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| Specializing in Chimneys, Roofs, Gutters and Masonry. One Hour Emergency Service 24/7 |
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| Contact
Info |
| Address: |
171 Washington Avenue
Hawthorne, New Jersey 07506 |
| Phone: |
(877)358-3835 |
| Fax: |
(973)636-7300 |
| Email: |
info@a-riteway.com |
| Website: |
www.a-riteway.com |
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| Trades
/ Services |
Gutter Cleaning
Gutters and Leaders
Roof Inspection
Roof Maintenance
Roof Repair |
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| Metro
Areas Covered |
| NJ > Newark |
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| Customer
Comments |
| Leave Comments |
| October, 17 2007 |  | | The completed job is acceptable, but not great.
The house needed a complete re-roof as this was the original roof for the house - approximately 40 years - and the plywood underlayment had been damaged in multiple areas over the years.
The gentleman from RiteWay came and gave an estimate, quoting a very fair price. But he neglected to say that he would be sub-contracting the project to another company. I was surprised when Scorpion Construction arrived on site.
We had a signed contract from RiteWay stating that 5/8" plywood would be used as underlayment. What arrived on site was 1/2". It was already being installed before I realized this. 1/2" plywood should not have been used on this roof, and I am not sure if it even meets code requirements. I called the contractor only to be told that it was fine and would meet code. Had I realized this right away, I would have stopped the project. Regardless of what he was saying, I would not have OK'd 1/2" plywood for this application. I wanted 5/8" plywood installed; that's what was specified, and that's what should have been used.
Next, had I not been there to "keep an eye" on the job, the sub-contractor would not have replaced the wood on the front peak. All old plywood had been removed except the front. I asked about it, and the man on the ground, who spoke only limited English, told me that would be done "tomorrow". The man on the roof, who spoke more English and seemed to be the one in charge, called down and said that they would replace it now. I questioned this because the tar paper was already on it's way up to the roof. Complete re-roof means just that. Not three sides.
The completed roof - with asphalt shingles - was acceptable. However, when I went into the attic to check from underneath, I found that many of the spikes used to secure the plywood underlayment into place had either missed the rafters, or just caught by a fraction. I can only hope that enough nails were used, and enough caught the rafters so the roof doesn't decide to start blowing off in heavy winds.
The roofers were also supposed to clean up any nails and assorted debris when the job was completed. I was told that they would use a magnetic pickup tool to remove any nails that would be on the premises. They didn't do this either. I purchased my own magnetic pickup tool and went over the property several times. What resulted was a bag full of nails, roofing and common, old and new. I gave this bag to RiteWay's representative.
Further, there was an old ham radio antenna on the roof of the house. This was to be removed. When they took it down from the roof, they threw it into the yard (which was OK), but they were not that careful and damaged the fencing in the back yard. It was not heavy damage but it is another expense that has been incurred.
We also had new leaders and gutters installed. I was not informed of the date that sub-contractor would arrive, so of course, I was not at home when he came to work. The seamless gutters that we were told would be installed were not seamless. They went up in two pieces (on the long run). Why? Because the contractor worked alone and trying to put up a 50 ft. gutter by yourself is pretty much impossible. Also, because I wasn't at home, I was unable to provide the electricity that he needed. Thankfully we have good neighbors and the gentleman next door allowed the man to use his electricity. The gutters look fine and are working properly, but when you are told seamless, that's what you expect. No Seams.
The gutter contractor was supposed to leave the old sections of gutter for me to use on a small house I own in Pennsylvania. Apparently, he was never informed of this, and the old gutters were removed. Not a big deal, but another expense I could have avoided. The old gutters were OK, but had pulled away from the house in several areas. There was no point in saving them for this house, that just got a new roof. But for a vacation home, they would have been fine.
The base line price on the roof was very fair. I felt the price was a little high for the gutters (especially since they turned out to be seamed), but I expected that RiteWay would be doing the work and since the representative had made a good impression, I decided to go ahead with the gutters, too.
I may be a bit critical, but I do have experience with roofing and construction. We do not care to do roofing, and we are not equipped to do a complete re-roof of a 20' x 50' (approx.) house in one day. We have done small, one family houses, garages and sheds, and we may not set speed records, but the job is done right (although we always find something that we feel we could have done better).
My issues are that the job was not completed as specified. I felt that I had been misled, and regret telling the RiteWay rep that the plans were to sell the house. As I said, the job is acceptable, but if you contract them, make sure that everything is in writing, and hold them to a high standard.
Patricia Cappadoccia | | Patricia Cappadoccia - Jersey City, NJ | |
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