Why are ALL Roofers such fricking a-holes?

I dated a roofer for a little while; I don't think he got paid anything like he deserved as he was a sub-contractor to a roofing company and feel he was being robbed - he was very skilled and had to work with some very unskilled people - he took pride in his work and did his job really well and showed me a lot of roofs he had done - he would get up early go to work all day in horrible weather and never complain - I thought he was really amazing - he said a lot of roofers jump on the bandwagon come winter when there is work but they aren't proper roofers - they just stick a ladder on their cars and call themselves one.

People who work hard - do a good job and take pride in their work are rare and should be rewarded properly. It's shame like some have said on here - they don't know how to set themselves up as their own boss and to get a name for themselves instead of for someone else who robs them.

I respect anyone who goes out to work in that weather and with that risk and don't think they should be slagged off as a group just cos some others get away with what they can.

It is the most labor intesive , hottest/coldest least skilled of all the home building trades. So it tends to attract the honyocks. Oh and after 8 hours in 100 degree heat on top of a roof will cook your brain.

I started as an aluminum siding installer, then contractor, and then moved into roofing, but I do almost everything else as well.
I treat everyone with respect, even the really annoying and dumb asses, who do not show respect for my profession.
I do consider it a profession. If I get a call about something that is wrong, I am usually there the next day.
I have a wide customer base because of this, and my costs are reasonable.
And I never run out of work. I am often the guy who fixes the messes of the other contractors, especially illegals who impress some people with how fast they can blow shingles on, but that's because they hide critical areas that show up later.
I agree with a lot of what is said here; it's a last ditch trade for many who have no choice.
And yes, I could not earn a similar decent living in something else, but office people couldn't jump in to roofing overnight as well.
I will admit, sometimes I invite softees up on the roof just to see if they can. I know it's mean. (almost lost a couple)
One of my biggest pet peeves, which reveals what people generally think of roofers, is when someone tries to give me a friends phone number, as if I am supposed to call them.
Just ask yourself, if you were a dentist, would you call someone and ask, Hey I heard you have a cavity?
But it says, that they see you as someone who is just a jobber, hoping someone will throw you a bone.
Or, the homeowner who insist that you come inside and look at the precise spot they saw water, and are such know-it-alls that can't believe you know where the problem is, which is really -outside-. They give you the -What kind of roofer are you? The leak is on the inside! -look.
Then there are those who try to discount your labor.
They use the ploy- While you're here.......can you.....
Or, I was looking around, and I notice......can you....
I have learned to deal with them by telling them I am booked 3 months in advance; I will have to come back. Doesn't matter if I am doing nothing. I still say I am extremely busy.

I am sorry you guys have to put up with the shit.

I may be an exception in some ways, I work alone, and yes, it is mainly because they are so many dysfunctional people in this trade.
Between them and the illegals, there are never-ending repairs left in their wake, so now I don't have to do so many whole roofs.

My 17yr old son put the roof on my place in 2 days time! and he did a very good job,too. No license, either. I bought the materials, and rented the nail gun and everything else. helped him pull up bundles of shingles and he got it done in 2 days. Cost me a little over $500.00 but it was worth,it. I have a new roof and I am very happy.

One guy got him started on how to do it and he took it from there.

In the spring and summer he cuts the grass and does the garden areas for the council - he takes pride in this too and does his job so well you can know which areas he has done and which others have done and his crew always finish ahead of all the other crews so then they go and help the others - I remember on one of our first dates I was telling someone about this - how well he does his job; how his edges are perfect and you can see them on google maps on satellite - I didn't know it was his boss I was speaking to so you never know where a good word comes from - he gets extra work to do for his skills and has to train the newbies and fix the machines etc and doesn't get paid any extra, which he should - he gets minimum wage. I don't think its fair the people who have a go at others because of how they personally measure a person's skill - just cos you don't have qualifications or a degree doesn't mean your work shouldn't be recognised - or your good attitude or the pride you take to do something well even though others see it as menial. His work ethic was one of the things about him I found really attractive.


Just saying.




,

Now he's a drunk.

Roofing: Not even once.

No,idiot. he's 20 yrs old now and works 70 hrs a week as an asst manager at the local grocery store. We're talking about a kid who is more responsible and has owned and paid off 4 vehicles! Now geez, I wonder why other guys his age can't seem to do that? Maybe it's because they're fucking lazy! My son does not drink to smoke or do drugs. He's too busy making money.

are you Asian?

ive been in the roofing and construction business for 20 years. i no longer work for individual home owners and only do work for property managers and home associations but, we do everything we can to steer clear Asians.

most of the other roofing contractors are in a fight to outbid the other contractor by how cheap they can pay their illegals. my company reports these contractors and i even have a great set up for HOA meetings to show past instances of HOA's being sued by an illegal for getting injured on their property, in hopes that they will see that hiring legal americans, while a bit more expensive, will work out for their property in the long run.

individual home owners are the worst and it get old placing a construction tax lean against home owners who refuse to pay (99% of the time they are asians).

nevermind....I thought you were talking about barking dogs.

