Remember the game, “Mother May I?” May I go outside? May I go up on my roof? Can I do roof repair? For these gentle inquiries, the game’s “mother” should answer, Yes, you may. No, you may not, and What are you, crazy? Here’s why, and why asking a handyman to tackle the job is also not a good idea.
1. I Spy
How can you spy with your little eye to see if your home needs roof repair? Let’s clear up a common misconception: please do not climb onto your Denver-area home’s roof. No residential roof is safe, especially not for amateurs. You lack the training and equipment to move over a steep-slope roof safely.
So if you cannot climb onto your roof to look for roof damage, how can you know? You have four other, relatively safe positions for spying on your roof:
- Ground — From the ground, you can safely see many parts of your roof, such as the gutters, drip edge, valley flashing, ridge vents, and chimney flashing.
- Extension ladder to the gutters — While a bit risky, standing on an extension ladder to the height of your gutters is a fairly safe way to make an up-close examination of shingle condition, granules in the gutters, or metal panel rust or loose fasteners.
- Dormer windows — If you have a home with dormers, open a dormer window and check the roof with your feet planted safely inside your home.
- Attic — From inside your attic, check out the condition of rafters, insulation, and sheathing.
What are you looking for? Signs of anything amiss. Are shingles crazed, cracked, or missing? Are metal roof panels rusted, dislodged, or buckled? What is the state of flashing around chimneys, in valleys, and around roof piercings?
The hard winters of our area mean roofs age faster than in other parts of the country. Simply knowing you have an older, storm-worn roof could be reason enough to reach out for roof repair.
2. Red Light, Green Light
We want to put the red light on two ideas regarding roof repair, right away:
- You cannot do roof repair yourself because of safety, skill, and knowledge issues.
- A handyman cannot do roof repair either, because most handyman services lack the insurance protection, tools, and training to do the work correctly.
The way to green-light roof repair is to ask a local, professional roofer to perform the work on your Fort Collins-area home. A handyman can actually make matters worse by “repairing” your roof. A roof warranty is valuable protection; letting an unskilled repair person handle the work can void your warranty. A handyman could also lack the liability insurance needed to prevent you from paying for his costly accident.
A handyman could fix one small problem and simultaneously create four big problems. One little leak may be stopped at the cost of an entire course of shingles getting damaged. A single metal roof fastener might be re-attached, but the metal panel becomes badly dented.
If you attempt to repair the roof yourself you have nobody to turn to when your repair overwhelms you. With a professional roofer, if you are unhappy with the work, you can get a callback, a follow-up visit to fix the problem.
3. Marco Polo
How can you find the best local roofer ready to take on your home’s roof repair project? We don’t recommend just shouting, “Marco!” and hoping someone answers. Reach out to neighbors and friends to ask who they trust with their home’s roof.
Then interview a prospective roofer to make certain you are fully protected by the contractor:
- The contractor has Workers Compensation and liability insurance.
- As needed, the contractor has a local municipality contractor license (Colorado does not have statewide contractor licensing) .
- Your prospective contractor can point to testimonials from satisfied customers.
- The contractor will provide a detailed estimate, with a Scope of Work included.
- National manufacturers recognize the contractor through awards and certifications, such as Owens Corning, GAF, and Malarkey Roofing Products.
Marbles
You can win all the marbles when searching for a Colorado roofer to handle your roof repair work, simply by comparing two or three local roofing contractors. When you begin by admitting you cannot handle the work yourself, and then you eliminate the risky idea of a handyman, you gain a lot:
- A contractor provides roof repair services which maintain your roof warranty.
- The contractor’s work secures or improves your home’s resale value.
- Professionally done roof repair boosts curb appeal.
- Stress-free, high-quality repair work done on your schedule and budget.
- Attention to detail.
- A local business you can turn to for further help.
Connect with us today at Red Diamond Roofing. We are handy with hammers, but not one of our expert roofers is a handyman. Our skilled professionals provide a complete range of services to residents in the Fort Collins and Denver areas.
