insider

HI, I’M J BRETZ, THE OWNER OF EXCEL ROOFING.

I’ve been in the roofing business for almost 30 years, and I would like to share some insider information with you about hailstorms and roofers.

Pick a local company you can trust.  How do you know who to trust?  Ask these questions:

• How long has the company been in business?
• How many jobs have they done?
• What is their BBB rating?

Trust: You can trust Excel Roofing. I founded Excel in 1993. We have performed over 32,000 jobs and have always maintained an A+ rating with the BBB.

Cancellation fees: Most roofers charge a 15% cancellation fee to cancel 

Local Company: We don’t door knock, and we don’t telemarket; however, this doesn’t mean we’re not interested in your business.  We’re just not storm chasers. Excel Roofing are the local guys who were here before the storm and will be here long after the storm chasers are gone.

Repairs: Storm chasers don’t do small repairs. Excel has a full service repair department.  This is important because

1) you want the company that installs your roof to be around if there’s ever a problem, and

2) you want them to be good a fixing roofs.

Money Up-Front: Don’t ever pay a roofer/storm chaser money up-front; you’re just asking for problems. If a roofer says they need money for material, it means they have a cash flow problem.  The dirty little secret is the salesman wants money up-front so he can get an advance payment on your deal.  The other reason they want money up-front is that it makes it almost impossible for you to get out of the deal if you change your mind.

Never pay any money until the job is 100% complete!  Don’t give in on this one.  No matter how sincere they sound, don’t pay anything until the job is complete.

Q & A: Hail

Q: HOW MUCH MORE DOES HAIL RESISTANT ROOFING COST?

A: Hail resistant roofing material is typically 5% – 15% more expensive than standard roofing. The good news is over the past 10 years, the cost to upgrade has dropped from a 30% price difference. The average price for a new standard asphalt shingle roof is $8125. To upgrade to hail resistant shingles would be $8325.

Q: IS HAIL RESISTANT ROOFING WORTH THE EXTRA COST?

A: I think so. The savings on a homeowners insurance premium will cover the cost. If a homeowner saves $250 a year on the premium, the hail resistant roofing material pays for itself within a few years.

Q: DO HAIL RESISTANT ROOFING MATERIALS ACTUALLY WORK?

A: Yes. They definitely sustain less damage from hail. The manufacturers of hail resistant roofing have done their homework and developed a stronger roofing material. The independent tests that Underwriters Laboratories developed has proven the strength of these materials. And the insurance companies are willing to offer discounts to those homeowners that do have them installed.

Q & A: Gutters

Q: HOW MUCH DO GUTTER SCREENS COST?

A: The best gutter screens can be purchased at your local hardware stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s. If you are not a DIY’er (do-it-yourself’er), Excel Roofing can install them for $4 per linear foot.

Q: HOW MUCH DOES IT COST TO UNCLOG AN UNDERGROUND (FRENCH) DRAIN?

A: This is a tough question to answer. It really depends on the clog and the design of the underground drain. Because French drains cannot be roto-rootered, often the entire drain will have to be replaced.

A correctly installed underground drain is usually about 15 feet long, the drainpipe needs to be sloped away from the house and completely surrounded by rock.

The average price to remove and replace an underground drain is $500.

Q: MY DOWNSPOUT KEEPS FREEZING. WHAT SHOULD I DO?

A: Heat cable should be installed to prevent future freezing. Heat cable can be found at your local hardware store for about $70 per 100 feet and obviously needs a power outlet near the install.

The cable needs to be strung into the gutter, down the downspout and several feet on to the ground. If the heat cable is going into an underground drain, the cable needs to be strung as far as possible.

Excel Roofing can install most 100 foot plug and play heat cable systems for $299.