How to Ensure All Your Roofing Bids Are Specified Correctly

How to Ensure All Your Roofing Bids Are Specified Correctly

Before you solicit your first bid, you need to
determine the scope of work. If you don’t do this,
the proposals you get from prospective roofers
may be very different from each other. You will be
trying to compare “apples to oranges”.
The problem is: Most people don’t know enough
about roofing to write good specifications. If you
do… great! If not, here are some other ways you
can come up with a good spec:
• If the scope of the project is large enough to
justify the expense, a roof consultant could
establish the scope of work. He (they’re usually www.macgregorroofing.com                                        Roofing Contractors                                
men, but not always) can also help select bidders,
oversee the project and inspect the work to make
sure you’re getting what you paid for.
• Most roofing manufacturers have specs written
for their products. Of course they specify their own
components wherever possible, but that is not
necessarily a bad thing. Extended warranties are
available from these companies when you use
their “system”.  These specs are often available
right on their websites, which you can find in the
resource section at the back of this guide.
• Another way to get a scope of work is to get
your first bid from the most solid roofer you can
find, and then make a copy of his specs for each of
the other bidders. Be sure to remove the name of
the original company and his price from the specs.
The other bidders may want to use their own spec,
but explain what you’re doing and ask them to use
your spec, so you can compare “apples to apples”.
If they want to present their own spec as an
alternative for your consideration, that’s fine.
Although you might not get the ideal spec with this
method, at least everybody will be bidding the
same way.
To give you an idea of what a good residential
spec looks like, here is one I’ve used a lot. It’s for a
complete reroof down to the bare wood, and
includes both steep-sloped and low-sloped roof
sections. It also includes clauses that are fair and
reasonable to both the homeowner and the
contractor.
======================================
For the “Steep-sloped” areas…
• Remove the old existing roof down to the bare
wood deck.
• Repair any deteriorated wood and re-nail
sheathing as required to meet current building
codes. (See Note # 9)
• Furnish and install Titanium UDL
Underlayment
• Furnish and install new .025 pre-painted
aluminum drip edge.
• Furnish and install new mill finish .025
aluminum valley metal.
• Furnish and install new lead flashings at the
plumbing vent pipes.
• Furnish and install new mill finish aluminum
“goose-neck” vents.
• Furnish and install GAF-ELK “Timberline” 30-
Year, fungus-resistant, fiberglass architectural
shingles with six nails per field shingle and four
nails per cap shingle.
• Furnish and install ___ feet of new pre-painted
aluminum ridge vent
For the “Low-Sloped” areas…
• Remove the old existing roof down to the bare
wood deck.
• Repair any deteriorated wood and re-nail
sheathing as required to meet current building
codes. (See Note # 9)
• Furnish and install tapered system to provide
positive drainage.
• Furnish and install Certainteed Base Sheet.
• Furnish and install Certainteed Self-adhering
Mid-Ply (smooth-surfaced modified bitumen).
• Furnish and install new .025 prepainted
aluminum drip edge.
• Furnish and install Certainteed Self-adhering
Cap Sheet (white granular-surfaced modified
bitumen).
Please note…
1. All material is guaranteed to be exactly as
specified (or equivalent if not available).
2. All work to be completed in a workman-like
manner and meet or exceed all applicable
building codes.
3. All workers to be fully covered by workers
compensation and liability insurance as
required by law.  Roofing contractor to provide
copies of insurance certificates prior to
commencement of work. www.macgregorroofing.com                                      Roofing Contractors                                   50
4. This agreement is contingent on items beyond
our control such as weather, accidents and
material delays.
5. Water intrusion due to leaks within a roofing
system can lead to the proliferation of mold on
exterior and interior surfaces.  In performing
this work, it is understood and agreed that the
roofing contractor and their insurance carrier
disclaim liability for any mold problems and will
not be held responsible for any direct,
incidental or consequential damages, including
health problems attributable to past, present or
future water intrusion and associated mold,
fungus, mildew, or algae growth.
6. Any legal claims relating to this agreement
shall be settled by arbitration in accordance
with the American Arbitration Association.
7. This proposal excludes any interior repairs,
painting, gutters, soffits, fascia, pool cages and
solar removal and replacement.
8. Any alteration or deviation from the above
specifications involving extra costs will be
executed only upon written orders, and will
become an extra charge over and above the
estimate.  
9. Since deck problems are a hidden condition
until the old roofing is removed, any work
needed to repair it is in addition to the price
quoted below. We charge $37 per man-hour,
plus materials (including sales tax and 15%
mark up) for this work.  Roofing contractor to
provide before and after photos of all wood
repairs. Alternately, we would be pleased to
work with any carpenter that you might
provide.
10. This proposal includes clean up and removal of
all roofing debris. It also includes all permits,
inspections and filing of the “Notice of
Commencement” at the county clerk’s office as
required by law.
======================================
The proposal should also specify the warranty, the
price for the work, and when the payments are
due.
Keep in mind though, that roofers in different parts
of the country do things a little differently. In snow
country for example, it is common to run a selfadhering waterproof membrane along the eaves to
help protect the edge of the roof from water
trapped by ice dams in the gutters.
Once you have a scope of work, the next step is
choosing your roofing contractor.  Good luck in your search!
macgregorroofing.com