Is it time for a new roof? Whether you’re a new homeowner or have been one for years, you may not have ever had to replace your home’s roof before. Those who are new to the roofing process may not know what to expect. There’s no need to feel apprehensive about it, though. Simply read our “Roofing for Beginners” primer and you’ll be ready to face this home-improvement project head-on!

roofing for beginners

Before we get started though, let’s do some expectation management: the actual roofing process won’t take weeks or even several days. In most cases, we can reroof a home in just a single day, so there’s no need to worry that our crew will be on your property for an unbearably long time. So, take a deep breath, relax, and read on!

1. Make Contact: The first step to getting your home’s roof replaced is to contact us by phone or email. Why is this important? We don’t do door-to-door sales nor will we attempt to call you unless you specifically ask us to do so. So, go ahead and reach out!

We’ll arrange a convenient time to meet with you at your home and perform a careful assessment of your roof—inside and out. Once we’ve taken a look at your current roof, we’ll explain, in detail, what to expect during the roofing process. Then we’ll provide you with a comprehensive review of your options and gather information from you about what you’re looking for in a roof.

If this is the first time you’ve ever replaced a roof (and, if you’re reading “Roofing for Beginners, it probably is!), you may not know this, but when we first started in this business nearly 40 years ago, choosing a new roof was a pretty straightforward process. Today, though, you have, at your fingertips, literally thousands of options to consider. You can choose the type of roof material you’d like for your roof, as well as the colors, profiles, designs, and features available for each of those materials. It can be a bit overwhelming, but don’t worry. By getting to know your home as well as your tastes, preferences, and budget, we’re ideally positioned to provide you with custom-tailored ideas and suggestions as well as the most accurate estimate possible. Once we’ve agreed on all the details, you’ll sign a contract and provide us with a down payment (usually 50%). Don’t worry—we have financing options available!

2. Schedule Your Roof Replacement: Have your new roof all picked out? It’s time to schedule your roof replacement. Exactly how much time we’ll need as well as what will be involved in replacing your roof will vary depending on the size and pitch of your roof as well as its current condition. Most of the time, we can replace your roof in a single day, but for extremely large or complex roofing systems as well as issues such as damaged roof decking, we may need a bit more time to complete the job. Of course, we need good weather to replace your roof. You wouldn’t want us to tear the roof of your home just in time for a rainstorm or a snowstorm, right? So, weather can sometimes impact the length of a job, or when it is able to begin. Don’t worry though: after more than 35 years of reroofing homes, we’ve gotten pretty darn good at managing these issues and minimizing potential delays.

3. Prepping for Our Arrival: Before we arrive to replace your roof, you should know that we’ll take care of acquiring permits, arranging for a roll-off waste container, and obtaining the necessary materials. Your job is to relocate any lawn furniture, grills, or other outdoor objects away from the area below the roof. Inside your home remove heavy and breakable objects from shelves, take down artwork from your walls and remove light fixtures that hang from your ceilings. The roofing process creates strong vibrations that may damage these items like this that aren’t well-secured. What don’t you need to worry about? Covering plants and grass around the worksite. We’ll take care of this when we arrive!

4. What to Do While We Work: You are more than welcome to remain at home throughout the roofing process. However, you may find that the noise and vibrations are loud and uncomfortable. They could also scare your pets and small children, who won’t understand what’s going. Because of this, many of our clients have chosen to take a day trip to visit friends or family or do some sort of animal-friendly activity (you should definitely take along your pets to keep them from becoming anxious or frightened while you’re gone). If you opt to remain at home, please keep pets and kids away from the construction area, and do not leave them unsupervised at any time, as they could unwittingly wander into a dangerous area.

5. What We’ll Be Doing Up There: First, we’ll tear off all the old roofing material (usually shingles) and carefully assess the condition of the decking underneath. If we find any need for unexpected repairs (such as replacing rotted wood sheathing), we’ll let you know before we perform the fix. Once we’ve verified that your roof decking is in good shape, we will work quickly and carefully to put on the new roof. We know you’ll be impressed with our attention to detail, professionalism, and quality of workmanship.

6. After We’re Done: We’ll explain what we did and give you the opportunity to assess our work. We don’t expect you to sign off and pay the balance until you’re totally satisfied with the job we did.

Now that you’ve read “Roofing for Beginners” you know all that goes into the new roofing process, and you’re probably excited to get started. We are, too! So, give George J. Keller and Sons a call today at 973-927-0963 or book an appointment with our online scheduling tool — we look forward to working with you!