Roofing Tips You Should Know Before Renovating

So you've bought a fixer-upper, or are slowly rehabbing your home? Good for you! It can be a fantastic

adventure. Sure, you sometimes hear about people getting stuck with a money pit of a home that never

quite seems to be “done,” but those are the exceptions, rather than the rule. The reality is that if you're

willing to do at least some of the work yourself, extensive home renovation can be an immensely

rewarding project. You may even find that you like it so much you want to do it as an ongoing hobby,

buying distressed homes and fixing them up for resale, or trading your rehabbed home for an even bigger

one once you're done. It's a good way to move up the home buying ladder.

No Experience Necessary?

Don't be daunted if you know nothing at all about home repairs. Did you know that you can learn nearly

everything you need to know, for free? You can! If you have no tools, and have never hammered a nail

or cut a board in your life, here's the secret to learning everything you need to know to be able to pitch in

both physically and materially on your own home rehab project.

Volunteer with Habitat for Humanity.

They're constantly looking for volunteers for builds. Even better, they accept people of all skill levels

(including complete beginners!), and they provide all the tools you'll need. After completing 1-2 builds

with them, you'll not only have a better understanding of the tools you'll need to invest in, but you'll also

gain invaluable experience you can apply to your own project. It's the best way to learn the skills you

need, and not only is it completely free, but you'll also be giving back to your local community. As an

added bonus, if you need a few extra hands on your own project, you'll know exactly who to call, because

you'll have made several new friends, all with practical, hands on building experience!

As far as your roof goes, you're going to want to save the actual replacement for last, but there's an

important caveat to that. Before you start doing any serious renovation work, you need to be sure that no

water's getting into the house. That means you're going to want to make a roof inspection your top

priority and at least patch it to stop water from leaking in. If you don't do this, then you're going to

essentially be working against yourself. It's no use making extensive interior renovations only to have all

that effort undone by water damage or mold, so make sure you patch the roof thoroughly before

proceeding with the interior work. Then, once all of that is done, begin a new project to replace the roof if

the patching is insufficient for the longer term.

Your home's roof is not unlike your body's skin. It's the all-important outer layer that keeps all the innards

in place, intact, and safe. As such, it should be both the first (patching) and last (replacing, if needed)

thing you look at when you undertake a home renovation project. Fair warning about the renovations

though, having gained the hands on experience as outlined above, and having gone through it on your

own home, you'll have an in-depth understanding of every part of your home. You'll understand its

systems and subsystems than anybody else, and will intuitively know when something isn't right. You

should also know that it can be a bit addicting, so don't be surprised if you get bitten by the bug after

completing your first renovation project!

Where the roof is concerned, if you're not comfortable making a visual inspection on your own, we're one

of Long Island's best roofing contractors and if you're in the area, we've be happy to take a look for

you. Stop by our office or give us a call to set up an appointment.