Signs such as these indicate you should contact a professional contractor to see if your roof needs repairs or replacement.  If it is time for a new roof, here are some important things to consider.

When You Need a New Roof

1. Get precise estimates: When evaluating a contractor for a new roof, we can’t emphasize enough to make sure you get comparable estimates. There are some “tricks” that unethical roofing contractors will use to get the job. Anyone can cut corners on quality of materials, approach to the work, or guarantees to offer a low price. You should never buy based solely on price when purchasing parachutes, surgery or a new roof. Be sure to get precise estimates that include detailed information
2. Take off old roof: Although many municipalities allow roofers to put a new roof on over an old one, this approach is very likely to lead to problems. A new roof on top of an old roof is likely to trap moisture against the wood that provides the integrity and structure of your roof. Be sure that any roofing contractor you are talking to will take off the old roof materials — not leave it in place.
3. Select quality materials: Whether you are using tile, slate, asphalt or other roofing materials insist on quality. Materials can come in a wide range of quality, such as materials with a 15 year guarantee all the way up to a lifetime guarantee. You will pay more up front for higher quality materials, but when you consider the fact that your home will last a long time you should have a roof that will last along with it.
4. Choose coordinating colors: The color of the roofing materials you use can greatly affect the look of your home. Be sure your roofing contractor offers you a range of colors to choose from that will coordinate with your stone, masonry, siding and shutter color.
5. Ice and water shield: The lower part of your roof that is closest to your gutters should have a high-quality ice and water shield installed. This seals the roof against ice damming and water wicking into the roofing materials, through nail holes and seams and into your home. Unfortunately, we have seen roofs where contractors have not used ice and water shield or have used poor quality materials. The result is the same: water damage to the home, even though the homeowner paid for a new roof.
6. Inspect roof structure: Every responsible contractor should inspect your roof structure as part of the estimating process and tell you if they can see damage to the underlying wood prior to removing the old roof materials. They should give you an estimate that includes replacing any damaged materials. At the same time, it is also possible that the contractor will find hidden damage after the roof surface is removed. If your contractor finds damage either before or after the materials come off, they should be willing to show you the damage and explain why it should be repaired at this time.
7. Roof venting: In our area of operation, roofs are subject to cold temperatures in the winter and hot, sunny weather in the summer. Every roof should have some form of venting in order for the shingles to last longer and for your roof to last longer. Vents may include gable vents at the ends of your home, ridge vents along the top of the roof, and/or a roof ventilator fan. Be sure to talk to your contractor about your home’s roof venting. If the venting is inadequate, the best time to address it is during when your roof is being installed.
8. Clean up and protection of your home: When the old materials come off of your home, they need to go somewhere. Make sure your contractor takes responsibility for clean up and protection of your home. Siding, windows, masonry, stairs, decks, walkways and landscaping should all be covered with protective tarps to ensure that falling shingles and roofing material do not cause damage. Make sure your contractor puts these protective measures in writing when you get an estimate and does not minimize the importance of protecting your home. Likewise, ask the contractor what they will do during the cleanup process to ensure that no rusty nails are left in your yard for you, children and guests are not injured after the job is complete. We sweep the work area with a large magnetic device that effectively removes nails from your lawn.
9. Insurance and Guarantees: Your contractor should always, always, always be insured in case of injury to workers or damage to your property. On top of that, be sure that your contractor provides you with written manufacturer’s guarantees on materials being used. On top of that, your contractor should provide you with a written guarantee on workmanship. We offer a 10-year workmanship guarantee on new work — something not every contractor is willing to offer.

Whether you’re certain you need a new roof, think your roof may need repairs, or really aren’t sure, we’ll be happy to take a look at your roof and offer advice and a free, no obligation estimate for repair or replacement. Please contact Matt Potter, 215-651-4850, or go to our website, www.PotterContracting.com.

Business Referral Group, a local networking organization based in Doylestown, PA, provides business owners and professionals a regular forum to form relationships with fellow business people, exchange business leads, and share ideas and information to help each meet the needs of customers and profit through our efforts.

Whether you have been part of other business networking groups or are a novice to business networking, we encourage you to learn more about BRG through our website and by visiting us at one of our regular meetings. We meet over lunch every Tuesday at Buffalo Grill in Doylestown. People start arriving at 11:30, lunch begins at noon, and we adjourn by 1:30.

If you would like to visit, please RSVP to Matt Potter, 215-651-4850, or Chuck Hall, 267-880-0108. Come see the power of networking — and meet some really great people!

• Are you working more than 10 hours a day and/or weekends?
• Is your family starting to forget what you look like?
• Have you just realized it’s summer and it’s nice outside?
• Does the thought of taking a vacation give you an anxiety attack?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, you need a Virtual Assistant. Making a list of everything you do is a great way to give clarity to your tasks at hand. And if you’re not the list type or are just thinking to yourself, “Great – one more thing for me to do,” let us help you with that! We offer a free business consultation service. We’ll sit down with you (in person if you’re local or virtually if you’re not), discuss your business and make recommendations as to how we can help. And maybe we’ll find you need personal assistance as well.

A good, professional VA takes your business as seriously as her own, and your business’ success is her business’ success.

Advantages to Multi-VA Companies

I started out as an individual VA and quickly realized that one person cannot possibly do it all. And while VA’s are not permitted to get sick or take a day off (haha), sometimes a day away from the office is unavoidable. And that day will be the day that you have an emergency. If you’re working with a professional multi-VA company, you have nothing to worry about, because the office is always tended. Project managers monitor email and take incoming calls, funneling work to other experienced team members who get the work or project done.

In our multi-VA company, there are professional VA team members specializing in bookkeeping services, transcription, administrative and personal assistance, event planning, calendar and email management, travel arrangements and much more.

More team members ensure a better fit for individual clients, as well as provide more specialized services.

Members of the VA community all work together, making it a supportive, professional network. There is no competition since there is a limitless supply of clients.

When a question or a unique situation arises, we are all there to assist each other at a moment’s notice. There are also many VA associations and forums to assist us and further our education.

Virtual Assistants are here to stay. We are a cost-effective way for businesses and entrepreneurs to ensure that they have the help they need to successfully run and grow their businesses. With no payroll taxes to pay, no benefits to provide, no office space or equipment to purchase and maintain, it’s a wise choice for today’s busy world.

Nickey Hollenbach
Personal Touch Concierge Service, LLC
www.ptconciergeservice.com
484-919-0637
Follow me on Twitter: @nickeyh

Business: We give leads for prospective customers to each other in order to provide high quality products and services to people we know and to help fellow members generate more business.  We openly share ideas to help each other.  We offer support so that we may be more successful.

Democracy: We work with each other, our customers and prospects with a sense of fairness consistent with our nation’s principles.  Similarly, our organization operates through a system of representation where members vote on prospective new members and elect a board to resolve membership concerns.  Finally, members have the opportunity to communicate with other members on important matters.

Community:  We believe that mutual respect is essential for people to live and work together in the community.  We strive to share with each other and promote a strong sense of optimism with each other and the customers we serve.  Through our commitment to the community, we strive to achieve the ideal of true friendship among our members.

If BRG is the kind of group you would like to be part of, we encourage you to vist our group. After visiting, you may submit an application if you wish to join.  We will review your application, gather additional information as necessary, and invite you to give a 2-minute presentation on why you would like to join BRG, how the group could benefit you, and how you can help other members as well.

Please let us know if we can provide you with any more information.

Sincerely,

Matt Potter                                                     Chuck Hall
Founder & President                                   Vice President & Secretary
215-651-4850                                                267-640-5932