Home Improvement and Roofing Contractors

Is the dilemma of roofing contractors a real dilemma? Not necessarily and not any longer. Anyway, deciding upon the right roofing contractor is of crucial importance. When you buy or decide to have a house built, if you need some repair work done to your roof or if you want to replace the old roof with another one, there are a few things you should know about how to locate and hire a roofing contractor.
Initially , you should be aware of what roofing contractors do. Actually, there are three basic things they do. You can rely on a roofing contractor to install new shingles, shakes, tile or flat roofing since they should have the expertise in putting up a new roof. Then, roofing contractors’ other specialty is to correct any of the problems that might occur related to the roof, improving things and making them more secure for you. And finally, they are also able to provide complete inspection services to prevent other possible contingencies from happening. Depending on the kind of job you are interested in, you will be able to look for the contractor that will be able to do it.
In case you are involved inlearning about roofing, about roofing work costs and about materials and equipment needed in roofing work, then the roofing contractors are the right people you can learn from. With their experience, they ought to have the knowledge to help you recognize the fundamentals, at least, of roofing.
Why is it so important that you get in touch with some roofing contractors when it comes to building, replacing or fixing a roof? Naturally because roofing contractors know a lot about the types of materials and roofing systems that exist and about the way these respond to thedifferent weather conditions. Most roofing contractors know very well the weak and strong parts when the weather conditions and area limitations are issues that might impact the roofing work you want done.
Just like in any other variety of job you have had done before, in roofing work you should alsotry to find other people who have had work done by the roofing contractors you are in contact with. In this way you have a chance that the results of those roofing contractors’ work are good. This is obviously the kind of homework you, the potential client of those roofing contractors, are supposed to do before signing the contract with them.
Finally, if you really need specialized workers and are going to hire a roofing contractor, there are some tips you should remember and use when the time comes. Check roofing contractors’ license; hire someone you feel comfortable to deal with; find roofing contractors that have done a similar job before; check and make sure there are not hidden materials or prep costs.

How much attic ventilation is enough?  The most ventilation is needed to take away heat in the summer months. Winter attic ventilation must be enough to remove moisture vapor moving from the living space to the attic. In general, ventilation satisfactory for summer cooling is more than satisfactory for winter ventilation. Studies indicate that further raises in ventilation are not effective in significantly reducing attic temperatures.
If the ceiling ispoorly insulated, you may need a little additional ventilation. Attic ventilation can beaccomplished by gravity ventilators, wind assisted ventilators or power ventilator. Regardless of the method used, the purpose is to provide uniform ventilation of the attic for proper temperature and moisture control. Natural ventilation is the most common and energy-efficient method of attaining attic temperature and moisture control. It is also the most inexpensive, and my personal preference. If a space has high air outlets in conjunction with low inlets ,ventilation occurs as the air within the space is heated.
At Roof Doctor, we prefer to accomplish this with the use of eyebrow vents, installed at optimum locations.
If you would like a free evaluation and quote for upgrading your attic ventilation, you can submit a quick online request HERE or give us a ring at (800) 409 – 4910.


The Benefits of Roof Ventilation


Allows outside air to flow naturally upward and out of attic.
Promotes a cooler, drier attic.
Helps prevent moisture from becoming trapped in insulation, structural wood, shingles and roof deck.
Helps prevent rotting, mildew, drywall damage, peeling paint and warped siding.
Provides year-round performance for consistent ventilation without energy consumption.
For a balanced ventilation process, you should have 50% of your NFV (net free ventilation) at the upper third of the roof and 50% at the lower third.
 BALANCING VENTILATION IN THIS MANNER ALLOWS FOR AIR INTAKE TO OCCUR AT THE LOW POINTS AND EXHAUST TO TAKE PLACE AT HIGH POINTS. AIR MOVEMENT FROM LOW TO HIGH POINTS IS AIDED BY NATURAL CONVECTION. 
In attics which are not adequately vented, moisture is also produced by simple condensation. The air inside an improperly vented attic will be warmer than the air outside. When this warmer, moist air comes in contact with the colder roof sheathing condensation will happen. In effect, it can basically "rain" in your attic. 


The “eyebrow vent” is a low profile, hard galvanized steel vent, with a considerable flange that differs in size depending on what kind of roof it is to be installed on.


Use of the Eyebrow vent is a very practical and successful way to ventilate your attic. Eyebrow vents are set up on your roof, and can be used as attic intake vents, as well as attic exhaust vents and it is our preferred method to use when possible.

Ant Bites Can Be Painful or Even Deadly!

