Vista, CA
Tile and slate roofing in Vista
Slate and clay are the two coverings that routinely outlive the people who chose them. They are also the two that the wrong crew can ruin in an afternoon.
Describe the tile and slate job
Three questions, then the address. Up to three Vista contractors who do this work.
You are on the list.
No provider in Vista is taking requests through this service yet. We are lining them up, and yours is kept until one can.
- Nobody gets your details yet. Your request stays with us and is not passed to any company.
- One email when someone can help. When a provider covering your area can take it on, we email you once and ask whether you want that company, by name, to contact you.
- Deleted after 90 days. If nobody can take it on, or you do not say yes, your contact details are deleted 90 days after your request.
- You decide, or you do not. There is nothing to cancel and nothing to pay us.
Nobody will call you about this request unless you say yes to a company by name.
Before you let anybody on the roof
The things worth pinning down on a tile and slate job. A contractor who has not raised them has not looked properly.
- What percentage of tile breakage they expect and how it is priced
- Fastener specification, especially near salt air
- Whether the tile can be salvaged and relaid
- Whether battens are being replaced at the same time
- The condition and age of the underlayment beneath
Underlayment life under tile is typically twenty to thirty years. The tile above it is rated for fifty or more. Plan for one relay in the life of the roof.
Walking a tile roof breaks tile. That is not carelessness, it is physics, and any honest contractor will tell you a small percentage will be lost and replaced.
Ask specifically how many tile or slate roofs the crew completed last year. The honest number is often small.
Locally
Behind it: the marine layer keeping the north slope damp. It is why two identical houses on the same street can be ten years apart on the same roof, depending on which way they face.
About tile and slate here
How long does a re-roof take?
A straightforward asphalt roof on an average house is one to three days. Tile, slate and complex rooflines take longer, and weather stops work more often than anything else.
Is moss on the roof a problem?
It matters more than it looks. The damage is not the moss, it is the permanent damp underneath it. Kill it and brush it off gently; never pressure wash asphalt.
What warranty should I expect?
Ask for both in writing: the material warranty from the manufacturer and the workmanship warranty from the contractor. The second one is the one that matters in year three, and it is only as good as the company behind it.
Why three quotes and not one?
Because one price tells you nothing. Three tells you where the middle is, and the outliers are informative in both directions — the very cheapest is usually leaving something out, and the most expensive should be able to say what you are getting for it.
Get it priced
Free, no obligation, and your details go to no company until you say yes.