ZACHARIA ROOFING, INC.

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Philadelphia, PA
215-969-5757
Fax: 215-357-2306
www.ZachariaRoofing.com

PA Home Improvement Contractor's License # PA025223

Serving the Delaware Valley since 1940

E-mail: Brad
Need our services? Just call or e-mail through the above link.

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Roofing is probably the only thing that you have done to your home where you never get to see the finished product. And even if you did see it would you know what you are looking at? Don't just hand someone money because he says that he will take care of your problem. Many people are afraid to climb ladders and even if they did would they know what they're looking at before paying for the roof.

This site is dedicated to providing all kinds of unbiased opinions about residential roofs and roofing and how to find a roofing company. Since most people are interested in residential I have written this site for just that but a lot of the following will apply to all kinds of business relationships such as finding a painter a bricklayer, etc. If you have any questions on others types of roofs feel free to e-mail me. 

I could put this all in a book and try to sell it but that wouldn't get to too many people. Obviously I make no money from you reading this and learning how to find a company or how to try it on your own. But I do get satisfaction of knowing you have the opportunity to learn and get a quality job done. I will discuss, and attempt to open your eyes to, such  misconceptions as to how much protection you get by checking out a company at the BBB (Better Business Bureau) or making sure a company has a license. These don't do much for you. I strongly believe in Buyer Beware. I don't believe in government overseeing everything we do. We should learn to handle things on our own. We can't always complain to someone else when we get ripped off. We have an obligation to protect ourselves and this can usually be done with common sense and a little education. I do not have a lot of sympathy for people that mail away $10,000 to that off-shore account because someone has some found money of theirs and they need a good faith deposit. We do need some protection for the people that are really incapable of protecting themselves but for the rest of us it's time to stand on our own two feet. Well, enough of philosophy. It's time to get started.

There are basically two kinds of roofs - sloped roofs and flat roofs.

Technically all roofs are flat. A wall is flat and a floor is flat so technically the two different kinds of roofs are called low slope and steep sloped roofs. But to stick with the common phrases we'll use the terms "flat roof" to mean any roof that has virtually no slope and "sloped roofs" to mean roofs that use shingles, slates or tiles.

You can browse the different sections below.

To start out with, I am very critical of most craftsman. Many people think that if they have a hammer they can start a business. Even watching the various TV home repair shows I see poor techniques. I even see errors in the Home Depot book on home repairs and remodeling. Many people think that because someone taught them they must have learned the right methods. But most of these errors are from people learning incorrectly and not stopping to think why what they do won't work. For instance, most roofers do the starter strip (first course) of shingles incorrectly. Yet the basic instructions on how to do this is in every single package of shingles. If they just stop to read the instructions they might say to themselves, "That makes sense".

Half of all new business (roofers to restaurants) fail in the first few years simply because of a bad idea to start with or an owner that knows nothing about how to run a business. You might actually have a good craftsman but he fails because of poor business practices. If that craftsman goes out of business that guarantee is null and void. You can't go after a company that does not exist unless it is a Sole Proprietorship (discussed under finding a roofing company).

Click on any of the below links to start your journey.

 


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