A New Roof

November 8, 2017: The front view of our brand-new metal roof.

Typically, a shingle roof will last about twenty years before it needs replacement. When we bought our house in 1993, the roof was only a few years old and in good shape. But that was in 1993, twenty-four years ago. We've badly needed a new roof for the past five or six years, with one serious leak during Winter 2006, but it's hard to come up with a couple thousand dollars for materials and roofers when you're a teacher and single mom. Thus, I've basically held my breath and hoped for the best throughout the summer monsoon rains and winter snows for the past several years.

Our new roof, as viewed from the back of the house.

Then I retired. Although that has locked me into a modest income which will still require my masterful (ahem) budgeting skills, I did receive an immediate blessing in the form of relatively generous benefits from the school district upon retirement (such as the district buying back my 112 unused leave days). Not only would I be able to put a roof on my house, but I would be able to afford the metal roof I've been wanting. I admit to gasping and then gritting my teeth at the $3,030 price tag, but this type of roof is extremely desirable when you live under the threat of forest fires for up to one-third of the year every fire season.

(A week after the roof was installed, Mark and I hauled the leftover materials--some edge trim and lots of screws--back to the roofing supply company. They took them back and refunded me $203, bringing the cost of roof materials down to $2,827. That sounds a little bit better!)

Nov. 4, 2017: The old shingle roof on the morning the project began.

The cost would have been higher if I'd also had to pay for labor, but I received another great blessing in the form of our high priests group from church. When I mentioned my intention to put on a new roof, the high priests group leader told me not to worry about it. He'd get a crew together and even gather shingles to put on a roof with little or no cost to me. Tempting...

However, I explained that I wanted a metal roof and, since I could actually afford one at the moment, I was going to do that. I'm pretty sure he gulped before admitting he had no expertise in metal roofs, but then he told me he knew people who did. Over my protests, he insisted that he'd get a team together to install my roof, even if I was paying for materials.

Unwrapping the materials delivered by the roofing company.

He was as good as his word. It was a lengthy process, about eight months from that conversation to completion of the roof, but he quickly took the load off my shoulders and ran with it. Contractors from church got two estimates on supply costs for me, so all I had to do was choose the color and call in my credit card information.

When the materials were delivered two days before the project began, I had a little panic. I took a picture of the tiny pile, texted it to one of the contractors, and typed "I'm having a hard time believing there's enough here to cover my whole roof!" He was amused. "Good, it's thin!" he texted back.

Removing low branches hovering over the roof, with my blessing!

The first two men arrived before 8:00 on a Saturday morning. They expressed some concern regarding how many men would actually show up to help, but they needn't have worried. Less than an hour later, there were about fifteen men working hard to complete the task at hand despite the autumn chill.

We had about fifteen men from church there to help do the job!

Close to half of those men were in their seventies and eighties, but these were men who grew up in a time when people learned how to work hard and take satisfaction in a job well done. They were most impressive! Each man was invaluable to the team and the task.

Laying out waterproof paper to protect the metal from the shingles.

One of the nice things about a metal roof is that the shingle roof doesn't need to be removed. They did put down a layer of paper sheeting to protect the underside of the metal from grating against  the shingles, which could lead to corrosion and rust, but my two layers of shingles remained in place. I'm hoping that will mean a little extra insulation that, perhaps, will positively impact my winter electric bills. We'll soon see.

Measuring and installing the eave trims (or whatever they're called).

I offered to help. I offered to feed them breakfast. I offered to bring them a case of tacos for lunch. They turned down every offer, providing their own water, milk, doughnuts, and breakfast burritos. So I settled in to watch and chronicle the project with my camera. Occasionally I brought them paper, pencils, and Sharpies as they requested them. 

Josh, Dirk, and Fred pause for a photo.

I'd been told by a couple of people that a metal roof was quick to install, only two or three hours. That was not the case. One of the contractors told me that an experienced team can put one on in about six hours. However, most of the men on this job had never done a metal roof before, so there was a learning curve as the contractors trained them in the process. They had expected to finish the roof in one day, but after almost seven hours they were forced to call a halt when a brief but solid rainstorm passed through. Even after the rain stopped, the wet metal was too slick to walk on safely, so they agreed to reconvene on Wednesday, four days away. 

The metal sections start to go on.

Making big progress!

Getting these huge sections on the main roof was a three-man job!

The siding between the back of the front roof and the top  of the

back roof was warped, so they decided to cover it with metal.

I think it looks way cool with the little metal wall instead of siding!

Not everyone returned for the second day to complete the job, but that's because they didn't need as many men to finish up. Besides that, it was a weekday and I'm sure several of the men had to go to work. Nonetheless, we still had about ten men there. There was still one section of roof to complete, plus much of the trim, and they worked hard for another six hours. 

The team returned on Wednesday to complete the job.

In the end, they spent more than twelve hours putting my roof on. How do you thank someone for that kind of commitment in both time and energy? All I can say is, those men are my heroes. I thanked them profusely, of course, but I think the best thing I can do is find a way to pay it forward. Someday there will be a need that I can fulfill for someone else, and I can only hope to do so with the same kind of dedication as these men showed.

Finishing up the back side of the roof.

The next project that needs doing is new siding on my place. The old redwood siding is pretty well warped and faded, and I don't like it enough to fix it the way it is. I'm not really a fan of redwood, you see. Four years ago, another man from our church volunteered to put new siding on the south face and the chimney (you can see it, tan and light-blue, at the right side) so I could refinance my house. I love those colors more than I'd expected and would love to redo the siding on the rest of the house in those same colors someday. I'm not sure I have the means to commit to that dream yet, though.

Meanwhile, I have a new roof with a thirty-year warranty. I'll be ninety-three by the time it lapses, perhaps in an assisted living center by then, perhaps in a nursing home, perhaps even dead. It's doubtful that I'll ever have to worry about another roof, and that's a great feeling!