Montebello, CA
Storm damage roofing in Montebello
Storm work attracts two kinds of contractor: the ones who live here, and the ones who followed the weather in. Only one of them will answer the phone next spring.
Describe the storm damage job
Three questions, then the address. Up to three Montebello contractors who do this work.
You are on the list.
No provider in Montebello 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 storm damage job. A contractor who has not raised them has not looked properly.
- What the emergency tarp costs, separate from the repair
- Photographs of the damage before any work happens
- A written scope of the work, line by line
- A local address you could actually drive to
- Whether the contractor is licensed and insured in this state
If two contractors describe the damage differently, ask each to show you on the roof or in their photographs. It changes the conversation.
Do not sign anything on the doorstep. Read any contract twice before you sign it; most home improvement contracts in California can be cancelled within three business days.
A local contractor who inspects and documents properly is more use to you than a fast one who is already on the roof.
Locally
The second problem is the marine layer keeping the north slope damp. The north side of a house here ages years faster than the south side, and almost every roof gets replaced because of it.
About storm damage here
Do I need a permit?
Almost certainly, for a full replacement. The contractor should pull it, and the fee should be a visible line on the quote rather than a surprise.
How long should a roof last here?
An architectural asphalt roof is rated for twenty-five to thirty years and, in this climate, tends to land at the lower end of that. Tile and metal go much further, provided what is underneath them is maintained.
It is leaking right now. What do I do?
Contain the water, photograph everything, and get the request in marked as an emergency. A tarp is the right first job. The permanent repair is a separate conversation and a separate price.
I have solar panels. What happens to them?
They come off and go back on, and that is a separate cost, often handled by the solar installer rather than the roofer. If the roof is near the end of its life, do the roof first — removing and refitting panels twice is money wasted.