A little info on unusual home improvement hazards  from Ron Williams Roof Doctor-  (Not an M.D)

All of us must have been bitten by ants at some point of time. But the seriousness of ant bites depends on the variety of ants. If you’ve had bites of regular ants then there is nothing to worry. Apart from a small welt and little itching, there’s not other threat to humans.

However, if the bites are from some hazardous ants then they can cause serious damage to humans. Some ants also damage property. One of the worst ant bites are by fire ants. These ants are notorious and very harmful.

They are called fire ants because the area where they bite starts to pain and burn profusely. They are very intense and attack instantaneously if at all their nest is disturbed. Apart from posing health threats to humans and animals, they also ruin farms, electrical systems and land.

You can get fire ant bites even if you simply move around their nests as they are very sensitive to movement. That is why children often get bitten by fire ants when they are outdoors.

Symptoms of fire ant bites:

Many people are also allergic to ant bites. Such people should be very careful if bitten by fire ants and treat them quickly. Some of the symptoms of an allergic reaction to fire ant stings are shortness or breath, sweating, paleness in skin color, anaphylactic shocks and swelling.

Treatment:

If you see severe symptoms due to fire ant bites then medical attention is quite essential. To treat fire ant bites at home, you can pour ammonia over the site of the bite. Allow it to sit there for sometime and then wash it away with cold water. This eliminates the pain and the itching caused by the sting of fire ants.

Stings from fire ants are alsoinclined to infections; therefore they should be treated quickly. You need to wash the site with water and antibacterial soap. Applying betadine is also helpful to disinfect the site.

Do not scratch, squeeze or pop the pustule that forms following an ant bite. This may raise the chances of scarring and push the infection deeper into the skin.

A victim who experiences allergic reactions to fire ant bites should immediately consult the doctor and take medical treatment. These allergic reactions if not treated timely may cause major health hazards or can even lead to death. Fire ant stings can be incredibly fatal to diabetics.

Journeyman Roofers

A roofing contractor in my area posted this wild text and it bears review. Although similar in name,

IT IS NOT ME!!!

No other Roofing Contractor in Northern California inspects more roofs, solves more roof leak problems, repairs more roofs, or issues roof certification on more homes than ROOF DOCTORS. Roof repairs on your home are professionally performed by our license-quality repairmen who must exceed our rigorous roof-repair-quality standards before they are allowed to work on your roof. ROOF DOCTORS never uses any untrained, inexperienced, or unsupervised laborers, nor any apprentice or journeyman roofers to work on the roof of your home which is the common practice among other roofing companies.

And we should be thankful that it is a common practice. As far back as I can remember, my Dad and my Uncles all spoke of journeymen card holders with the deepest respect. As I grew up, I learned that it was actually easier to become a licensed contractor than a journeyman tradesman.  At any rate, being a contractor and operations manager, whenever I was lucky enough to run across an actual journeyman roofer I hired them instantly because they are so rare and valuable.

But don’t take my word for it.

Journeyman Status Part 2 or: "I have a bridge for sale?"

 PART TWO:

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

In modern apprenticeship systems, a journeyman is a man who has a tradesman certificate that required completion of an apprenticeship. In many countries this is the highest formal rank (that of master having been eliminated) and allows them to perform all the tasks of the trade within the area where they are certified, to supervise apprentices and to become self-employed.

In the United States, employment in the building trades, such as an electrician or plumber or carpenter, usually requires that a person holds a state or local (city or county) license as a journeyman or master. The journeyman license certifies that the craftsman has met the requirements of time in the field (usually a minimum of 8000 hours) and time in an approved classroom setting (usually 700 hours). A journeyman has the responsibility of supervising workers of lesser experience and training them, in addition to having the qualifications (knowledge and skills) to work unsupervised himself. A journeyman is commonly expected to have a wide range of experience, covering most fields of his trade. For example, a non journeyman worker of some 20 or 30 years experience may have most or all of his experience in only residential, commercial or industrial applications. A journeyman however, has a broad field of experience in residential, commercial, and industrial applications.

And so for these reasons, I do not comprehend the pride the above individual seems to take in not working with any journeyman people.

The only plausible explanation would have to be that he does not know what the term means.

While we are on the topic terminology,  what precisely is a “license-quality repairman”?  If this is not a made up classification, It would be really astonishing. As a matter of fact, I will bet $500.00 right now that this person could not show credentials for 5 journeyman roofers in his employ let alone countless "license quality repairmen."

 And where do all of these people come from? This would mean that this company has gained access to an endless supply of people that could have a contractor’s license if they wanted but would rather work for someone else. An amazing accomplishment that no other roofing company anywhere has ever been  able to attain.

