What is a custom roof restoration service? Well, if you’ve got a specific or non-standard type of roof that needs either restoring or replacing – you’re in the right place. While most standard homes have similar roofs which bring with them similar problems, this isn’t always the case.
The vast majority of regular roofing companies carry out repairs and restore the same types of roofs again and again. That’s a good thing if you’ve got a standard roof – but not if you haven’t.
Whether you’ve got a particularly old roof, or one built out of custom materials – you might need a specialist roofing service provider to either fix or restore it. In many cases, custom roofs can’t simply be taken off and replaced by a more standard structure.
They need care and attention from an experienced team to get them back as good as new again. In this article, we’re going to look at some of the issues surrounding custom roof restoration, along with how to find the right roofing company for your non-standard roof.
What is a custom roof restoration service?
If you’re still wondering what an actual custom roof restoration service is – it’s actually quite self-explanatory. Custom roofs are often on older buildings, perhaps even ones that are protected and therefore can’t simply be replaced.
If you want to add years to the lifespan of an original roof that’s made from non-standard materials, without damaging the original essence of the building – a custom roof restoration service is for you.
Whether you’ve got some historic slate on your home or traditional thatch, you’ll need a roofer who’s got the exact experience required working with that material, so your restored roof can be as good as new.
While custom roof restoration is often popular with old, sometimes protected buildings – that’s not always the case. And old isn’t always as old as you think. Custom roof restoration is also popular with unique architectural buildings that might only be a few decades old, but used specialized materials and design ideas when being constructed.
In other words, custom restoration could be for your building even if it isn’t historic or protected.
Specialist materials
As we’ve just looked at, most historic roofs use materials that simply aren’t used in roofing much anymore. This means that the restoration process takes time, care and experience. It’ll also need materials that have been specially sourced and a roofing specialist that understands their unique properties.
While you might think metal is a relatively new roofing material, it’s actually been in use for over a century and is a prominent feature of many historic roofs. While it might be the number one choice for commercial buildings, it was actually popular in high-end home construction – especially those built in styles like Art Deco and Romanesque. Because these high-end homes were often built for the wealthy – many of them are still standing today.
So while old metal roofs aren’t uncommon, not many roofing contractors have the specific skills required to restore them in a manner that befits the original. That’s one reason why a specialist custom roof contractor could be for you.
While also a metal, copper roofs have their own distinct set of properties (along with issues when restoring). Copper was popular in many high-end homes and local government buildings, but restoring it isn’t always straightforward.
That’s because the copper ages and turns a shade of green over time, so restoring part of a roof to keep it in-place with the rest of the building takes time and attention, along with a set of specialist skills.
As slate is one of the longest lasting roofing materials, you’ll find lots of older buildings still with the original slate in place. An original slate roof could last over a hundred years – but if you look closely, many individual shingles might need replacing. Again, this takes care and attention from an expert team who know how to work with old slate and who can make sure the replaced areas still look right.
Clay roofs have also been popular for centuries, especially in Spanish architecture. Replacing parts of old clay roofs that are within existing structures takes a lot of care, especially when producing an overall look and feel for the building that doesn’t look out of place with new clay. This will often mean using handmade clay products, and it takes a lot of experience to get this right.
When replacing isn’t an option
Some people think that when you’ve got an old or worn roof – you simply need to rip it off and replace it. While that might work with standard buildings – it simply isn’t an option with old and historic roofs.
Not only can it be extremely difficult to re-create a new roof that has the same historic feel as the original, actually doing so might be violating protected building status. That’s why many of these buildings need their original roof restored so it’s as close to the original as possible.
How to pick the right custom roof service for you
If you’ve got a specific historic or custom roof that needs taking care of, you need to take your time finding a contractor with the right experience. Ask around, and don’t simply go for the cheapest quote – as this is one type of roofing service where you often get what you pay for.
Try checking other historic buildings in your area and asking their owners who they used for their roofs. Remember, while there are some custom roofing companies that will have experience in all types of historic roofs, some might specialize in one or two specific types of roofs.
So if you’ve got a copper, slate, traditional metal or clay roof – it might make a difference when you’re choosing a contractor. Make sure you check their references and portfolio of work before signing-off on anything.
Hopefully, you’ve now got enough of an idea about custom roofing services and what they mean for your roof.