:smh:

Never ever ever do work for a Hindu. They put Jews to shame.

That's very impressive, but there's nothing admirable about working 70 hours a week. I worked 70-80 hours a week in pest control and it was god awful.

What's admirable is being smart enough to get paid more for working less hours.

ive had some asians try to get on the roof with me in an attempt to stand over my shoulder and watch my work. i have worked for an asian mathmatician who was counting the nails that we used (he figured out how many nails were supposed to go on his roof) and he then complained that we used too many and wanted a discount (he didnt figure in the nails used along the gables).

God damn roofers...

No to be honest, I've been in construction for over 30 years as a residential and for most years commercial industrial electrician, and I wouldn't trust a roofer farther than I could throw him! truth, painter are the same...,.

Last Edited by Will Munny on 05/02/2014 09:39 PM

Because they charge 5,000 for 2 days work and expect everyone to hate them

if they made things correct there would be no need for any of you except farmers, we like to eat!

Because Fuck you white boy!

you talking to me?

I've got agree about the hours. If you work for someone else and put in that many hours you are being taken advantage of.

Getting paid for what you know is much better than getting paid for what you do. At some point the body will give out but hopefully your mind will stay sharp enough to continue making money after you reach an age where you are no longer indestructible.

If you have a really physical job you are killing yourself slowly and then how will you enjoy yourself when you are at an age to retire

Nothing wrong with hard physical labor but it isn't a long term solution for making a living

BTW...we need more young people who aren't afraid to work for their money.

Above poster's son sounds like a great kid

Last Edited by Founders Fan on 05/02/2014 10:02 PM

I've become very good friends with my roofer. It's been 5yrs since he did my roof.
Dealing with anybody is difficult. The moderation required by this forum is a good example. Most people can't deal with themselves. To quote Frank Zappa -"you're an asshole too. Whatcha gonna do? Cause you're an asshole. You're an ass hole. Yes, Yes!"

no i was talking to the other white racist on here, move along, you can't hang.

in other words you are scared as i am not what you call me coward.

everyone on my crew is a legal American. i have two mexicans, that are legal, in a crew of 12 white Americans.

none of them are druggies and none drink on the job (they all self medicate after work though because no medical professional can ever fix HARD WORK). no one on my payroll gets paid below $30 a hour; they get two weeks paid vacation (which most of the time is used during rain season), fully paid for Sprint smart phones and they all get full coverage Kaiser Medical. i teach them how to use their computers and phones and i also pay them well and in return, i get a sober crew that works HARD for me every freaking day.

i demand that all employees look sharp and clean and i make them interact with the property managers and board presidents of the HOA's and i do this to make sure they stay in good form.

i dont mess around with my company and i will do what it takes to make sure my guys get 40 hours a week, every week, of every year. take care of your employees and... surprise, surprise... your customer gets great work!

LOL - About a month ago had some of those shady Roofers stop by the house - "we were doing a job down the road and have Ezra materiaand can give yo a good price bla, bla, bla ....
Told him I wasn't interested and if I need a new roof that I would do it myself, well asswipe wanted to get in my face - that's when I pulled a pistol and explained to him that he had 30 seconds to get off my property or I wouldn't shoot him but would put some 44 Cal rounds from my Black Hawk into the engine block of his Dodge Ram.
He exited stage left real fast!

Ok, if that is what your feeble mind has interpreted that into, good luck with the rest of your life.

scared of you? lol make me laugh,
You haven't so far, keep trying.

I hear their costs are through the roof.

Keep shelling out that money.
you pay for our fiestas.

Gracias ventosa!

Maybe some of these "roofers" are not really Roofers, but imposters.

I had an old woman call me and ask to inspect her attic, because two men knocked on her door, said that they were fixing a flat tire in front of her house when they heard a sound like CREAK-----SHUDDER and they saw the whole upstairs twist.
and she was in luck because they happen to have seen this before, and they knew how to brace it from getting worse, and the 2 choices were regular lumber at $8,000, or $10,000 for pressure treated lumber.

Their drugs are low quality, totally stepped on so they are full of toxins which open a hole into their heads where demons step through and fuck with good people like yourself