And in addition, please send me a copy of the "rigorous repair standards" manual, handbook or guide, by which all of your licensed quality repairmen are so strictly bound since by definition there must be one otherwise they are not standards. And how could so many rigorous standards possibly be enforced without one when after all: "No other Roofing Contractor in Northern California inspects more roofs, solves more roof leak problems, or repairs more roofs."

That sure seems like a lot to swallow from a three sentence paragraph. What do you think?

Uh Oh, the grammar police are out again! No, and not the physical address police either as was so eloquently put in a reply to me when I mentioned all of the vacant properties they are advertising as their business locations.

I am just pointing out that words have meaning and when the meaning is not in alignment with reality..... you tell me.

Are Sole Proprietors Incompetent?

I recently saw this writing on a publication and could not resist a comment.

First there is this:
"The business has always been built on a foundation of honesty and integrity.
We have no need to insult our competitors"

Then proceeds to insult the majority of the contractors in the state of California with the following:

LIMITATIONS OF SOLE PROPRIOTER ROOFING COMPANIES

The limitations of some sole-proprietor Roofing Companies are: answers their own phones; does what little marketing they can; criticizes their competitors who they know nothing about; has to perform their own inspections because they don't have anyone else in their company competent enough to do them; performs their own roof repair estimates; prepares their own paper work; buys their own roofing supplies; oversees any office staff; directs their roof repair crews or roof replacement crews; completes their own repairs; hires workers with little or no experience; has to be onsite to manage every job because they can't leave their inexperienced workers unsupervised for fear they will make mistakes; deals with customer complaints and relations; follows up on leaky roofs that they had repaired; comes to rely upon the roof inspection fee, which they charge up to $100 or more for, as their primary source of income since they perform very few actual roof repairs; and, the list goes on and on.

These roofers do not have the financial resources to hire competent workers to whom they can delegate responsibility or leave unsupervised. Therefore, it isn't any wonder that when it gets just a little bit busy, that these roofing companies are: unable to answer their phones; will never return phone messages; will return a phone call days or weeks later; they don't show up when they had promised; they can't take on any more work because they are scheduled out for weeks in advance; and, when they do show up, they charge up to $100 or more for roof reports that contain expensive or unneeded repairs, or they call for an immediate roof replacement. These types of companies do such a low business volume, have such inexperienced workers, and are so understaffed that they become overwhelmed when there is even a slight increase in business demand. As a result, they become unreliable and are unable to properly assist their customers that are in need of immediate service.

Are you serious? If you are a sole proprietor you cant afford competent help?
Do you actually believe this? Better yet, do you actually think anyone else does?.
Second when did it become a negative to :

Do you own inspections

Oversee your office staff

Direct your crew

Manage your jobs

Deal with customer complaints and relations

And, if you do not do any of these things yourself...what do you do?


And while all of us lowly sole proprioterships in California may not possess the honesty or integrity or the vast corporate recources that you do, as for my company, we do manage to have our own name on the door at both of our shops and list our home address as well. We are not listing any vacant properties, other peoples offices or mail box stores as our big time corporate offices.

Who To Call For Roofing Related Issues In Citrus Heights

 

Some Homeowners when looking for help with their roofing related issues are just rolling the dice when looking for  a roofing quote.  I recently performed and inspection and estimate for some dry rot replacement on a pretty nice home. The Homeowner told me she had a bid for $250.00 and was using that quote for comparisons.

Our cost was over $250.00  She had recently had some other dry rot work done (and not happy with) by the same people.

 

Now I understand money is tight, but we have to perform up to certain standards for both ethical and legal reasons and cannot use whatever materials they might happen to have available at Home Depot that day (I love Home Depot but sometimes they do not carry the appropriate materials for the job!) as I know many do.

If you want quality you can depend on call Ron Williams Roof Doctor at 800 409 4910.

Composition Shingle Roofing in 2011

 

Hi, It's Ron at Ron Williams Roof Doctor.

In my opinion, properly configured the composition shingle roof is by far the best value on the current roofing materials market.

Composition shingles have come a long way. Now fiberglass reinforced, and laminated with multiple layers, composition shingles are available in a multitude of colors and styles. When coupled with the right combination of attic insulation and attic ventilation the composition shingle roof cannot be beat for shedding the weather, durability, longevity and therefore value.

 

At Ron Williams Roof Doctor we strive to achieve the highest levels of quality and customer service. 

Our in house sheet metal shop assures you will get the finest flashing products as well.

 

Call 800-409-4910  

 

Thanks