Reliance prefer to use coatings and paints from locally based company Shieldcoat for the following reasons:

• Made in Queensland – Queensland has the hardest climate in Australia and all Shieldcoat’s Research and Development is done locally rather than in the Southern States like other brands.
• 50% Solids – You won’t find a water based coating with a higher percentage (50% solids and 50% water) some products are as much as 70% water. This means Shieldcoat products are more durable.
• No Fillers – Most paints have fillers to make them go further. This affects the life span and durability of the product and makes the paint fade quicker, Shieldcoat’s product doesn’t so your roof looks great for longer.
• Best warranty with the least amount of “fine print” so you are protected.
• Widest colour range – Shieldcoat has 36 standard colours and they will also colour match so you can hae any colour you like.

At the Quoting Stage:

We understand that you don’t want to be pressured. You see, this industry is “rife” with high-pressure salespeople who will try and push you into signing up with them. Our commitment to you is to do our best to have you feel at ease and comfortable in dealing with us.

That means no high pressure. We’ll treat you with respect, and give you friendly and professional service. Most importantly, though, we’ll come up with a solution specific to your needs, the solution that best suits you…not a “one size fits all” “canned” solution that suits us.

After Accepting Our Proposal

After you accept our proposal on a roof restoration or new roof, you’ll have the option of a free colour consultation. This is a trained professional who does colour consultation for a living.

You see, we understand how tedious choosing colours can be. Naturally, you fear making the wrong choice. So if you feel you need help with your colour choice, just let us know and we’ll have our colour consultant come and sit down with you, and work out which are the best colours to suit your home…and your taste. Best of all, this is a FREE service.

Before Work Commences On Your Roof

We understand you want to be notified in advance of when your roof is likely to start. We don’t just turn up. Normally, you’ll be called the night before, so you know we’re coming the next day. If you require more notice than that, let us know and we’ll give you a few days notice (weather permitting, of course).

During the Work Stage Of Your Job

Tradespeople have a reputation of being quite “gruff”, and even rude. Not our guys! You’ll be treated with respect by our tradespeople. They are trained to be polite and friendly, and to treat your home as if it were their own.

Their workmanship will be “top notch”. Hey, they’re trained that way and we only employ tradespeople that we feel can uphold our extremely high standards. I mean, we’re making some big promises here, right? We’d be crazy to give you such high expectations and then under-deliver.

You see, quality workmanship comes down to three important factors:

Skill

At Reliance, we only employ qualified tradespeople (roof tilers, roof plumbers, and painters) with several years experience. Not only that, but when we’re looking to employ a new tradesperson, for us to put them on, they must demonstrate a high level of skill, and be able to perform to our high standards. By the way…most of our tradespeople have been with us for several years now so you can be assured that when we do your roof, you’re getting someone you can trust…and someone with the skill to perform an outstanding quality job on your home.

Care

Reliance tradespeople are taught to treat your project as if they were doing a roof for their “dear old grand mother”. In other words, take care to do the absolute best job that they are capable of.

Time

How quickly, or how slowly you do a job determines the quality of that job. That’s obvious, right? But when it’s getting late in the day and you want to go home, the temptation is there to rush. It’s human nature…and tradespeople are notorious for yielding to this temptation. Reliance tradespeople have it drummed into them to take the necessary time to ensure the job is done right.

Look, we’re not perfect. Hey, we’re human beings and from time to time we all make mistakes. We don’t expect our guys to never ever make an error. But the culture we’ve created here is all about effort. We drum it into the guys to do the best that they can. And you know, that’s all it takes.

You see, as a company, we know that if we only employ qualified tradespeople that demonstrate a high skill level, and make sure that they take the necessary time and care to do the job properly…and that they give their best effort…well, that means that 99.9% of our jobs will be done to the standards we’re promising our customers.

What that means for you is that when you go with Reliance for your roof restoration or new roof, you can rest assured and have “peace of mind” knowing that the odds are well and truly on your side that you’ll “get your moneys worth” and then some.

After Your Roof Is Completed

Either the owner, or our quality control supervisor will check over your roof. This will be done at a time when you are home so that you have the option of going on the roof and checking it yourself. That way, you can rest assured that you’ll be happy with the job before you part with your “hard earned” money.

Oh, and by the way…we check you are happy first, before we ask you for your money. Our amazing satisfaction guarantee (which gives you the ultimate in protection and puts all the risk back on us) is explained further on this website.

