Roofing can be a risky and tedious task. No matter what your roof looks like from the ground , it’s probably steeper than you think! there’s no railing, and it can be pretty high off the ground! So when something goes wrong, whether you’ve got a leak, a few shingles blew off in the last storm, or your roof needs serious repairs, it’s hard to know if you should buckle up and do it yourself, or call a professional.
Here’s a few pros and cons to DIY vs hiring a professional contractor.
Do It Yourself:
- Pros – If it’s a simple repair, like applying some sealant over a small roof leak or replacing a shingle or two, fixing it yourself might be a good alternative to hiring a contractor. If you built your own home or recently replaced your roof, you might already have leftover shingles, so you save on product costs, and you’ll also save the cost of hiring a contractor.
- Cons – No matter what job you’re doing, walking around on the roof can be dangerous. Roofing contractors spend almost every day up on the roof, so they know how to safely navigate the dangers, and have a high level of experience with every sort of issue. Additionally, if you aren’t exactly sure what to do, you risk making a small problem a lot bigger. What was just a small leak before could become a major structural issue if it’s not properly addressed.
Hiring a professional roofing contractor:
- Pros – Number one: you don’t have to get up on the roof. That saves a lot, just in peace of mind! Also, when you hire a professional contractor, you know the job is more than likely going to be done right, and done fast. A roofing contractor is also able to tell you if there are any other issues going on with your roof that you may need to know about. Many professionals offer a quote or consultation so you know exactly what’s happening with your roof, why it needs to be fixed, and how much it will cost. If you have a professional repair your roof, you’ll know the problem was taken care of properly and permanently. BONUS:If you’re replacing your entire roof, hiring a professional usually means there is a manufacturers warranty available if installed by a certified professional. This can save you a lot of headaches in the future.
- Cons – If it’s a simple task, it might cost more to have a professional do it than to just fix it yourself. The added cost won’t always outweigh the benefits. There’s also the hassle of making sure you can get a professional out to your home when it’s convenient for you, both when they do the inspection, and later when they come back to finish the repairs. Finally, if you have a repair you need done right away, you might have to wait to get a trusted professional to do it. Depending on the time of the year, some roofers may be booked for weeks.
In the end, you have to decide if you know what you’re doing, if it’s safe, and if you’ll actually save money. If you have an issue with your roof, just give Lyons Roofing Company a call at 812-294-3595 or schedule your free no obligation quote online today.
I knew that working on roofs could be dangerous, but this gave me more details as to why. I can see why some people would want to do self repairs on their own roofs, but at the same time it might not be the best decision. By hiring a professional, like you mentioned, it keeps you from having to get up on the roof and you know that the job that the workers are doing is more likely to get done right.
Yes it can seem like an easy do it yourself project Jorge, but like you said extremely dangerous for most and a tad bit scary for the people that aren’t even aware (or they might be) they are afraid of heights!It may seem quick and easy but like you said hiring a professional can make your day so much better!
Always remember, falling isn’t the hard part. Its the sudden stop at the end!
I prefer to fix things around the home myself when I can so I can see a lot of benefit to a DIY approach. Based on what I’ve read it looks like, besides price, the benefits of using a professional contractor far outweigh the cons. I’ll take this into consideration as I assess what needs to be repaired on my roof. Thanks for the helpful info.
Thanks for the comment John. I am with you, most of the time it is a lot easier and more cost effective to do the jobs yourself. In the case of roofing most contractors will have all of the necessary safety equipment and the know how to get the job done safely not to mention, it can get pretty toasty on a roof this time of year. If you happen to take car of the work yourself just be as safe as possible and drink plenty of water to stay hydrated!
Unless your a professional trained to work on roofs it would be a bad idea to work on a roof as this article stated. Walking on a roof you can fall. What if the roof is unstable. Making a problem worse that was sated in the article. Not knowing what your looking for or what you are doing. Thank you for the information and helping educate the consumer.
This is some great information, and I appreciate your point that a roofing job done by a contractor will be done quickly. My roof sustained some damage in a recent windstorm, and I want to get repairs done before it rains again. I’ll definitely look into hiring a professional to do that so the project is completed quickly. Thanks for the great post!
I love to hear the pros and cons of what you need to fix on your roof. I know that I would not want to do any of my work on my own roof. I would want to work with a reliable company.
I didn’t know that you could maybe get a warranty if you have a professional install your roof. I don’t do well with tools, and I don’t like heights, so I wouldn’t do it on my own anyway. That’s a great extra incentive to hire a roofing contractor though!
If you use better material and roof coating like EPDM Roof Repair Services the chances of new roof will be decrease or may be demolish. It gives protection not only from leaks but all weather conditions too.
That is a very good point Nicole. EPDM does provide for a great product for protection and longevity. Thanks for your blog post as well, it is a great break down of the product!
I need to repair my roof and I am not sure if I should try it myself. I think the peace of mind that would come with hiring a professional would help a lot. How should I go about choosing a good roofing contractor?
Great question Justin! Depending on what your problem is you may be better suited to hire a professional contractor. For some successful tips on how to do this see our article on selecting roofing contractors. I hope whichever way you decide to go, DIY or hiring a professional you are careful in both endeavors. DIY roofing can be risky, even with small repairs.
I’ve been trying to decide what I should do for my roof. I don’t know if I should do it myself, or hire someone. I didn’t realize that it could be so dangerous to do it myself! I’ll have to find someone good who can do it for me. Thanks for sharing!
