When I discovered, much to my horror, that the flat-roof bathroom addition in the house I'd bought just months earlier had been leaking where the flat roof met the peaked roof to the point where the pink fiberglass batting was soaked to a vomit-coloured, mouldy-smelling mess and soaked through the drywall ceiling, it became clear that I needed two new roofs--pronto. After having 4 companies come in to provide quotes--including Avenue Road Roofing, who estimated a full 105% more on the flat roof than any of the other 3 companies!--I decided to hire Juffs Roofing after listening to their thoughtful evaluation of what was wrong with my roofs, and hearing their smart suggestions of the various options to fix it. They suggested ventilating the attic with a ridge vent system and suggested different insulating options, including soya-based spray-in foam, which is much more effective at air sealing than batt-type or blow-in insulation (they subcontracted a company to spray-in the foam, and I was quite pleased with that company, their product and their service.)
Juffs was so busy with previously booked contracts, and because the colder winter temperatures weren't conducive to installing the spray-foam insulation (which needs to be installed at 8 degrees or higher to maintain its efficacy), so the company could only work on my roof in the spring; accordingly, before winter hit, they sent a couple of workers to install temporary fibreglass insulation with a vapour barrier into my then-open bathroom ceiling to keep me warm over the winter.
The two crews--that's right, they sent two crews, of 9 men--started early in the morning, worked very hard and finished the job of removing and replacing both a shingled roof and a flat roof in less than 3 days. Bob, the chief foreman, has been on the job for over 30 years, and accordingly has much experience about different types of roofs and what needed to be done in the case of mine. A salt-of-the-earth, no-bs kinda guy, Bob was able to explain all of my many tedious questions so that I would understand the rationale behind every stage of the process and all the materials they used...then when my mom swung by to blatantly investigate their progress, Bob and his son Shane--who has also been on the job for 15+-some-odd years!--had the patience to explain it all over again to her. My 86-year-old next-door neighbour, who sat outside in his garden every day to watch the proceedings, was impressed that the young men worked hard, seemed to know what they were doing, and didn't swear. They even watered some of the plants in my garden for me! (Thanks, guys. You should see how well everything's growing.)
Both Shane and Bob invited me onto the roof to examine the work at any stage of the roofing process, which I took them up on a couple of times as I stayed home each day to let them in for an alternate power source (which they never ended up needing). They reinforced some wood where necessary without being asked (and again, without charging extra) and made sure the exhaust vent they installed as part of my now-updated bathroom was exactly where I wanted it before putting it in place. They also chose a lovely one-piece unit that complemented the look of the flat roof.
From start to finish, everyone I spoke with over the phone or in person was professional. Susan in the office was my ally in getting in touch with Steve, the company president, when I had an important question to ask him, and she indulged me in a last-minute change to my shingle colour that I was really appreciative of. Steve in turn extended his personal guarantee that if anything was ever wrong with the roof, they'd be there stat to fix it, as their motto is "Do it once, do it right!"
Shay, the salesman, was able to answer all my questions about various options and supplied an accurate all-inclusive quote, which he stuck to, so there were no extra surprises when it came time to pay the bill. He even paid for the addition of an eavestrough out of his own pocket (I know they're not that expensive, but the roofers felt it was important to add one, and since Shay had not accounted for that in the original quote, he covered it free of charge). If you do your research, you'll find that Juffs is one of few Toronto-area companies to sell only top-quality shingle, insulation and venting products, so whatever you choose to go with, you're guaranteed to be adding value to your home while making sure there's literally a great roof over your head. There's even a long warranty on the product and the labour, which can be transferred once to the next owner of the house.
When the job was over, all the areas were in good order, except my mother noticed that a tiny out-of-the-way laneway had somehow accidentally been missed in the cleaning process. When I called Bob to mention this, he sent one of his employees, Justin, back within hours, where the poor guy spent over an hour hunched over in a tiny, hard-to-get-at cramped space meticulously filling two giant garbage bags full of roofing debris, which he quietly carted away with him since the bin had already been removed. He cleaned up the alley so nicely that my other neighbour, who is a maid herself and takes great pride in things being in tip-top order, exclaimed that she hadn't seen it so clean in 14 years!
Obviously, the proof will be in the pudding after the respective roofs have sustained a winter's weight of snowfall and a heavy fall rainfall's worth of precipitation, so I'll check back later and update this post to keep you in the loop! Well worth the expense--and yes, it was pricey, but definitely worth it--for a professional job being done once and correctly by a company who's been in business for a great number of years. All in all, I am a happy customer who would without a doubt recommend choosing Juffs Roofing for anyone concerned about sleeping under a sound roof at night. Hire them before they book up!
