FAQ about roof installers

Roof installer questions

I need a roof installer for my home in the Charlotte area. What’s the first thing I should know?

Check to see if the roof installer has a license to work in the state of North Carolina. You can do this at the web site of the North Carolina Licensing Board for General Contractors. A license is necessary, but not sufficient.

Who do I ask about roof installers?

Start with your friends and neighbors, and any family in the area. They may have some suggestions. Also, check the installers’ own websites. All the reviews there will be positive, of course, so if there are a lot of them, it’s a good sign.

What questions should I ask the installers themselves?

Ask for references from previous customers who’ve had roofs similar to yours that have been built in the last few years. Ask about the project’s timetable and cost. You’ll want to ask if this job will require a permit, and if the installer will subcontract any of the work.

The best roof installer in Charlotte or Concord, NC

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are the best roof installer in Charlotte and Concord, NC. They’ve won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice. This family-owned company is also an Owens Corning preferred contractor and a member of the Home Builders Association of Charlotte. They’l give you a free estimate, plan their schedule to fit your own, and provide the materials themselves. If you need a roof installer or roof repair services, call today.

Don’t wait for roofing contractors to come to you

Never trust a storm chaser

Given the kind of weather Charlotte and Concord, NC have been having, you may be looking for a roofing contractor. Don’t wait for the contractor to come to you — “storm chasers” will show up at your door offering to inspect or fix your roof, demand payment up front and then disappear, or do bad work. These companies never stay in business very long, so look for a roofing contractor that’s been around for years — preferably a local company that depends on its reputation in the area. Web sites such as manta.com can help you find local roofing contractors.

When you have a list of ten or so local roofing contractors, start looking at their reputation online. Go to their websites and see how many testimonials they have from previous customers. Then, look for their ratings from the Better Business Bureau and Angie’s List. The Better Business Bureau is a nonprofit that collects reviews of businesses and handles consumer complaints. They never endorse businesses or products — they just rate them. Angie’s List does similar work. Owens Corning also assesses roofing contractors. Home builders associations and other professional groups also have standards of their own.

Charlotte’s best roofing contractor

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are the best roofing contractor in Charlotte and Concord, NC, having won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice. They’ll build their schedule around your needs and provide the roofing materials themselves. If you need a roofing contractor, call today for a free estimate.

A question about shingles

A question about shingles, tiles and shakes

What are the differences between asphalt, wood, tile and slate roofs?

Asphalt shingles were the most popular as recently as 2014. They usually last about 20 years, but you’re probably going to need shingle repair at some point.

Wooden shingles, which are most often made of cypress, pine, redwood or western red cedar, last 30 to 40 years. They stand up to rot and insects surprisingly well, but of course thwy eill burn. Wooden shingles made by splitting rather than sawing wood are called shakes, and last much longer than regular wooden shingles.

Tile lasts even longer than wooden shakes — possibly more than a hundred years. It comes in any color you could want, is energy-efficient, fire-resistant and weatherproof. Its biggest drawback is its weight — don’t switch to tile roofing until your roofing contractor has assured you that your roof is strong enough to support it.

Slate shingles can last for centuries and are completely water-resistant, but can be brittle. They’ll stand up to impacts, but not the pressure of a human foot — so don’t try to walk on them.

Shingle repair by Charlotte’s best roofing company

If you need someone to perform shingle repair on your roof, Charlotte and Concord, NC’s best roofing company is Advanced Roofing and Exteriors. They have won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice and are an Owens Corning preferred contractor and a member of the Home Builders Association of Charlotte. Call today for a free estimate on shingle repair.

Metal roofing lasts, with a little help from you

Metal roofing in Charlotte or Concord, NC

Summer is as good a time as any to replace your roof with a metal roof. The exact price of metal roofing depends on the metal and the type of roofing. Aluminum and steel are the least expensive metals. Aluminum is lighter and more rust-resistant, but galvanized steel can withstand wind and hail better. Copper is the most durable, but also one of the most expensive. Your residential roofing company should have a price list. There are steps you can take to make sure your metal roofing will live up to its potential for endurance:

• Letting some metals touch each other — copper with aluminum or steel, for example — can corrode them, so make sure the screws holding your roofing in place are the same metal as the roofing itself.