Mesothelioma, or “asbestosis” is a rare disease which affects the lungs and arises from exposure to asbestos fibres. Mesothelioma causes shortness of breath and pleural plagues, and has been responsible for many deaths over the last few decades. The period between exposure to asbestos and the onset of the disease varies, but it presents itself, typically, 15 – 25 years after the exposure. At this stage, asbestos exposure is the only known cause of Mesothelioma.

The risks with Asbestos arise from breathing in the microscopic asbestos fibres released when they are “stirred up” from either mishandling or heavy wear and resulting deterioration. Asbestos cement sheeting used in the past for roofing contains around 5 – 10% chrysotile (white asbestos). This is enough to present a risk to anyone handling it and so it advisable to have a licensed professional remove this for you.

Popular opinion is that Asbestos fibres are only stirred up from breaking or cutting the material, or from mishandling. While this is true, it fails to point out how easily Asbestos sheets break while being handled – such as removing the fixings securing the asbestos sheets, and then removing the sheets themselves. Even gentle handling can be enough to put microscopic fibres into the air – fibres that you then breathe in. It’s when the microscopic asbestos fibres enter your lungs that the real danger presents itself. You see, these fibres are shaped like a hook. The hook end of the fibre can lodge itself in the wall of a lung, and that is when you are “infected”.

You should engage a licensed professional to remove your asbestos roof. A professional will take all necessary precautions such as:

• Spraying the roof with PVA glue before any work commences – this encapsulates the fibres and minimises the amount of fibres that will be “stirred up” when the roof is removed.
• After removing sheets, wrapping them in Builders plastic and taping up each pack.
• All packs of wrapped up sheets removed from site (on a truck which then takes the asbestos away to an asbestos waste disposal depot).
• Suits, masks, gloves and shoe covers are worn for our safety.
• Your front yard will be “cordoned” off and a sign stating that it is an asbestos work site will be erected at the front to warn passers by.
• Your ceiling will be vacuumed to remove any fibres from your ceiling cavity.
• After removal, your yard will be scoured and any asbestos debris will be removed. At Reliance, we take all of these precautions and exceed ‘Workplace Health and Safety’ regulations. In fact, Workplace Health and Safety undertake regular random checks. We’ve had several inspections carried out on sites we’ve been working on and we’ve passed every time.

If you have a Tile Roof older than 12 years Tile Roof Restoration will benefit have the following five benefits and more:

• Stops any moisture from absorbing into the surface of the tiles.
  While some unethical roofing salesmen exaggerate the effects of this occuring research carried out by engineering firm ‘Ivan Marovitch and Associates’ found that it is beneficial to re-coat your tiles and keep them from becoming water logged in lengthy rain periods. (Too avoid unscrupulous roofing salesmen read this article: Roof Restoration “Sales Tricks”).
• Re-pointing your ridge caps makes them safe in high winds and violent weather.
  This protect you and your family in the event of a vicious storm. Loose ridge capping being torn off is the primary cause of costly storm damage on tiled roofs.
• The membrane coating preserves your pointing in three ways.
  Firstly, it protects it from U.V rays which break down the pointing mortar. Secondly, it prevents the pointing from expanding and contracting as much as un-coated pointing. Expansion and contraction of the pointing mortar causes small cracks to appear. This saves you money in repairs as your roof will be more durable and last longer.
• The membrane coating acts as an anchor over the pointing which prevents it from pulling away from the ridge capping.
  This protects one of the most leak prone areas of your roof protecting you, your family and your valuable belongings from water damage.
• Improves the quality and purity of water run-off.
  If you have rain water tanks, having your roof restored will make the water running off your roof cleaner. With most roof coatings, it’s safe to drink the run-off (check the manufacturers specs first, though).

In this series of articles, we’ll reveal the biggest myth about how roofs deteriorate and what maintenance your roof really needs as it gets older. We’ll reveal many of the tricks and sales techniques used to sell over-priced roof restorations to honest, hard working people who don’t need and can’t afford such expensive “repairs”. You’ll learn how much a roof restoration should cost (based on the median price across the industry), and finally, you’ll get some tips so you can avoid being taken advantage of.

Home owners all over Australia are being sucked in by exaggerations of minor problems, sales tricks, or outright lies. You see, roof restoration is one of those industries that, unfortunately, attracts rogues and “fly by nighters”. This is because most people are unable to get on their roof to inspect it’s condition, so the rogues prey on trusting people by inventing problems that don’t exist.

