Ask Each Roofer for a Pre-Start Walk Before the Crew Unloads

A roofer can tell you a great deal on the phone, but the first real test of a crew is what they do when they walk onto your property before a single bundle leaves the truck. A pre-start walk is a short, scheduled visit where the crew lead and you go over the yard, the gates, the drop zone and the paths the crew will use. It takes less time than the estimate visit, and it shows whether the roofer has actually planned for your house or is working from a template.

Keys Roofing can be reached at (314) 220-2333 to set up a walk before the job is scheduled. The point of this page is not to tell you which roofer to pick. It is to give you a checklist you can run with each company on your shortlist, so the answers can be set side by side.

Why the walk comes before the first truck

Most roof bids describe the work in terms of squares, shingles and labor. Very few describe where the crew will stand, where the dumpster will sit or which side gate will be opened. Those details are where roof days go wrong. A gate left open, a trampoline left in the drop zone or a ladder set against a gutter that was never checked can cost more than the difference between two quotes.

Missouri does not license roofers at the state level, so there is no state check that covers how a crew will treat your yard. The walk is the practical substitute. It lets you see the person who will actually run the job, and hear how they describe the site in their own words.

What the walk should cover

Ask the crew lead to walk the full perimeter with you and to say, out loud, where each thing will happen. A useful walk covers these points:

• Where the trucks will stop, and whether the curb or the driveway will take the load.
• Which gate or door the crew will use to enter the backyard, and who will latch it at the end of each day.
• Where the dumpster or magnet-and-tarp staging will sit, and how far it is from sprinkler heads, hose bibs and planting beds.
• Where the ladder will be set, and which gutter, downspout or fascia piece will not carry its weight.
• Which cars, pets and plants need to move, and whether the roofer expects you to move them or will do it.
• Where the crew will take breaks and get water, and whether they will use your bathroom.

Write each answer down in the same words for every roofer. A vague answer such as we will be careful with the landscaping is not an answer. A specific one, such as the crew will stage shingles on the south side of the drive and tarp the mulch bed by the back steps, is something you can check on the day.

How to run the walk with each roofer

Schedule the walk for the same week for all the roofers on your list, so the conditions are comparable. Dry weather helps. Clay in St. Louis yards holds water for days after a rain, and a walk on soft ground will tell you little about how the trucks will sit. If the yard is wet, say so in your notes and ask the roofer what they will do about it.

Bring the rough site plan you already have, or a few photos taken from the street and from the back fence. Walk the route the trucks will take, not only the house. Look at the overhead lines, the low branches and the gate height. Ask the roofer to point to the spot where they expect to be told no. Every crew has one.

Pay attention to who shows up. If the owner or sales contact does the walk but the person who will run the crew never comes, ask when that person will first be on your property and who will be the contact on the day. The answer tells you whether the roofer plans to hand off your yard before the job starts.

What to compare afterward

After the walk, put the notes from each company side by side. The comparison should look at four things. First, how specific the answers were about your actual yard. Second, whether each roofer noticed something you had not mentioned, such as a sump line, a sprinkler zone or a basketball hoop near the drive. Third, whether the plan changed in a way that makes sense after the walk, not just in the paperwork. Fourth, whether the answers match what the written scope and the contract say. A roofer who promises a walk-through of the plan in person but leaves it out of the scope has not finished the job of planning.

Ask for the walk notes in writing within a few days. A roofer who will send them is showing you a habit that will carry into the job. A roofer who will not put the yard plan in writing has left you with only a memory of the conversation, which is hard to hold anyone to later.

If the walk reveals a problem you cannot solve on your own, such as a damaged gate, a tree limb hanging over the work area or a fence that will not survive the trucks, settle it before the roofing date is set. Put the fix in the scope and the schedule. The walk is only useful if its findings change something on paper.