PLEASE THINK TWICE BEFORE YOU WORK WITH THIS COMPANY.
The original quote for the roof job was $17,500. That was as a result of the roofer's inspection of the roof condition and the estimation of all the materials and labor required to remove the old roof shingles, and install the new roof to code. The roofer began the job on the scheuled date, and after about a couple of hours of demolishing the old shingles, returned to us with a 50% higher estimate for the roof saying that the old roof did not have the plywood installed before, and that he missed it (how do you miss such a big thing that raises the costs 50%?). With no shingles on our roof, we had no option but to accept this cost overrun, as there was no way to do any comparison shopping at this point. The new cost quoted was $26,000 ($8500 more). This should be a red flag for any future customers and should be evaluated if this followed California business eithcal practice. We accepted the change in good faith because we wanted this work done.
Once the roof and the gutters were finished, with the first rains, we found several leaks in the shingled roof part (that were fixed through applying patches).
The major leak occured in the flat roof (that was also re-done by the same contractor with a new torched bitumen layer), with a major seam along the length that was left unsealed. Puddled rainwater from the roof leaked for two days through the insulation of the flat roof inside the house. This was fixed with a shoddy-looking seal on the roof once the rain stopped.
The new flat roof was puddling in parts so the roofing contractor drilled holes through the roof, and routed this water by installing the downspouts that connect these holds with the downspouts. Previously, the roof had no holes. The water puddled but had no way to be drained. The new holes were not sealed properly, so the puddled water from the roof leaked from the side of the halls, down the wall, and inside the house. This leak went on for 3-4 months during the heavy rains season this year. We saw that the water was seeping in but did not know where it was coming from (We never doubted or thoguht it could be coming from the roof). We found the connection between the puddled roof water and the leak inside the house (in the area underneath these holes), by accident. We saw that the water was coming from behind the drywall and seeping inside the house.
Suspecting that the water may be seeping through the slab foundation of our house in that area and that caused the mold inside the room, we did two projects to remedy this condition (which did not solve the problem, but caused us expenses) - 1: build a french drain, along the wall of the house just in front of where the leaks were and 2: Install a brand new tiled floor with Schluter Ditra uncoupling membrane layer over the entire floor under the flat roof.
We asked (and the contractor agreed) that if he remedies the roof issue by re-roofing the entire surface, remove the holes, and installs a gutter along the entire length by making hte fascia flush with the roof and sealing it appropriately, we will absorb the cost of inside remediation (a good deal for him since the inside remediation has already cost us a significantly higher amount, and we are not done fixing the water damage and subsequent termite and mold infestation in that part of the house due to the moisture).
The original job was completed in November 2022. The water leak because of the improperly sealed holes in the roof was identified in March (because of significant rains, we just dealt with the leaks without the ability to find the cause of the leak).
At the end of paying full amount, what we ended up was a shingled roof that leaked at a few points (fixed now), and a flat roof that leaked from multiple points, and when it was sealed, it left ugly looking streaks on top of the roof. The contractor has since returned and put a new layer of torched bitumen after multiple delays (two months at least), and still wants to return and apply another layer of white material on top of the roof for aesthetic purposes.
The contractor has reneged (refused to honor) on his promise to trim the fascia, make its top edge flush with the roof, seal that entire area, and install gutters along the roof length. Since this was the condition for us to absorb the expenses we incurred for remedying the water leak consequences inside the house, the contractor now needs to reimburse us for all our expenses because of his bad quality work or complete the work he promissed to do and fixed the damaes that his shoddy work caused.
Because of the dampness in the area under the flat roof, and the water intrusion, mold and termite issues we have lost use of this part of the house (about 25% of the total) for about 4 months as we got sick because of the mold infestation. We cannot move our furniture etc, back over there until all of the construction there is complete.
I have all pictures and communication. read more