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Author	Comments
Dan White Posted: Apr 30, 2009 07:01 PM	Foam damage on roofing shingles Hi. I had a job done on my new house and the person doing the closed cell insulation accidentally splattered the back roof with foam. It splattered out of the eaves about 10 feet above the roof on the lower level. Anyway the foam is flat, more like bird droppings rather then thick blobs of foam. I'm concerned that I need to rip out all the shingles. What is the right course of action here? Are there manufacturer's guidelines on what will happen to this foam? If it will simply decay in place and disappear, that would be the best solution for everybody, but on the other hand I do not want to live with a splattered roof. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!
mason Posted: Apr 30, 2009 09:33 PM	Foam will degrade with UV exposure. But it will take a while. Wait a few weeks for the foam to turn brown then brush it off with a stiff broom.
Dan White Posted: May 01, 2009 07:24 PM	Thanks. That's good news!
Thomas Barbato Posted: May 07, 2009 10:19 AM	Nah, if its flat over-spray i don't think you'll be able to sweep it off . there sure are a number of ways of dealing w/ this issue but a reputable foam company would replace those shingles or clean off for you as much as poss. depending on their cond. My company would and does.good luck.
Dan White Posted: May 07, 2009 05:54 PM	Hmm. See, here's my problem. The job is being finished this weekend, and I'm concerned about paying in full until this foam shows that it will go away. Like I said, it isn't "foamy" overspray, but more like flat bird-dropping like marks. You can't really scrape it off without taking the shingle surface with it. It's too bad we can't post images to this forum. Is it unreasonable for me to withhold the last payment until the foam disappears, or at least shows that it will be removable? As it is right now, after maybe 2 weeks, it isn't going anywhere yet. It is on the north side of the house with constant shade.
mason Posted: May 07, 2009 09:27 PM	The foam will degrade over time. then you should be able to brush it off. How thick is the overspray? The thicker the more time it will take. How much are you thinking of witholding?
Terrance Harris Posted: May 08, 2009 12:08 AM	I'm with Tombato on this one. This is the contractor's problem, not yours. Withold enough to pay for new shingles, installed. You should not have to brush it off, have the contractor do it. If the contractor can remove the foam after a few weeks, then pay him. If not, replace the shingles with the money you witheld. Keep receipts and take pictures in case of litigation.
Dan White Posted: May 08, 2009 08:12 AM	The overspray is very thin, like bird droppings on a car, and has splattered an area maybe 10' long by 2' wide here and there. I still owe a few thousand since the job isn't complete. There has been no argument over the issue at this point as the spray people recognize that they caused a problem. I think we will be able to work it out amicably. Is there another way to remove the problem chemically? My wife isn't convinced that time will fix the problem (she's a skeptic).
richard sucher II Posted: May 08, 2009 08:27 AM	this is a liability insurance claim issue. I would contact your insurance and have them adjust the damage. This gets the repair done correctly. Foamers do not necessarily make good shinglers. Your insuror will subrogate against foamers insurance company - assuming that he has insurance. You do not have to go thru all these gyrations to get this resolved. I would not let foamer make the repairs if damage is not likely to clear up readily. Legitimate contractors carry insurance to protect their customers from these types of damages.
Terrance Harris Posted: May 09, 2009 12:28 AM	This is not an insurance issue. Any claim will only increase your and the contractor's insurance premiums. You do not have major problems with the overspray. I was not suggesting that his spray mechanics replace the shingles. Give your contractor every opportunity to fix the problem, withold money till fixed. When fixed, pay in full.
Dan White Posted: May 09, 2009 07:06 AM	OK, so the spray foam people came out yesterday and finished the job. They will come out after I have an insulated pull down stairs installed for the attic, and will do a blower test for my rebate. We talked about the shingles and there isn't any disagreement. They are doing the right thing and have agreed that if the foam doesn't disintegrate, they will pay for replacement. The whole house is under construction, so I don't need to worry about insurance. My contractor will just redo the shingles if necessary. So the only issue is whether it will wear off, or if I need to do a replacement. We have some time, so I'll wait a month or two and see what is happening.
mason Posted: May 11, 2009 01:04 PM	Bushka, I think that is a good approach. I suspect the foam will eventually degrade sufficiently to show very little aesthetic difference in a few months.
Dan White Posted: May 11, 2009 07:00 PM	OK, thanks for the help. I'll report back on what happened.

