During the first couple of weeks of September 2009, I had a new roof installed on my home in Cincinnati, OH, by Joel Cornelius Roofing Company. I met Joel approximately 14 years earlier just after I started my Ask the Builder column and AsktheBuilder.com. If my memory serves me right, I interviewed Joel about a column. While doing that, I toured his business and left extremely impressed with his integrity, professionalism and fiscal strength.

A few years later, he introduced me to his nephew Keith Cornelius. Keith now heads up the residential roofing division of the company.

Just as you might get different quotes for a job, I did the same. The price I got from Joel Cornelius was very competitive. They had all the required insurance certification, and I knew they would do a fantastic job on my house.

The first day of the job, the crew showed up with Vern, the field coordinator, and immediately wasted no time getting started. Vern was a seasoned roofer who now spent each day checking on different crews spread out at several jobs around town. The roofing crew assigned to my home consisted of five friendly men (see photo at end of column):

• Roger Beard
• Jimmy Flannery
• Jayson Hundley
• Dave Merritt
• Albert "Joe" Tewes

The job stretched out over a couple of weeks because Mother Nature decided that she wanted it to rain for nearly six days straight. Roger and the crew persevered and made sure they never took a chance of my house interior getting wet when there was a significant chance of rain. You don't want the skies to open up just after you've stripped off a section of shingles. Believe me, I've received plenty of emails from people who've had water streaming indoors because a roofing crew got too aggressive.

I can't say enough good things about Vern, Roger, Jimmy, Jayson, Dave and "Joe". They worked hard, never complained and really respected my property. Each day when they left, they cleaned up well and made sure the house was watertight. I decided to strip off the old shingles, even though there was only one layer, because it makes the new roof look better and it allows you to inspect the roof deck.

The photo below shows the crew on the new roof over the front porch. The shingles are GAF Slateline, special shingles that mimic the look of slate. When viewed from the street, the black strip of granules creates a shadow line that tricks you into thinking the shingles are thick pieces of slate. You can see to the right of the crew, the old three-tab shingles that have yet to be removed.

Would I use Joel Cornelius Roofing again? You bet I would. I just need to figure out how to get Roger, the lead roofer, and his crew up to New Hampshire to install the roof on my new home!

Thanks guys, you did a magnificent job!

Tim Carter
Founder - AsktheBuilder.com