I won’t have a policy come March when it’s up for renewal.
I’m in freak out mode right now…the money for a roof isn’t going to be here for the 2 months I have to do it before it’s snowing.
My house is big, 2 stories and if I had to guess I’d say 1800sq ft of roofing. It’s pretty simple though as it just has one peak. When I bought the house the previous owners got estimates all around $10k which I thought was pricey.
Anyone know if that’s correct? I’m honestly thinking just putting on a metal roof myself but I’m not a fan of the height/pitch of it. I did estimate needing about $2500 in supplies if I bought the metal myself (quick internet search, no idea on quality) so add another $1000 for lift and dumpster rentals/incidentals and it’s doable right now. I would think that for around $5k I should be able to find a contractor to do it but maybe I’m way off.
10K for what you are describing seems reasonable for a full tear off and new 30yr shingle.
However, depending on how many layers you have you can put up to 2 roofs on your house. Reason its a good idea…its cheaper than a full tear off. Reason it is a bad idea…your new shingles will last about half as long.
Metal roofing is NOT a good idea for WNY climates. The thermal dynamics of metal cycle too much during our hot and cold seasons. This will inevitably lead to gaps in the metal which will lead to leaks in your home. A good metal roof system, not just some vertical barn panels fastened to your roof system is about 2.5x the cost of a standard roof system. Most “residential” grade metal roof panels are actually vertical wall panels that someone says are roofing. They are typically too thin of a gauge and the coatings on the cheap panels do not last and you will get rust and rust becomes holes and what do you know…leaks.
You are in a tough spot with the timing of it all but it is very very costly to do it wrong the first time. Your best best may be to have some buddies and beers come tear off the existing and pay a contractor to install new ice and water and shingles. Save yourself some of the cost by doing the grunt work.
A couple things since I just went through this with a client.
Be careful, your insurance company may not accept you replacing the roof yourself for obvious reasons. If you don’t do it correctly and you get a leak, they have to pay a claim. By some of their standards, a contractor= quality work. I see their point on it though…if a contractor does it and it leaks, you/they can at least go after him for the money. It’s not right, but I have gotten around it recently for said client.
If you do decide to do it on your own, get an invoice for supplies and a permit and send it to them asking to buy you some time until you can get it done. It should give you a little more time.
If you are going to use a contractor, have them write up a receipt/contract and send it in to them and that should buy you some more time.
Once it’s replaced, call me for a quote If you have any other questions, feel free to pm me.
Thanks for the feedback guys. I think I’ll probably just have to man up and do it myself…as long as they accept that. I have a friend that owes me a ton of home improvement favors but he says anything but a roof.
A friend of my in the insurance industry says that sometimes if you show good faith on getting shit fixed (ie fix the little stuff and get estimates for the big stuff) they may extend it. I’m hoping that’ll happen but who knows.
I believe there is only 1 layer of shingles on the roof now. The owner before put on a huge addition and only put new shingles on that half of the roof. So basically half of the roof is less than 10 years old and in solid shape and the other half is in pretty bad shape…no clue why they didn’t just do the whole thing at once but it’s costing me now. I think the half that’s shitty is so shitty it’s not possible to just put ones over it…and to be honest I plan on being out of this house in 10 years or so so longevity isn’t’ everything. I’ve seen a ton of people going with metal roofs in the area and some just running boards as spacers between the shingles and metal. Seems too ghetto for me though.
Bobby, I’m down in Avoca which is a couple hours from Buffalo. Knowing you have some experience would you say $10k is right for a two story house, only 1 peak, and probably 1800sq ft of actual roof area (that’s a guess but close enough probably).
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Oh, and unfortunately I don’t think there’s enough equity in my home to go with a home equity loan for this.
You might be able to buy some time, but keep in mind that going into winter, they aren’t going to let it go. If the inspector said it failed, they are looking at everyday is closer to paying a claim for water damage. It also depends on how hard your agent is battling for you and trying to buy you some time. It’s going to be up to him/her to negotiate with the underwriter who is demanding the cancellation.
I can’t comment on the roof price, but I am sure that there are some guys on here that can. Simply put, I have not been involved in roof replacement costs for any clients or myself.
the price sounds decent to me. just had a full tear off and replacement on a 2 story house. the footprint is approximately 20x30 with 3 gables and a hip plus a porch and 1 story rear addition. so a bit smaller but probably more complex and it was $7200. i also had a dumpster on site already so i wasn’t paying for any disposal of material. i’m down north of pittsburgh but the market isn’t so different on roofing from what i can tell.
