Costa Mesa, CA
A new roof in Costa Mesa, priced honestly
A re-roof is the second-largest cheque most homeowners write on their house, and the one they have the least information about.
Describe the replacement job
Three questions, then the address. Up to three Costa Mesa contractors who do this work.
Your request is in.
We are matching it now against roofing contractors working in Costa Mesa and the surrounding area.
- Today, usually within the hour. The first contractor calls or texts the number you gave us. ASAP requests go out first.
- Up to three of them, no more. We cap it at three so you can compare without your phone melting.
- They come and look. Estimates are given after somebody has been on the roof, not over the phone.
- You decide, or you do not. There is nothing to cancel and nothing to pay us.
If you do not hear anything today, check your voicemail and spam folder — contractors often call from a mobile number.
Before you let anybody on the roof
The things worth pinning down on a replacement job. A contractor who has not raised them has not looked properly.
- Tear-off or overlay, and what the local code allows
- Who pulls the permit, and what the inspection schedule looks like
- How the site is protected, and who cleans up the nails
- A written per-sheet price for replacing bad decking
- Which underlayment, and whether ice-and-water goes on the eaves and valleys
The covering is the part you can see and the part everybody quotes on. The parts that decide whether the roof lasts are underlayment, ventilation, drip edge and how the valleys are handled.
Warranties come in two halves that get deliberately confused. The manufacturer covers the material, and only if it was installed to specification. The contractor covers the workmanship, and only for as long as they stay in business.
Insist on knowing what happens to decking that turns out to be rotten. The good answer is a per-sheet price agreed in writing before the job starts.
Locally
Then, less dramatically: shaded slopes that never really dry out. Nothing dramatic happens. A slope stays damp most mornings for thirty years, and eventually that is enough.
About replacement here
Is moss on the roof a problem?
Yes, eventually. Moss holds water against the shingle and lifts the edges as it thickens. Zinc or copper strip at the ridge suppresses it. Pressure washing an asphalt roof strips the granules and does more harm than the moss did.
What warranty should I expect?
Two separate things. The manufacturer covers the material for its rated life, but only if it was installed to their specification. The contractor covers workmanship, commonly five to ten years, and only for as long as they are trading.
What if the decking is rotten underneath?
Expect a few sheets on most older roofs. Get the per-sheet rate in the contract. Open-ended decking charges are where a fixed price stops being fixed.
It is leaking right now. What do I do?
Move what you can out of the way, put a bucket under it, and if there is a bulge in the ceiling put a small hole at its lowest point to let the water out in one place rather than bringing the whole panel down. Then mark your request as an emergency — those go out first.