After purchasing our “fixer upper” home in Cullman, we hit the ground running. During the first week it was ours, we had two big oak trees, which hung over the roof, removed. We called about ten different roof installers to get estimates on a new metal roof. Two of them even came on the day that the trees were being cut down. Neither seemed to mind climbing the ladder to get their measurements while work was going on around them.
We decided on a metal roof over a shingled one based on longevity and looks. I knew it would cost about two to three times more but felt like it was worth the additional money. I scoured the Internet for installation information and felt I had a pretty good grasp of what I wanted in a roofer. I wasn’t fully aware of how much it would be but budgeted ten thousand for the project.
The first estimate was a really good one, coming in at $7,000.00 but didn’t include full tear off of the existing shingles and only partial sheathing repairs that needed to be made. The additional carpentry work and shingle removal was a disappointment for me, from most of those who came by. One told me the tear off raised the estimate $2,000.00 and very few had, what I felt, a good grasp on what needed to be done to fix the previous roof damage. Let’s face it, contractors are in the business to make fast money and move on to the next job. In this day and age, “customer care” isn’t high on their agenda. When business is plentiful, some will even drop you for a bigger and better job and never call back!
It took about three days to get all the estimates and they ranged from a low of $7,000.00 to a high of $18,000.00, from Miller Roofing of Jasper, Alabama. I mentioned the name of the last just because it was ridiculously high and he knew it. He was pushing me for a shingled roof at a price close to what I was going to get a metal roof for. I thanked him for coming and threw away the estimate. Judy and I sat down and went over everyone’s opinion of what it was going to cost and the pros and cons of each. We narrowed it down to two, the lowest estimate by Dale Howell Home Renovations and Terry Phillips of Phillips Roofing. Dale’s didn’t include a complete tear off and Terry’s did. I felt that was important, so we could find unforeseen roof problems. Terry’s estimate was a little different too, it was $10,000 for the roof and we pay the wages & material for his carpenter to make the additional roof repairs. He would also install a heavier gauge metal than the other roofers promised. Since I was unsure of what the final bill would end up being, he promised to keep it as close to the estimate as he could and to keep me advised of the progress and how the cost was going. He agreed to take the job and said they could start in two weeks. I think there was a weather delay so the actual work started about two and a half weeks later.
We chose a charcoal metal roof because we halfway planned to paint the house ivory sometime in the future. I discovered later that the color isn’t as important as I thought it would be. The light from the sky, whether sunny or cloudy can sometimes makes it seem to be a lighter color anyway. Another fallacy was that rain would be loud, it isn’t. That story probably came from hearing rain on a tin roof, in an uninsulated barn.
Terry, true to his word, called often to advise me of what he had discovered and things that needed to be corrected. They fixed two holes in the roof, one was pretty major, and corrected a valley with an improper slant. In the end, we were extremely pleased with the results, especially with the final bill being only $1500.00 higher, even with the additional repairs.
About a month later, I discovered a small leak after a rain, under the carport. I called Terry and he came by that afternoon and found a “boot” around one of the pipes needed a little more caulk. It hasn’t leaked since. That is pretty good service. If your planning on a new roof, I would definitely recommend Phillips Roofing!
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