The Biggest Myth Used To Sell Roof Restorations

A tiled roof gets porous when the coating wears off.

This is more of an exaggeration than an outright lie. You see, a new tiled roof has a protective glaze on its surface. This glaze wears off after about 8 – 12 years, exposing the oxide coating underneath. This coating gradually wears away (U.V rays break it down, and small amounts of the oxides wash off each time it rains), so some bare concrete will start to appear at around the 20 – 25 year mark. Some roof restoration salesmen will tell you that this means your roof is porous, and that in enough rain, water will soak all the way through your tiles, causing leaks.

While, yes, concrete is porous, the concrete used for roof tiles is so dense that water will never soak all the way through the tiles.

There are benefits to re-coating your roof tiles, and these are explained here but preventing leaks is not one of the benefits.

Reliance Home Improvements has had extensive independent market research conducted into roof restoration costs. Our research has shown that for smaller (100 – 180m2) roofs, prices vary from around $25 – $35 per square metre for smaller roofs (depending on the amount of repairs required). Medium sized roofs (180 – 240m2) come in at around $18 – $25 per square metre. Larger roofs (240m2 +) between $15 – $20 per m2.

Local consulting firm Brisbane Consulting discovered that Reliance is extremely competitive with it’s Roof Restoration pricing and when it comes to value for money which included factors such as price, the level of customer service and quality we were the number one roof restoration company in Brisbane by a considerable margin.

Unfortunately the roofing industry has been exposed to “fly by night” operators that are here today gone tomorrow. To help protect home owners here is a list of questions you should be asking your prospective roofing contractor:

• Do they have a BSA Licence?
• Are they covered by Worker’s Compensation?
• Do they have public liability cover?
• Do they employ qualified trades people?
• How long have they been in business?
• Do they give a written guarantee?
• Do they use premium products?
• Do they do a final inspection of the work?
• Can they provide you with references of work they’ve done recently

Why Choose Reliance?

Reliance Home Improvements is fully licensed, bonded and insured, all our estimators and tradespeople are fully insured and we have $10,000,000 public liability coverage. Our BSA number is 1009057 and we are a member of the Master Builders Association.

All Our Roofers Are Qualified Tradespeople Ensuring Quality Workmanship

Most of our employees have worked for Reliance for at least three years and all are qualified trades people. We can provide you with customer references and before and after photos of completed jobs. Before we begin any work we will give you a detailed estimate, work schedule and contract in writing. As well as our 10 year written guarantee of workmanship which guarantees your roof will not leak for 10 years.

At Reliance we offer value for money and competitive prices and use only the best products for the unique Queensland climate. We provide ourselves on providing “exceptional” customer service which has helped see our family business grow from a small operation in 2000 (then trading under the name “Rooftop Brisbane West”) into one of the largest roof restoration companies in South-East Queensland today. We completed in excess of 750 roofs in 2009 which over 100,000 square metres of roofing or the equalivent of more than 15 football fields.

We also know that your roof is an essential part of your home and that’s why we make every possible effort to complete a job on time. We operate in a professional business like manner and build relationships by demonstrating these qualities in every job that we do. We are constantly finding new and improved ways to serve our customers and endeavour to provide our customers with the best possible experience even in the worst possible circumstances (such as severe storm damage).

At the present time, Reliance has over 40 full time staff who are all qualified and fully equipped to meet all your specifications. We look forward to providing you with quality workmanship, affordable prices, an unbeatable guarantee, flexible payment options and exceptional customer service.

Many of the tricks revealed below are not only used in the roof restoration industry, they’re used to sell many products and services that are of subpar quality or that are sold well above the price of other companies effectively “ripping you off”.

“We must have both husband and wife for a quote”

The reason why some companies will not come out and give you a quote on your roof unless both you and your partner are present is so they can sign you up on the spot.

You see, if you’re representing a company that charges a lot more than everyone else, you need to get in first and signing people up before they get any other quotes. And there’s no use going and doing a persuasive presentation to one partner to have them then say “well, I’ll check with my partner and get back to you”. The sale is gone then because will get another quote and see how outrageous the company’s price is.

“We have a special offer for today only.”

