It’s unfortunate to have to say this, but sometimes home sellers and contractors will hide the amount of layers of shingles that are on a house with a special trim piece and sometimes you can’t tell until you start ripping the existing roof off. This is more common on older homes (pre-1950). Wisconsin law requires that…
Read MoreThere are multiple options for siding on the market today, with vinyl siding being one of the most affordable. While traditional wood or some of the wood substitutes are costly, vinyl gives you multiple choices. The key to understanding how to do siding affordably, you have to first consider that your contractor has the fixed…
Read MoreQuestion: Jim, If I want to remove a satellite dish from my roof would it be a better idea to leave the sole plate in? I don’t plan on replacing the roof any time soon. Answer: Yes, leave the plate on. If you take it off you will compromise the shingles (which can be sealed)…
Read MoreYesterday I saw the face of a new homeowner go ashen when I showed her what the price of replacing her roof would be. She had a home inspection and the inspector didn’t tell inform her of the extent of her roof problems. As part of his quickie-inspection he recommended in his report that she have a…
Read MoreCustomers sometimes ask, “why is your quote higher than another contractor”? The answer is simple — they’re not using the same quality materials or they’re shorting you on underlayments all together. I’ve gone to houses only to see that the roof would fail the inspection of any city inspector if they actually checked to see how…
Read MoreFlat roofs have created problems for many homeowners and business owners alike for as long as low slope roofs have been around, but the materials have changed and they’re changing again. The old mop, tar and pebble roofs gave way to rubber and TPO (the white membrane you see on many commercial buildings). Elastomeric membranes,…
Read MoreQ: I noticed this morning, during the moderately heavy rain we had, that the rain was falling over the gutter (north side of the house, over my porch/sidewalk) in sheets. The ground below quickly became a little lake. What would cause that? Are there more “design issues” on the front that need to be attended to?…
Read MoreWe often hear, glass block “vents give you great air flow”, or so my customers tell me that “Joe” down the street told them. Now I’ll be honest — if you want vents, we will sell them to you, but not because you need them and as long as we’re being honest, not because they’re…
Read MoreSometimes it’s just not realistic to expect that you’ll be able to ventilate your attic space or your roof decking — especially if you have an area in the upstairs of your home with slanted ceilings. Chances are that there are no vent chutes in the cavity between your roof decking and your drywall. More…
Read MoreA: This is a common question and in order to get the straight answer from a company you have to ask a few more questions. Here’s why: Many homeowners who do their homework prior to having a company come out for an estimate know that mortar is the best way to put together a window,…
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