Category: Uncategorized

Winter is quickly approaching, and with winter comes the possibility of snow and winter weather. Winter weather can wreak havoc on your home and roof. From heavy icicles hanging from your gutters to ice frozen on your eaves, there are multiple roofing issues that can result from winter weather. If you are facing these problems with ice on and around your roof, it is time to de-ice your roof. Keep reading for roof de-icing tips from the professional roofing contractors at Home Re-Nu.

Steps Before De-Icing

Before you start to de-ice your roof, you need to figure out the source of the water. Some possibilities are roof leaks, poor attic ventilation, or unsealed edges on windows. Roof ice comes in various forms such as frozen gutters and downspouts, ice dams, and icicles.

Ways to Remove Ice

Heat Cables: Heat cables are a preventative measure that is taken to prevent ice from forming on your roof in the first place. These electric cables can be installed on insulated portions of the roof and in the gutters. 

Roof De-Icing Chemicals: Chemicals designed to melt ice are known as de-icers and can be used on your roof, as long as they are not corrosive and damaging to your roof. Stay away from de-icers that have sodium chloride or calcium chloride in them. De-icers work best in mild weather conditions and are not designed to be used in large areas.

Snow Rake: To manually remove snow from your roof, you can use a snow/roof rake. After a snow, use the rake to scrape the snow from your roof. Or, use the snow rake to remove icy crusts from your roof. 

Choose Home Re-Nu

Got roofing questions? Our team of roofing contractors at Home Re-Nu will be more than happy to answer any questions you may have. Contact us today!

The holiday season is rapidly approaching, which means you’ll likely be decorating for the season soon. If you plan on hanging Christmas lights on your roof, it is important to be careful to do it safely. Here are some best practices from the roofers at Home Re-Nu for safely hanging your Christmas lights. 

Check Your Lights

It is an essential step to check your lights for damage before you begin to hang them up. Take a careful look at the cords to see if there is any damage or fraying. If there is, immediately throw away the lights. Damaged strands of light are a fire hazard.

Additionally, check the rating of your lights and make sure that they have the proper rating to not be considered a fire hazard. Safe lights should have been tested and given a rating by Intertek (ETL Semko) or Underwriter’s Laboratory (UL).

Lastly, while checking these elements of your lights, plug them in and test whether or not they work. The last thing you want to do is finish hanging Christmas lights, only to plug them in and realize that they don’t work. 

Safety Tips

Now that you’ve tested your lights and checked them for damage, it’s time to hang them. There are a few safety tips that you should follow.

Weather: Only hang your lights during mild weather. Hanging Christmas lights in wet, slippery weather is incredibly dangerous. So, before hanging your lights, make sure that the weather conditions are safe for hanging lights. 

Follow Directions: Make sure that the lights you are hanging outdoors are meant for outdoor use. 

Don’t Do It Alone: Recruit a friend or family member to help you out when you are hanging lights. They can hold the ladder, help hang the lights, and generally just help make sure that everything runs smoothly.

Be Safe this Holiday Season

When hanging Christmas lights this holiday season, be sure to practice these safety tips. Holiday lights are beautiful, but don’t let them be the cause of injury or harm.

The first thing that a buyer sees when buying a new home is the exterior. A crucial part of that first impression is your home’s roof. When selling your home, it is a good idea to have a roofing specialist come inspect your roof and give you an update on its condition. While a couple of cracked shingles probably won’t scare off a buyer, a roof that is in poor condition is something that probably needs to be taken care of before a house is listed. While replacing a roof is expensive and seems like a huge investment, especially for a house that you’re planning to sell, having a new roof can positively affect the sale price of the home. In fact, leaving your old roof that isn’t in good condition can actually have some negative effects, such as:

• Fewer offers
• Longer sale process
• Reduced offer price

A New Roof and Your Home Value

It is important to note that a new roof increases home value but seeing a 100% return on investment is rare. However, that doesn’t mean that replacing your roof before selling is a bad decision. A roof replacement leads to multiple positive effects: 

• Easier to get full asking price
• Less time spent on the market
• Smoother negotiation process

Two of the most widely used roofing materials are asphalt shingles and metal. A common return on investment (ROI) for an asphalt shingle roof replacement is around 68.2% while the ROI for a metal roof is 60.9%. 

Should You Replace Your Roof Before Selling Your Home?

If you think that your roof will lead to issues while trying to sell your home, it would be a good idea to replace your roof. If your roof is experiencing the following problems, it may be time to have your roof replaced before selling:

• Cracked shingles
• Buckling shingles
• Leaks
• Sagging roof
• Recent wind or hail damage

Contact a Roofing Specialist at Home Re-Nu

If you are looking to replace your roof before selling your home, contact a roofing specialist at Home Re-Nu to learn more about a roof inspection and our replacement process!

After a while, your roof may begin to appear dirty and no longer look as nice. In fact, over time, your roof may discolor and appear as though there is mold growing on the surface. However, these dark black patches or streaks are likely a form of algae. In addition, you may be dealing with green patches of moss. Both of these occurrences may leave you wondering what kind of roof maintenance or cleaning that needs to be done. Integrity Roofing in Clarksville is here to help you learn more about roof maintenance. 

How to Clean Moss or Algae Growth on your Roof

Much like most things, there are some dos and don’ts that should be followed when cleaning your roof. Here are some of the most common ones:

Pressure Washer vs Sprayer

Don’t use a pressure washer on your roof. That can cause damage to your shingles and cause them to loosen, leading to serious damage. Instead, use a sprayer that is attached to your garden hose. If you have asphalt shingles, the ideal way to clean them is with an equal mixture of chlorine bleach and water. 

