A sloped cover to a building made of any material is a roof. While the slope of the roof will indicate the state of art technology. Like the ones in the thatch roof. Thatched roofs will usually have 45 degrees or more because they are not water resistant. But they are thick, often 16 inch or more. The high slope forces the water to run before penetrating through thickness of thatch thus a low technology.
While a high technology, state of art low slope- kliplock corrugated metal sheets is insulated at slope of 1 degree or even less and is water resistant.
Besides being water resistant, a roof must perform these functions:
- Look attractive
- Permanent abrasion resistant finish
- Not absorbing heat in hot climate and loosing heat in cold climate.
- Withstand loads like – human loads, when roof not accessible it must
- withstand weight of maintenance. Natural loads like snow load, earthquakes and wind load.
Type of roofing system
- Thatch roof– Earliest roofing system which is still prevalent in millions of structures worldwide. It is made of dried plant stem with a slope of 45 degree and 16 inches thick. The thickness is the number of layers of individual plant fibre. So, when water falls on thatched roof, it trickles down the layers downwards. The thickness creates sufficient layer for water drops to move out horizontally of the structure before falling inside the house. Even the steep slope increases the speed of water droplets, so they quickly move out of before falling inside. These roofs are not water resistant but are partially waterproof layer.
- Stone or slate roof– Naturally stone is not ideal for roofing because it is bulky. Slate, a natural stone type splits into thin layer if chiseled in the right manner. It produces thin waterproof tiles that is overlapped to form roof.
As these stone tiles are not the same size in thickness so it lacks in water retention. Thus, needing a slope of 20- 30 degree making the water slope down instead of tricking through gaps. - Clay tile roof– A traditional roofing material, widely available and is easily shaped into desired forms. It usually has lips like formation on its channel making the flow of water direct. It is widely used and is attractive.
- Wooden shingle roof– It is light and easily replaceable. Used extensively in many parts of world especially in cooler regions.
- Metal roofing system– Popular form of roofing used extensively from industrial to airport terminal building to educational and residential building. It is extremely light but strong, waterproof, economical and available in wide variety. It uses metals like aluminium, mild steel and stainless steel. The steel sheets used in roofing have to safeguard from corrosion and so is galvanised that is coated with protective layers. The sheets are thin around 0.5 mm for steel and 1 mm for aluminium. Therefore, making insulation a must with other layers to be incorporated into the roofing.
- Asphalt shingle roof– A man- made solution for all the roofing problems. It is actually a thin rubber like sheet that is cut to resemble stone shingle or clay. It is stuck onto
under surface with adhesive or hot bitumen.
Now that you know about different types of roofing, let’s take the next step of finding local roofing companies that meet your requirements. Roofing is a major expense and you don’t want to take any chance in choosing the right one. But if this is your first time, the important part is to pay attention to the proposal send by the roofing company.
Many of us ask for a rough estimation from roofing contractor and then select the one that suits us the best. This decision is usually based on budget, timeframe and materials.
- Budget– You will have to give a rough estimate about how much are you willing to spend on new roof. As this is the initial stage, you might not have the proper figures in mind, but with a little market survey or research you will find it. This would be in accordance with the size of your home and material you want.
- Timeframe– You need your roof completed by a certain time period. If building a new home, the time period is important as the next step, interiors can be started. But if just re roofing a certain area or the existing home time may not matter much. But it is necessary to give a time limit to your roofing contractor.
- Preferred material– Do you want asphalt or metal or ceramic? If you are looking for aesthetic or strength, the material chosen will depend on it. The different materials, finishes and colours will affect the price. So, make sure you are clear about it and ask your roofer for the breakup in its proposal.
- Any other issues– The roofers are going to inspect your roof before giving a final estimate. But if there are any issues known, you will want to discuss it with the roofers. They can include the price of these additional fixes to their proposal.
Roofing proposals
Usually after first sitting with the roofing expert, he gets the basic idea of your various needs. They will put together all this in a proposal and send it to you. This proposal would serve as a framework for what the roofer plans to do, when they will execute it and how much it will cost.
- Materials used– The roofing contractor should specify the roofing material they plan to use along with the name of the manufacturer, style of the shingle, grade of material. This will give you a better scope for comparing different proposals on equal ground together with a better view of type of quality expectations from the roofers.
- Schedule– The roofing proposal should include a detail schedule of when the different stages of roofing will happen. They should not take too long as it is inconvenient for those staying.
- Roof payment– Reputed roofers will outline the payment dates. Some roofing contractor take payment in instalment, while other prefer part up before and second part when work is completed. A good proposal contains the breakup of itemised cost list.
- Waste removal– Roofing is messy job. There are shingles, nails, roof debris everywhere. You need to make sure that the roofing contractor has a plan to clean the mess before leaving stating the way the job will be done. Many roofers have giant magnet that picks up fallen nails and others, throwing all the old shingles.
- Multiple warranty– There is warranty on the material and warranty on work the roofer and its team completes. The proposal should outline the features of each warranty, explaining what is covered.
- Additional cost– If any other repairs like sub roofing or installation of flash around chimney, the proposal should outline it.
When making a choice between roofing contractors make sure to go through fine lines. A quality roofer will be clear in its approach to cost estimation, license, permits and insurance necessary for its team and your home.