This trick is used for the same reasons as the last one….to get you to make your decision today and not get other quotes. There are a couple of companies who will start at a ridiculous price, and then give you some astronomical “discount” for going ahead today. What is shocking is that even the “discounted” price is often double the industry average!

The Notorious Phone Close.

This is where you say you’ll think about it, and the sales person says “okay, well I just have to call my manager and let them know”. This is where the big production begins – it’s funny when someone does this to you when you know what’s going on. Not so funny when you are sucked in by it. The sales person will call the manager and say “they want to think about it”. The manager will then come up with a reason why you are really lucky, and that if you decide now, you’ll get a great “discount”. This is the same as the last trick we exposed (the discount for deciding now) except that it’s much more powerful when it’s done as a “phone close” for 3 reasons:

First, It’s coming from management (supposedly) so it seems like a real “insider deal” – in actual fact, it’s the same deal everyone they try this trick on gets.

Second, If you’ve gained some rapport with the sales person, you’ll feel some empathy for him/her because it can seem like the sales person is under pressure from the manager to close the sale – some sales people really play on this. I’ve even heard of some claiming they’ll get the sack this week if they don’t meet their targets (and they have a family to feed etc etc).

Lastly, the way in which it’s done can make you feel really pressured.

“We don’t use paint, we use a special coating”

This is used by a sales person more to differentiate his/her product from the others on the market.

Here’s the truth… It IS paint. Many companies encourage their sales people to show the prospective customer a sample of their coating – which appears to be a thick plastic coating, but guess what? It’s just a sample of a type of paint (in dry form). It’s an acrylic paint, and ALL credible roof restoration companies use an acrylic membrane coating. That’s not to suggest that the quality of all brands of roof coating is the same. It isn’t. But it’s all based on basically the same ingredients. Don’t be sucked in to believing that a company has a coating that is significantly different to any other credible roof coating.

How To Avoid Being Sucked In By Sales Tricks

If any sales person uses any of the tricks described in this article, you should do one of two things:

First, Tell them that you know what they are up to and you’d appreciate it if they’d stop doing it and just give the quote you asked for – remember, a tactic exposed is no longer a tactic.

Second, If that’s too confronting for you, you can say that you have a quote arranged with another company and you will not make a decision until you have their quote too.

Finally, this article may have given you the impression that the whole roof restoration industry is made up of predators. It isn’t. The tricks and unethical techniques we’ve exposed are used by a small percentage of companies only.

“Roof Restoration” is a term that is used to describe the process of cleaning, repairing and re-coating a roof.

While contractors (mainly painters and “handymen”) have been cleaning and painting roofs for the last 100 years, it’s only in the last 15 years that full roof restoration has become widespread as a normal part of maintaining the home. This coincided with the first wave of concrete tile roofs turning 15 years old, the age where they typically start needing serious attention.

Concrete tiles have been used as a roofing material for many years, but were rare in Queensland up until the early 1970s. In the seventies, they became a very popular roofing material because they were, and still are, significantly cheaper than Terracotta tiles.

This is not to suggest that roof restoration is exclusively for concrete tile roofs. Infact, many of the old iron roofs are in a condition where they aren’t quite in need of replacement yet, but do need maintenance. Restoring the roof, in this case, preserves it for at least another 15 years if done properly.

Roof restoration is beneficial for just about all types of roofs, including Colorbond, Zincalume, Galvanised iron, Decromastic, Terracotta tile, and of course Concrete tile. Below is the step-by-step process for restoring each type of roof.

Concrete Tile:

• Pressure clean the entire roof.
• Remove ridge caps and re-bed if required.
• Re-point all ridge caps with a polymer based flexible pointing mortar.
• Apply a sealer / primer coat to the entire roof.
• Apply 2 or more acrylic membrane coats in the colour of your choice.

Colorbond, Zincalume or Galvanised iron:

• Treat any light rust by grinding it back and applying a potent rust converter.
• Replace any sheets where rust is beyond treating.
• Replace any loose or rusty nails or screws.
• Pressure clean the roof.
• Apply an metal etch primer coat.
• Apply 2 or more acrylic membrane coats in the colour of your choice.

Terracotta Tiles:

• Apply a strong mould killer to the entire roof.
• Pressure clean the entire roof.
• Remove ridge caps and re-bed if required.
• Re-point all ridge caps with a polymer based flexible pointing mortar.
• Apply 2 coats of Terracotta glaze to the entire roof.
• Lasts 15 years or more.