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With all the snow and rain in Canada, there comes a time when roof replacement is needed for your home. In the long run, getting your roof redone will protect your home for many years to come by preventing leaks and unnecessary damage that could ruin the interior of your home.
Before you hire a roofing company to work on your house, there are a few things you can do to prepare for your roof replacement. Keep in mind, once the roofing company you choose begins to work on your roof, your house automatically becomes a work zone.
To prevent unexpected hazards from occurring on your property, you can be proactive and prepare for a seamless roof replacement experience.
At Scarborough Disposal, we can assist you before and after your roof replacement by providing you with a disposal bin for any debris and miscellaneous materials left by the roofing company.
Here are ten tips to help make your roof replacement a safe and successful home project.
Before the roof has been replaced on your house and the project has started, you should get your bin rental delivered. All the materials will need to be cleaned up and disposed of properly and having the bin ready beforehand, will help the cleaning run smoothly. A bin rental can dispose of shingles, debris, tar, gravel and nails.
Roofing contractors are going to be walking around your house from all different sides. Some days they will be working from the backyard. While some other days, they will be working from your front yard. You don’t want them stumbling on outdoor items such as children’s toys, sports equipment and patio furniture.
Before roofing contractors start working on your house, do a walk around your home and remove all outdoor toys and patio furniture such as chairs, tables, and benches and move them into your garage. If you don’t have space in your garage, cover outdoor furniture with a tarp.
If you have plants surrounding your house, they might get damaged when roof contractors start dropping shingles and other materials while working on your roof. Protect your plants and flower beds by placing a net or tarp over them. Let your site manager know ahead of time which plants need to be avoided by the roofing workers.
Mowing the lawn before the roofing contractors arrive will help them identify leftover debris, shingles and nails. This will prevent the workers from getting injured when they can visibly clean-up nails and debris.
Built-in garages in the house will need its roof to be replaced, and it’s important to protect everything inside of it. Usually, garages aren’t insulated. This makes the garage more prone to gathering dust and shingle granules falling from the roof.
Shingle granules can potentially damage items by scratching the paint off. Protect the items in your garage by placing a tarpaulin on any valuable items such as motorcycles, patio equipment, and tools.
After mowing the lawn, checking for outdoor electrical units, your roofing workers can access to operate their powered equipment. Once located, test it to see if it works. If you don’t have an electrical unit, designate a window near an electrical unit that will remain open on the ground floor for the roofing professionals to use.
Since the attic is literally beneath the roof, you don’t want to neglect it when your roof is replaced. If your loft is used for storing sentimental items and valuable family artifacts, they could get damaged when the roof is being worked on. Remove all valuable items and store them on the ground floor during the time your roof is being redone.
Protect your attic’s floor by laying out tarps or canvas drop cloths as a lot of dust will collect during the project. Laying out workers’ cloths will make clean-up easier afterwards.
Once your roof is being worked on, the vibrations from the machinery, drilling, and hammering can disturb wall decorations and paintings. Don’t forget to remove them ahead of time. Additionally, these items get overlooked and should be removed: clocks, hang plates, mirrors, wall plants, accents walls, and loose shelving.
Along with wall decorations, any fragile items in the kitchen and dining room, such as dishes, glasses, vases, statues or sculptures, can potentially break during the roof replacement. It’s best to stack all plates and glasses together in boxes, vases should be wrapped in newspaper and placed in boxes, and sculptures with padded blankets or tarps.
If you have pets and kids, all the noise from the roof workers can distract them and cause them to be agitated. The best option is to arrange your kids and pets to stay with one of your relatives or friend’s house.
If no one is available to host your kids and pets, look into booking a short-term hotel stay that is pet-friendly where you can stay with them. If you do plan to be away during the roof replacement, leave your contact phone number with your contractor’s manager if they need to contact you right away.
At Scarborough Disposal, we cooperate with roofing contractors and implement a specific area outside of your house to host the dumpster for the roofers to dispose of waste materials while working on your roof. We can clean up the mess as our contractors have WSIB Clearance Certificates, and our trucks and equipment are fully licensed and insured with liability insurance.
To learn more about how to prepare your home before getting your roof done, call Scarborough Disposal at (647) 360-9566 or contact us here.
You can be proactive and get ready for a smooth roof replacement experience to avoid unanticipated hazards on your home. Thank you!
My husband and I think we need to get our roof repaired soon because our house is about 25 years old and still has the same one it was built with. We’ll have to take your advice to have our pets and kids stay elsewhere during the process so that they aren’t distracted by it. I think that would also help make sure the workers could get everything done quickly and with fewer safety hazards.