Is Shingling a Roof the Only Choice You Have?

Is Shingling a Roof the Only Choice You Have?

Whether you are building for home or business, you will find that you have more options when it comes to roofing than simply shingling a roof with asphalt shingles. Shingling with these types of shingles is often popular simply because they are a much more cost effective option for many roofs—especially if you aren't certain how long you will be living in a home or occupying a space for a business. In fact, most people move before they've outlived the life of their shingles in today's mobile world.

If you are planning to put down roots though it may very well be worth your while to explore all of your options before deciding on asphalt shingles for shingling a roof. Remember, even if you do sell your home before the life expectancy of your roof expires that solid roofs in great condition are a selling point for most homes and businesses.

You have many options available to you. Some of these options are more decorative in nature than others and some carry a much stiffer price tag than others but the options remain impressive. You even have the option of using one type of shingling for the great portion of your roof and other shingling options to highlight or accentuate certain points or features. You can make all sorts of statements when shingling a roof and you are only limited by your budget and your imagination.

You can even opt out of shingling a roof altogether. Though more common with business roofs, there is always the option of bitumen roofs, built up roofs, metal roofs, and membrane roofs to consider. While not generally as aesthetically pleasing as shingles are for a roof these roofing types are better suited for many applications. If you are exploring all of your options though it would be a shame to overlook these options for roofs—especially if you are in need of a commercial roof.

Other options for home roofing include clay tiles, wooden shingles, asphalt shingles, metal. Each roofing type offers its own unique strengths and weaknesses to consider. Of these options, asphalt shingles require the lowest up front investment. The downside is that they also need to be replaced the most often. This leaves them having a negative impact on the environment and may actually workout to a greater overall cost when all is said and done.

The bottom line is that you have many options available for shingling a roof that go well beyond simple choosing which asphalt shingles you wish to purchase. Do not think though that you can't get a perfectly lovely roof by shingling a roof with asphalt shingles that will last quite a while when properly cared for and maintained.

Dave Deschaine - Maine's Professional Roofing Contractor - http://www.daviddeschaine.com

The Winter Storm Aftermath

What a winter rain and wind storm we just had last week, over 6 inches of rain. We have received many phone calls from home owners, with trees that have fallen over because of some of the 80 mile an hour winds from the major winter storm. We lost power at our office, and had to use one of our generators to get the phone system online, our computers we down but we were able to help people with water coming into their homes. All over the city power was out, people were calling all upset, we have 4 guys out helping people anyway we could to stop the leaks. We worked all weekend tarping roofs from the wind damage to the roofs.

The rain finally stopped for a while on Sunday, but we had some snow over night, and Monday the roofs had a small amount of snow on the roofs, which are very slippery to walk on. We went to some homes where the trees had ripped big holes in the roof sheathing, and water had been pouring in. Homeowners had called there insurance companies to let them know that their homes had been damaged from the heavy winds and torrential rain from this storm. Lots of businesses in Westbrook were underwater from the heavy rain, and the Scarborough marsh had risen to the highest levels in years. With all the earth quakes all over the world, you have to wonder what is going on with the weather. We have had very little snow here in southern Maine and really not much precipitation at all. Finally the power has been turned on but we have many roofs schedule for this spring, and if anyone ever needs help after these storms, call us and we will do whatever we can do to help you. I’ll talk with you soon. Dave Deschaine

This is from other sources:

After a night of heavy rains water spilled over the river's banks, shutting down a section of Route 302 and flooding nearby parking lots. A second teenager, who ended up in the water after his kayak tipped over, managed to get himself to shore.
Westbrook's police chief says the decision to take the kayaks out in those conditions not only put the teens in danger, but also put the rescuers at risk.

The winter storm that knocked out power for tens of thousands in Maine is quickly becoming a fading memory. Not so for nearly 1,000 homes and businesses still in the dark, however.Central Maine Power said its utility crews had reduced the number of power outages to 898 by noon. That means the utility missed its goal of restoring electricity for everyone by Monday night.

The Cold temperatures have arrived !!

The Cold temperatures have arrived !!
At 7:00 am the roofing crews get to the shop looking for a work orders to install their next roofs, and the trucks all start up with a different sound in the winter months. All the crews are drinking a hot cup of coffee as the workmen begin to get gloves, hats, tools and equipment for the day’s work ahead.

Most people do not work outside during the winter months, but someone has to take care of people’s homes. We have to keep moving to stay warm, and we just finished a metal roofing job in Sanford. Handling the metal roofing panels is very cold on the hands. We are clearing the snow off trucks, and scraping the windshields and heading up to Cumberland today. Yes, this is Sunday and one crew came in today to get a little extra money for Christmas.

The roof today is an easy ranch, and the roof will be completed in one day. The customer is very happy that we could get the job completed quickly, before the snow really begins to mount up for the season. We always insist on the full coverage of ice & water shield method, because it really helps with preparing the roof decking for the new architectural roofing shingle that will be going on. We do occasionally have to re-nail the roof decking back down, and we use a framing gun with 8 penny nails connected to one of our compressors to ensure a solid roof deck.

My guys are really professionals and they care a lot about quality. I'm very pleased to have such a great bunch of people working for the company. If you, or someone you know, needs their roof done we install roofing, metal roofing, vinyl siding, replacement windows and seamless gutters all year. Have a great Christmas everyone, and we will be back again soon.

Our first snow of the season in Southern Maine

Our first snow of the season came in with a couple of different waves. The first was snow and then heavy rain with strong winds. Maine's weather is really living up to the statement of "If you don't like the weather Now, just wait for a few minutes" and yes it changes quick. The cold is now beginning to freeze the ground which make everything else outside frozen solid.

Most people think that our work stops during the winter, but really it get very busy helping homeowners with ice dam problems, roof shoveling and interior water damage caused by the build-up of snow and ice. We have our roof shoveling and roof maintenance packages available for you, we are on call if you need something and you will be put on our priority customer list, so when it snows we will be there for you automatically.

We are finishing up the 2009 season, which has been another challenging time for homeowners with the current credit availability for home improvement projects. We are working closely with local banking institutions to find loan programs and funding for roofing, metal roofing, vinyl siding, replacement windows, and seamless gutter projects. We are all hopeful that the economy will begin to turn around. So people find new jobs and get their lives back on track.

Every time I go past the Maine Mall the parking lot is full, and all the restaurants are packed. Which leads me to believe, everything is going to be just fine. If you have any problems this winter call us, e-mail us or go to our website and request a free estimate. I would like to thank all of our customer, current and past, for their confidence and business. So Christmas is right around the corner and from all of us at David J. Deschaine wish you all a very Merry Christmas, and A Happy New Year in 2010.