• Don’t let housepainters use paint sprayers too close to your roof. If paint gets on your roof, it might never come off.

• Clean your gutters regularly. Don’t let them become clogged — water pooling on metal roofing will damage it.

Get metal roofing from Charlotte’s best contractors

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are Charlotte’s best roofing contractors, and they offer a 30 to 50 year warranty on their metal roofs. They have won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice. This family-owned company is also an Owens Corning preferred contractor and a member of the Home Builders Association of Charlotte. If you are interested in metal roofing for a building in Charlotte or Concord, NC, call today.

Choosing the best roofer in Charlotte

Hold out for a real roofer

After every storm of the kind Charlotte and Concord, NC have had recently, the storm chasers come out. These roofers, or people who say they’re roofers, show up at your doorstep offering to fix your roof or asking to inspect it. Some of them demand a big down payment and then disappear, taking your money with them. Some of them damage your roof so as to make it look like weather damage and then offer to repair it for what they swear is a reasonable price. And some just do a bad job.

Instead of doing business with these people, ask your friends and neighbors to recommend roofers. Go to Angie’s List and the Better Business Bureau and search for roofers in your area. Local roofers rely on their reputation and repeat business more than national companies. Another advantage of a small, local roofer is that if you do have a complaint, you might be able to take it to the head of the company. Get a list of roofers long enough for six or seven bids.

Charlotte’s best roofers

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are the best roofer in Charlotte and Concord, NC. They have been in business for over twenty years and have won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice. This family-owned company is also a member of the Home Builders Association of Charlotte and an Owens Corning preferred contractor. Whether you need a completely new roof or just need to fix an old one, call today for a free estimate.

See how your roof is holding up

Inspecting your roof

This is the perfect time of year to check your roof for damage. After sunrise, but before it gets too hot, set a ladder against the house and look at the roof. (Don’t climb on the roof. That’s best left to a professional residential roofing company.) Check the outside of the roof for sagging, and make sure there’s no debris in the roof valleys. Look at the metal flashing, and check the shingles to make sure they aren’t cracked, warped or displaced. Check the rain gutters for clogs, leaks and shingle granules. If you see anything wrong, you should probably call a residential roofing company to fix it.

Get a thermometer that goes up to at least 130 degrees and put it in the attic. On a hot summer afternoon, check the temperature. If it’s over 120 degrees, you have a ventilation problem, which could warp the shingles. Putting a fan in a window might solve this. If that doesn’t work, you might a residential roofing company to install a vent. On a rainy day, check for leaks and moisture. Also, look at the framing structure from below.

If you do need a residential roofing company, ask your friends and neighbors to recommend a good company. Check the BBB ratings of companies. Get six or seven bids, but don’t just hire the cheapest.

The best residential roofing company in Charlotte and Concord, NC

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors, a family-owned company, is the top residential roofing company in Charlotte and Concord, NC. If you need residential roofing repair, call today for a free estimate.

When reroofing fails

Reroofing can sometimes hide problems

(The following is a dramatization.)

When the Wilde family saw that the shingles were getting worn out on their roof, they had to decide whether to replace it or just reroof. Reroofing would be quicker and would save them a lot of money, but hiring a roof installer and replacing the roof completely would get rid of the problem for longer… assuming it was done right, of course.

What swung it was that they’d heard of people being taken advantage of by roof installers, and didn’t want to risk going through that themselves. So they had a fresh layer of shingles laid over the existing roof. This seemed like a good idea at the time — bur next year, when the roof was sagging over much of its surface, it became obvious that there was a problem.

The problem was that the roofers they’d hired hadn’t looked under the shingles and checked the condition of the decking. The extra layer of shingles (besides putting a lot more weight on the structure of the roof) had trapped a lot of moisture, creating a perfect environment for the algae, mold and mildew that was now rotting right through the deck of their roof and setting off the children’s allergies. The whole roof would have to be taken off and a new one installed. The Wildes wished they’d done this last year.