Author

Comments

Dan White

Posted: Apr 30, 2009 07:01 PM

Foam damage on roofing shingles

Hi. I had a job done on my new house and the person doing the closed cell insulation accidentally splattered the back roof with foam. It splattered out of the eaves about 10 feet above the roof on the lower level. Anyway the foam is flat, more like bird droppings rather then thick blobs of foam. I'm concerned that I need to rip out all the shingles. What is the right course of action here? Are there manufacturer's guidelines on what will happen to this foam? If it will simply decay in place and disappear, that would be the best solution for everybody, but on the other hand I do not want to live with a splattered roof. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks!

mason

Posted: Apr 30, 2009 09:33 PM

Foam will degrade with UV exposure. But it will take a while. Wait a few weeks for the foam to turn brown then brush it off with a stiff broom.

Dan White

Posted: May 01, 2009 07:24 PM

Thanks. That's good news!

Thomas Barbato

Posted: May 07, 2009 10:19 AM

Nah, if its flat over-spray i don't think you'll be able to sweep it off . there sure are a number of ways of dealing w/ this issue but a reputable foam company would replace those shingles or clean off for you as much as poss. depending on their cond. My company would and does.good luck.

Dan White

Posted: May 07, 2009 05:54 PM

Hmm. See, here's my problem. The job is being finished this weekend, and I'm concerned about paying in full until this foam shows that it will go away. Like I said, it isn't "foamy" overspray, but more like flat bird-dropping like marks. You can't really scrape it off without taking the shingle surface with it. It's too bad we can't post images to this forum.

Is it unreasonable for me to withhold the last payment until the foam disappears, or at least shows that it will be removable? As it is right now, after maybe 2 weeks, it isn't going anywhere yet. It is on the north side of the house with constant shade.

mason

Posted: May 07, 2009 09:27 PM

The foam will degrade over time. then you should be able to brush it off. How thick is the overspray? The thicker the more time it will take. How much are you thinking of witholding?

Terrance Harris

Posted: May 08, 2009 12:08 AM

I'm with Tombato on this one. This is the contractor's problem, not yours. Withold enough to pay for new shingles, installed. You should not have to brush it off, have the contractor do it. If the contractor can remove the foam after a few weeks, then pay him. If not, replace the shingles with the money you witheld. Keep receipts and take pictures in case of litigation.

Dan White

Posted: May 08, 2009 08:12 AM

The overspray is very thin, like bird droppings on a car, and has splattered an area maybe 10' long by 2' wide here and there. I still owe a few thousand since the job isn't complete. There has been no argument over the issue at this point as the spray people recognize that they caused a problem. I think we will be able to work it out amicably. Is there another way to remove the problem chemically? My wife isn't convinced that time will fix the problem (she's a skeptic).

richard sucher II

Posted: May 08, 2009 08:27 AM

this is a liability insurance claim issue. I would contact your insurance and have them adjust the damage. This gets the repair done correctly. Foamers do not necessarily make good shinglers. Your insuror will subrogate against foamers insurance company - assuming that he has insurance. You do not have to go thru all these gyrations to get this resolved.
I would not let foamer make the repairs if damage is not likely to clear up readily. Legitimate contractors carry insurance to protect their customers from these types of damages.

Terrance Harris

Posted: May 09, 2009 12:28 AM

This is not an insurance issue. Any claim will only increase your and the contractor's insurance premiums. You do not have major problems with the overspray. I was not suggesting that his spray mechanics replace the shingles. Give your contractor every opportunity to fix the problem, withold money till fixed. When fixed, pay in full.

Dan White

Posted: May 09, 2009 07:06 AM

OK, so the spray foam people came out yesterday and finished the job. They will come out after I have an insulated pull down stairs installed for the attic, and will do a blower test for my rebate. We talked about the shingles and there isn't any disagreement. They are doing the right thing and have agreed that if the foam doesn't disintegrate, they will pay for replacement. The whole house is under construction, so I don't need to worry about insurance. My contractor will just redo the shingles if necessary.

So the only issue is whether it will wear off, or if I need to do a replacement. We have some time, so I'll wait a month or two and see what is happening.

mason

Posted: May 11, 2009 01:04 PM

Bushka, I think that is a good approach. I suspect the foam will eventually degrade sufficiently to show very little aesthetic difference in a few months.

Dan White

Posted: May 11, 2009 07:00 PM

OK, thanks for the help. I'll report back on what happened.

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