Should I DIY Metal Roofs Part I
I would say that is depends. This is a question that we get from some customers who are unsure whether or not they can affordable for a professional company to install the metal roof. In this blog I want to talk about a few items that need to be answered before you can decide if a DIY Metal Roofs is for you such as, Do you know what type of Metal roof? Do you know how much it will cost for the material? Do you have the knowledge safety tools to keep you safe while installing the roof? Do you have the tools to complete the job? Or will you have to buy more Tools. Can I install the best metal roof if I DIY? These are a few topics we will explore and look into.
my answer is sometimes “No.”
Do you know what Type of Metal Roof you want?
There are hundreds of different types of metal roofing products on the market in fact there are so many that sometime customers will ask me “have you ever install this particular type” and my answer is sometimes “No.” There are so many styles I don’t even know about, and I have been installing metal roofs for over 16 years. Knowing what type of metal roofing you want is the key to answering the next question. I would Answer this questions by taking some time to answer the next Question.
What is your Budget?
While figuring out your budget you should think about a few additional questions. Even though you might have the money to bypass the DIY idea and hire a professional, it does not always mean it’s the best direction to go. Yes far be it from me to talk you out of installing a metal roof, but sometimes it to not make practical sense. How long are you going to stay in your house? If the answer is only a year or two, if might not make financial sense. The national average is that you will get about 70% return of what you spend on your metal roof back when you sale you home. So if you are only going to stay in it for 2 more years you would probably have a 30% hit on what you put into you roof as to how much more you would be able to sell it for. If you plan to stay in your house for 15 years or more, then a metal roof would be the most cost effective decision you could make right now for the future. I’ll break this down quickly if you have a normal shingle roof installed today, we are seeing that 30 year shingles last only 15 years. Case and point is my house was built in 2003 and has a 30 year shingle on it and it needs replacing in the next 2 years, and yes I will be installing a metal roof on it. So if you installed a metal roof today in 15 years you will not have to install another roof, in fact we are seeing 40 warranties on just the paint. So take a shingle roof, if you install one on your home today, you will need to replace it again in 15 years. Take the cost of the shingle roof price today; add price increases and inflation and both those prices will be less expensive in total cost than paying for a metal roof today.
Now let’s talk about budget. How much money do you have and want to spend on your roofing project? Only you can answer those questions, but this plays into hiring a professional or DIY project. There are some great cost effective options coming available. We are just releasing the 4ever metal shingle which will compete with midgrade asphalt shingles with a professional installing it, not to mention if you DIY Metal Roofs.
“I’m literally “Dead Serious”
Safety, “are you?”
Roofing has been in the top 10 of most deadly jobs in America of the last 10 years according to Business Insider. They list most common cause of death as falls, and 2 out of 3 falls off roofs are deadly. I’m literally “Dead Serious” about this you will not come back from a roofing fall, or at least 67% of professionals did not come back from their fall. I am trying to scare you into not trying to DIY on your roof. Even Osha compliant roofing harnesses are not good enough or safe enough for me and my crew. If any of my crew members fell off of the edge of one of our jobs I guarantee you it will not be deadly. We use mountain climbing harnesses which is the safest and most effective way to work while roofing. We cannot fall off our roofs because of how safe we are. Plan on buying mountain climbing harnesses for each person that will be working with you and buy real rope made for it. You should do some research on the proper gear because it’s not worth trying to go cheap on safety. If you even think in terms of trying to save money on this, such as “no I’ll be fine I don’t think I can afford the cost of safety gear and the material” Then please do not consider a DIY roof. I want you to think about this roofers who do this for a living and are used to high steep pitched roofs who are the professionals are the ones falling to their death. I’m sure DIY roofers have even a higher fall percentage.
There is a lot to consider in safety and I don’t want to take this without pause. If you read this and are willing to buy all the needed proper safety equipment, preferably mountain gear to complete the job safely then you might be cut out for a DIY roof.
I will complete the last two questions “Do you have the correct tools” and “Can I Install the Best DIY Metal Roofs” Next Friday. Please comment and ask any other questions that you might about this blog post. Also if you have other non-related questions please ask those in Q & A