Charlotte’s top roof installer

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are the best roof installers in Charlotte and Concord, NC. They’ve won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice. Call today for a free estimate.

Roofing contractors and how to one in Concord, NC

Looking for a roofing contractor

When you need roofing work done in Concord, NC, you need a roofing contractor who will stay within budget, provide the roofing materials themselves, and finish the job without leaving bits of roofing materials on your lawn or damaging your garden. It helps if they offer free estimates. Some roofing materials are hard to work on, like slate, which can’t be walked on — the slate shingles are too brittle to support a roofer’s weight for any length of time. If your roof is metal, or something else besides asphalt shingles, be sure to ask roofing contractors if they know how to work on it.

The advantage of a Concord, NC roofing contractor is that it depends for its survival on positive word of mouth within the community. The disadvantage is that some of these contractors are subpar, and will do poor work for as long as they can get away with it, then go out of business and reappear under a new name. To avoid these people, you should ask your friends which roofing contractors they would recommend. You should also look up a company, see how long it’s been in business — it should be a year, if not ten — and look at its ratings from the BBB, Angie’s List and Owens Corning. Go to home shows, get multiple bids, ask about work, cost and terms of payment, pay by check or credit card and say no to a contractor who tries to pressure you.

Charlotte’s best roofing contractors

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are the best roofing contractor in Charlotte and Concord, NC, having won the Angie’s List Super Service Award twice. Call today for a free estimate.

Shingle repair — freruently asked questions

Questions about shingle repair

What can damage a shingle roof?

Hurricanes and other severe storms, overheating from the sun or severe wind. Rainwater pooling on your roof may cause water damage. In the summer, poor attic ventilation can lead to overheating and warp the shingles.

Who should I hire to do shingle repair in Charlotte or Concord, NC?

Look for a local company — they depend on their reputation in the community. The Better Business Bureau and Angie’s List both provide online ratings of roofers. Owens Corning makes its own assessments. Home builders associations and other professional groups also have standards of their own. The BBB recommends you go to home shows, get at least half a dozen bids on any project, ask roofers about work, materials, cost and terms of payment, ask for a list of previous customers, pay by check or credit card, check for licenses, permits and insurance, and get everything in writing.

What sort of shingle repair contractors should I avoid?

Don’t trust a contractor who shows up at your front door right after a storm, especially if they want to do their own inspections. If a contractor doesn’t have the right license, insurance or workmen’s compensation or asks for a lot of money up front, don’t hire that contractor. Also, never do business with someone who tries to pressure you.

Shingle repair by Charlotte’s best roofing company

If you need someone to repair your shingle roof, Charlotte and Concord, NC’s best roofing company is Advanced Roofing and Exteriors. Call today for a free estimate.

Even lightning can’t hurt a metal roof

Metal and lightning

Metal roofing, properly maintained it will last 40 to 60 years — longer in some cases. This saves you the money you’d have to spend on replacing it, so you make back the cost of installation. But there’s still one question that a lot of people worry about: what if it gets hit by lightning?

By the time a lightning bolt hits your house, it’s already gone through thousands of feet of resistant air, and it will force a path through anything — wood, brick, stone or flesh — to get to the earth. A metal roof is no more likely to be hit than any other kind, but it offers less resistance to the flow of lightning. This means less energy converted into heat. Combined with a lightning rod, it gives the lightning a smooth and easy path into the earth that bypasses your home’s electrical system, plumbing and electronics. Even if it isn’t connected to a lightning rod, a metal roof spreads the strike over the whole structure, minimizing the amount of damage done to any one part of it.

Charlotte’s best contractors for metal roofing

Advanced Roofing and Exteriors are Charlotte’s best roofing contractors, and they offer a 30 to 50 year warranty on their metal roofs. This family-owned company is also an Owens Corning preferred contractor and a member of the Home Builders Association of Charlotte. These licensed general contractors will give you a free estimate, plan their timeline for work to suit your schedule and provide the materials themselves. If you want a metal roof for a building in Charlotte or Concord, NC, call today.