Initially I was very pleased with the professionalism given me over the phone and during my initial consultation. However, once the crew arrived (different people), it all fell to pieces.
It was as straight-forward a roofing gig as it could be, with the only complication being that we had a skylight. Otherwise, it is a small 1000sqft fully detached home with good access at front and back.
I had about six companies quote on the job. TRI weren't the cheapest, but I felt most comfortable with them, and they were one of only a couple who said they could do the job without removing the skylight.
I took the day off to work from home during the construction so I could be of service if there were any issues that required my attention.
It's just as well I did. The trouble started with the demolition of the existing roof, when I heard a crash right at the window I was working next to. They had failed to protect an exterior light, and threw old shingles down that broke it right off. They later reinstalled it, but it is permanently bent. Later on, I hear what sounds like rain in the hallway. I poke my head out to see that they have removed the skylight (despite the explicit agreement not to), separating the drywall inside. The rain sound was the drywall flaking down. I called the owner and told him of this, and he acknowledged their mistake and offered to re-drywall the interior. Knowing that such a patch-up would never result in a like-new look, we agreed that he would replace a section of flashing on another part of the house instead at no cost. I was pleased with the trade in cost, but still upset that it even came to this... there is still a very visible crack all around the skylight where it was separated from the drywall. Also, while the skylight was off, they dripped roofing tar into my hallway permanently staining my railing... an issue I did not bother taking up with them at that time. (I had work of my own to do that day as well)
Finally, and most disturbingly, I glanced out the window to see how things were going, and noticed that the crew was installing shingles directly on top of 100yr old wooden roof boards without any underlayment!!! In addition to this, they were using standard roof felt only at the bottom of the roof (nothing above) instead of the ice and water shield! I couldn't believe that they would cut this corner. This is basic stuff! I paid specifically for a particular underlayment and ice and water shield, and they simply weren't installing it. This is classic how-not-to-install-shingles. Inexcusable! I went out side to point it out. The crew boss went red in the face and tried to tell me that it was okay. I told him he wasn't going to pull that one over on me, and that I knew how shingles are to be installed, and an underlayment is critical (especially over a roof with air gaps between the boards. He then had to admit that he had cut corners because they ran out of material, and it was the end of the day. I said that it was unacceptable, and they agreed to come back the following day with the correct materials and redo that portion of roof.
I took the evening as an opportunity to check to see what else they had skimped on, and notice that they didn't install ice and water shield on another section of roof too! I guess they figure how many people are going to look under the shingles... so let's swindle them out of what they paid for and install a product that will leak... who cares right? I DO! I had them remove all of their work and begin again with the correct materials.
In the end, the final product seems to be quite good, and there have been no issues with leaking thus far (2 yrs now). However, if I hadn't been home, or hadn't looked out the window at the right time, or hadn't taken the time to get up on a ladder and peak under the shingles, I would have been left with a terribly installed roof.
I can only hope that their mistakes were due to a lack of experience, rather than a malicious intent to save a few bucks and a bit of time at my expense. If it was a lack of experience, the crews should be supervised by someone who will notice these issues, rather than relying on the homeowner to get lucky and catch them by fluke.
On a final note, 2 years later, and I'm still finding roofing nails in my garden. It's called a magnet sweep! For the safety of your future clients children, I hope that TRI learns to properly contain their roof waste, and sweep up the nails at the end of the job carefully.
To be fair, it is possible that it was just one terrible crew, and maybe those individuals are long gone, and there are no longer any concerns of this sort with TRI. But, the experience is still so frustrating to me, I feel it warrants a post here.