Landscaping

Don’t ignore your landscaping! If you are using the bleach solution, it can harm your plants, shrubbery, and other landscaping. Instead, wet your plants with plain water and cover them with plastic before cleaning. 

Be Patient

Don’t get impatient and assume that the solution will work immediately. The solution may not get all the algae or moss off at first, but it should wash away during the next rainstorm. 

Sunny vs Cloudy

Don’t clean your roof on a Sunday day as this can affect how effective the cleaning solution will be. Instead, choose a day that is cloudy, wind-free, and has no threat of precipitation.

Safety Precautions

Don’t skip safety measures! Before working on cleaning your roof, you should make sure that you can safely walk on your roof. If not, play it safe and call a professional. 

Choose Home Re-Nu

Home Re-Nu offers roofing services in Carterville and surrounding areas. For an estimate, roof inspection, or more, contact our roofing professionals at (618) 964-9100.

When you are hiring residential or commercial roofing contractors, you are entrusting someone with the safety of your home or business. For this reason, you want to be sure that the crew you are hiring is trustworthy and has your best interest in mind. Many roofing experts will turn out to be perfectly professional and trustworthy individuals, however, there are plenty of companies or individuals out in the world that are looking to cut corners wherever they can. A quality commercial roofing contractor can install a roof that can last 20 years or more, and an experienced residential roofer can install a roof that lasts over a decade! 

Here are some of the most telling signs that your residential or commercial roofing contractor is NOT trustworthy. Keep these signs in mind before you hire anyone: 

• Overly aggressive: A well-developed company that has plenty of customers will be understanding if you need to get quotes from multiple different companies to make a sound decision, and be willing to show you references and insurance information. Any contractor that is attempting to pressure you to get your job done with them before seeing all your options is usually not someone you would want to work with. Also, make sure to avoid door-to-door roofing salesman after storms. These contractors are called “storm chasers” and are notorious for convincing people their roof is damaged after a storm when it really is not. Always be willing to get a second opinion. 

• No contract: Make sure to avoid going into any official business agreement with any residential or commercial roofing contractors if there is no contract involved. If you are having work done on your roof, a written contract is imperative to protect you and your home. A contract is a set-in-stone outline of what work is going to be done at what rate, and with what protections. Even with a contract, make sure your contractor is open to you asking questions and giving you more information about details if necessary. 

• Requiring payment upfront: Any residential or commercial roofing contractors that are trustworthy will usually not ask for full payment before the job is performed. In fact, outside of a small deposit, you should not be paying at all until the job is completed. Agreeing to pay for the whole job upfront can easily leave you with a roof in disrepair and without a significant amount of money. This is especially true if paired with having no formal contract. Many trustworthy roofers will suggest deposits or payment plans, so if you have a roofing contractor that is insisting that you pay upfront, this is usually a really big red flag. 

• They are bad at communicating: Trustworthy contractors are usually pretty busy which is understandable, but you should still be able to get a hold of them when you need to. If your contractor is constantly no returning calls, moving dates, or is wasting your time in any capacity, make sure you have a way out or simply do no use that contractor again. A roofing contractor should have good communication skills and that makes sure you are both on the same page. If you feel as though the contractor is trying to or simply cannot listen to your wishes, save yourself the headache, and do not work with them. 

Questions about residential or Commercial Roofing Contractors? 

If you have any more questions about red flags you should avoid when hiring a roofing contractor, do not hesitate to contact the roofing experts at Home Re-Nu Roofing and Exteriors. We have been serving Southern Illinois for over a decade and are dedicated to improving the homes of the communities we serve. Contact us today or find us on Facebook!

The roof is the largest part of the home and more often than not, one of your largest investments. Picking a quality roofing contractor is very important for the sustainability of your roof and home. Not only that, once your roof is functioning properly, taking the time to regularly monitor and maintain your roof through professional roof inspections from your local roofing contractor is another fantastic tool to keep your roof for longer, saving you money down the line. 

Why Inspect Your Roof? 

Many homeowners make the assumption that it is easy to do a roof inspection themselves, and in some cases they are correct. However, for the most part, professional roofing inspections go much deeper than just the surface of your roof. A professional roofing contractor will also inspect the subsurface for the roof, using equipment and experience most homeowners simply do not have. 

A surface roof inspection is ideal for detecting large amounts of structural damage. Things like missing or warped shingles as well as debris, but this kind of inspection will not be able to identify other glaring issues that are not as easy to see. If you are looking to get an insurance claim on damage, do NOT try and fix the roof yourself. This could void your claim. Get your roof professionally inspected or hire a roofing contractor to repair the damage. Insurance companies always prefer professional inspections as it makes their jobs easier by providing the proper paperwork. 

Also keep in mind that roofing damage can often be misleading. Issues that appear small can quickly grow in severity. It is always easy to replace shingles or fix a small leak, but wait too long, and you might have some serious damage that is going to be very costly to fix. 

Roof Inspection Process 

There are quite a few tests that your roofing contractor will perform to determine the status of your roof. They will first look for any structural damage that is clearly visible, before moving to the substructure of the roof. This is where they inspect for moisture build-up, mold, testing how fast liquid evaporates from the roof, and more. 

A quality roofing contractor will typically inspect every single part and aspect of the roof. This means physically getting onto the roof for the inspection. However if getting on to the roof is deemed unsafe for any reason, such as too much damage, the slope, or height, then a fairly thorough inspection can still be conducted from the ground. 

Choosing the Right Roofing Contractor 

Home Re-Nu has been serving Southern Illinois for decades, and is the most trusted name in local roofing. If you are looking for a high-quality roof inspector at an unbeatable price, contact us today for more information!