I agree with 2TurboZ on a portion of the metal roof assesment. I’ve seen an increase in the number of metal roof systems going on in residential applications. When we did the lakefront commercial rehab we had two options available for the metal roof the owner was heart set on seeing on his project. One was what was called a “barn panel” roof, which is what most people are installing on their homes. The other is called a “standing seam” roof which you might see more of on a commercial structure. The main difference, the fasteners are concealed on a standing seam roof and exposed on a barn panel. I told the owner I would not warranty the barn panel roof if that was the direction he chose. It was substantially cheaper, but I was not a fan of installing a roof and then poking thousands of holes in it and depending on the quality of the rubber washer to keep it watertight. Durability of the finish is the key to the longevity of the metal roof. After all, once it fails the panel itself is soon to follow. Neth and Sons roofing in Buffalo did this one for me and I would at least contact them and see what the cost differential might be between metal and asphalt.
“Barn Panel”
“Standing Seam”
On the other side of the coin, you can still do architectural 30 year or lifetime shingles and most people can install them relatively easily, which might appeal to someone doing it themselves. Sounds like your home, although two stories, is not complicated and should not give you much trouble from a technical standpoint. In both metal and single situations, you can do the tearoff and prep work yourself, saving some labor costs. I would not do (and never do) a roof over. I like to know that the substrate is sound, and that the ice and water shield is installed in the proper manner. The price you mentioned doesn’t seem ridiculously high, especially with shingles going from $ 90-100 / sq. From a labor standpoint, if you can do the gruntwork and leave the shingling for the pro’s (if you don’t feel confident in doing it yourself) you should be able to save a substantial amount of the overall cost. If you do end up hiring out, please get references and go see the contractor’s work. The cheapest guy is not always the best option.
As far as possibly leaving the shingling, or metal, until later in the season I switched from traditional tar paper to a product called Titanium underlayment. (http://www.interwrap.com/Titanium/udl_30_main.html) This is like Tyvek for roofs. Almost impossible to tear, very grippy under foot (especially for steep pitch roofs) and holds up much better if exposed to rain and wind for extended periods of time. Not much more expensive and much lighter to carry and handle on a roof. I’ll never use tar paper again. You can leave this exposed and be pretty much water tight for an extended period of time if you need to wait a bit to install shingles or metal.
Standing seam is an excellent metal system. It is less subject to movement and leak opportunity than an exposed fastener system. But I have really only seen exposed fastener systems being installed by quality contractors on homes. Neth & Son is a very good contractor…glad to see they are doing standing seam. It is your best bet if you really want metal on your home but it is $$$$ for a quality panel and a quality install.
I’d have to go back and run the numbers on the job they did for me, and I’m sure it’s subject to location, volume, complexity,etc. but If I remember, it wasn’t as much as I thought it would be before they priced it. They also ran all the panels on site, full length and there were no horizontal seams from top to bottom. Also, one item I forgot to mention. Sound quality on a metal roof as well as hail resistance are points that should also be considered. I was in that building when it rained and there was a noticeable sound inside. Again, it was a cathedral ceiling throughout and I’m sure it would be lessened in a flat ceiling application with attic and insulation.
i agree on using a synthetic underlayment if you do it yourself. if i recall correctly most of them have an allowable exposure time of like 6 months to a year. i don’t think i’d want 2 feet of snow sitting on it, but it gives you the flexibility of getting the whole roof torn off and papered over before starting on the actual shingles.
there are some concerns out there with synthetics that they don’t allow the roof to breath because many are not vapor permeable. chances are your attic isn’t so air tight that that would ever become an issue though.
Same thing happened to me with a random insurance inspection.
We attempted to DIY it but got screwed when the deck was only 3/8th and in bad shape. Decking over-the whole damn thing put us so far behind that I had to bring on some pros. Luckily my neighbor was having his roof done the same weekend by a friend of his who was a roofer and we worked out a good deal to have him re-deck and shingle the house while we finished up my attached 2 car garage. My friends and I stripped the house and garage (2 layers) and did 100 % of the garage.
Get a quote on your supplies from George at Sheldon Wholesale in Varysburg and let him know Jason Sears sent you. The roofer told me the price I got on my supplies was great.
If you have any other questions, feel free to pm me.