Having a broken roof is really hard to handle. It does seem like a good idea to have a professional do the work for you. That way, you don’t have to worry about falling off the roof or the work not being done correctly.
I’m looking to fix my roof. Thanks for the advice about how roof contractors spend almost every day on the roof so they know how to safely navigate the dangers. Another thing to consider is to get a roofer that is licensed and insured.
I have seen a few people fall off roofs in the past, and boy it wasn’t pretty! If you don’t have the knowledge or the skill, I wouldn’t advise you getting on your roof! Find a qualified, local roofer!
For me, it all comes down to how much experience I have with any given DIY project. When it comes to roofing I don’t have much experience and think it is better to hire it out to a contractor. However, if you really have to do part of it yourself I suggest removing the old shingles yourself. It doesn’t take as much know how, but you have to decide for yourself if it is really worth it.
Getting the roofing done fast might be the most persuasive pro of hiring a roofing contractor, at least for me. I imagine knowing that you won’t have to worry about the possibility of a surprise rainstorm or anything else happening while your roof is torn apart would add a lot to that peace of mind you mentioned. My uncle has been debating whether or not to try and re-roof his house himself. I think I’ll recommend that he find a contractor.
Nice Blog! I have bookmarked your blog to refer back to it each time I write my blog. This is the first time I have ever commented on someone’s blog. It has taken me out of my comfort zone. Growth!
Essex Roofing
Nice Blog! I have bookmarked your blog to refer back to it each time I write my blog. This is the first time I have ever commented on someone’s blog. It has taken me out of my comfort zone. Growth!
Essex Roofing
I didn’t realize that hiring a roofing contractor to replace your roof means you also get a manufacturers warranty! Thanks for the tip, the next time I need my roof replaced I’ll be sure to ask the roofing contractors about the different manufacturers warranties. I also appreciate what you said about saving time by hiring a professional contractor rather than doing it by yourself.
Great blog! I know I may be biased as I am a local roofer and have had a local roofing company for quite some time now, but I always recommend hiring a professional for not just roofing, but just about everything. Obviously if you know what you are doing go for it, but if I am out of my depth, I am getting some help. Good read!
I really enjoyed your post. Its amazing post with rich stuff. Its very helpful post, thanks for sharing.
I like the appeal of a warranty on the work. The article seems to indicate that this only happens when the entire roof is being replaced. I agree that it would save a lot of headaches in the future. Based on some other research, I don’t think that this warranty would carry over if the ownership of the house were to change.
My aunt has been having some issues with leaks. I’ve discussed with her potential need to hire a roofing professional. I didn’t realize that a roofing contractor is able to diagnose many potential problems with a roof that aren’t obvious. It seems like hiring a professional is a good way to have peace of mind.
It is good to know that hiring a professional roofing contractor will prevent you from having to get up on the roof. This would be nice in saving you time and enhancing your safety. I have also heard that it is best to select a contractor based on references. It would be great to find someone with happy past clients.
You wrote that if you hire a roofer, you don’t have to worry about getting up on your roof. I despise getting on my roof, as I feel uncomfortable and would prefer not taking the risk of getting hurt. My roof has a bit of damage and absolutely needs to be repaired soon. I’ll have to find a good repair service, to save myself the hassle of having to go on the roof myself.
Interesting article and full of creative ideas. Thank you for sharing the article.
In your article, you stated that when you hire a professional contractor, you know the job is more than likely going to be done right, and done fast and a roofing contractor is also able to tell you if there are any other issues going on with your roof that you may need to know about. When I came home from work last night I noticed that there was a lot of damage on our roof from the storm last night. I wonder what types of roofing material might be more durable during a severe storm.
Since roofing contractors know how to safely navigate roofs and avoid dangers it’d be important to hire one for repairs or maintenance in order to avoid any accidents. They should also have the correct tools in order to take care of the job properly. I’d imagine that you’d want to make sure you hire a roofer that knows how to work with your type of material so that it will get the maintenance it needs.
For anything related to our roofing, most of us are addicted to call a contractor and remaining rely on themselves. There are many advantages and disadvantages of both categories. The professionals undertake the work in a great way and finally, they offer us a great work. However, for this they would demand a sum. But in case of DIYer, their work may not be par with that of pros; however, the way reduces the cost of their home repairing. So, it is tough to compare which is best for you.
Could not have said this better myself. This is a great article, and I appreciate you taking the time to write it. I have been in the roofing business for a long time, and have helped many customers with their roofing repairs, roof replacements, and new roofs. There are many things I try and educate homeowners on, and am going to reference this article.
Thanks for letting us know that by hiring a roofing contractor to replace our roof, we will probably be able to get a manufacture warranty on the material used. My husband and I wanted to change out our shingles for tiles and we’ve just been debating whether we want to hire a professional company to help us or do it ourselves. Now that we know we should be able to get a manufacture warranty on our materials by using a roofing company, we will definitely start looking into local contractors.
I like that you mentioned that a roofing contractor can fully inspect your roof, and tell you if there are problems you were unaware of. My wife and I noticed a leak when we went up into the attic the other day. It would be great to have a professional inspect and repair the roof for us. Thanks for the information.
We should definitely hire a roofing pro. Our shingles are starting to peel, and I don’t dare mess with them myself. Like you said, roofs are dangerous, plus I’m afraid of heights.
I noticed that my roof is leaking; that’s why I’ve been thinking of hiring a roofing contractor who will be able to fix this matter. I agree with you that DIY repairs could be dangerous, especially if the person doing it lacks the necessary experience. Also, it is true that roofing contractors will be able to determine other issues on my roof.