Roof damage during installation

[mbronto]

Hi everyone, I'm new here. I searched past threads and didn't see anything related so please forgive me if I missed something!
I just had a 4kW system installed on a concrete tile roof. Before signing the contract I asked what would happen if the installers broke the relatively delicate tiles. He said they will replace any broken tiles and everything will be 100% perfect before they were done. They brought about 50 tiles with them and even charged me more per kW because they knew they would be breaking a lot of tiles. They finished their work a few days ago and I was assured there were no broken tiles.

Today I went up to look and there are about 20+ broken tiles and another 20 which are patched with some kind of silicone (40+ tiles are broken in total). The installer is saying that sealing broken tiles is completely OK and will not affect my roof's integrity. He is willing to seal the remaining cracked tiles but said they can't be replaced because it would require them to remove some solar panels and brackets to get to the tiles and that would be "cost-prohibitive". He said in some cases they would have to pull out 30+ roof tiles just to replace the one broken one. I have attached a few pictures.

My question: Is this common practice to break dozens of roof tiles and then seal them with silicone and call it a day? I don't know what the standard is with solar installations. I don't want to be too demanding if I am just kidding myself expecting them to replace all the broken tiles with new ones. But the house is relatively new and with that many "patched" tiles, how could I be sure a slow leak won't develop leading to mold or other water damage in the coming years?

Thanks for any advice!! I live in Northern California (FYI)
Mike

[russ]

That contractor is jerking you around - get tough!

[qcfish]

Wow that is bad. Let us assume it's a registered contactor. You have to notify contractor and give hime resonable time to correct defeciencies. Resonable time is never the same time for 2 people. How long would it take a contractor to order tiles and fit it into his schedule??? 2 weeks? Is there rain in the future that would require immediate attention? Contractors can not damage other trades unless you signed off and accepted damages. You can file a complaint with the Registrar of Contractors but that will take a few weeks to get an inspector onsite. Inspector would not accept repairs to the tiles in my opinion but you can get a roofer to give you an estimate. Bsaed upon the contractor's response I would be pro active but please contact your contractor first, be firm, but be professional.

[russ]

Forget professional - the contractor is being totally shyster.

[FUN4ME]

I would assume a permit was pulled, was it not inspected and passed?
I would have thought the inspector would have not passed inspection.

[Naptown]

I would assume a permit was pulled, was it not inspected and passed?
I would have thought the inspector would have not passed inspection.

I have never seen an inspector set foot on a ladder.
Here we take pictures of the racking and bonding (mostly bonding) and give them to the inspector when he comes out.

[FUN4ME]

I have never seen an inspector set foot on a ladder.

Thanks that was really my question

[peakbagger]

It depends on your contract. If there was written agreement that the tiles would be fixed 100% that that what needs to be done. It sounds like you had verbal discussion but that is difficult to prove. Hopefully you havent paid the final payment. If he says sealing with silicon is as good as new, then have him supply you with written documentation from the roofing manufacturer that that is a acceptable repair and that it does not impact any warranty. I expect that will not be forthcoming. If you have lawyer, have him write a threatening letter, otherwise its time for small claims court.

[solarjack]

No bueno! BRO....I would be at the dudes house and would have all ready called the police on myself because it's going to get ugly and consequences don't mean a thing when it comes to PRINCIPLE to me.....

GET it? NOW GET GET EM BRO>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

[bando]

Wowwwwww, that's awful. I'm sorry

I have VERY similar concrete tile roofing , slight color variation, etc. We live in San Diego and our house and roof are 13 years old and in very good condition. My guys did not even attempt that gluing mumbo jumbo ! You would think it takes more work to glue than to simply replace! What a joke.

Our installers brought maybe two dozen and broke maybe 8-10 tiles during the four days installation of nearly 12kw system over two roof areas. They used the extras and replaced cracked tiles on other areas of my house that they were not on, just because. I noticed that the sheen on the new roofing wasn't a perfect match and they said the roofing company no longer makes the exact match after bringing them a sample. It's the same color but has a different coating of some kind so when it rains you can see its a little shinier. As a result, I told them to please take good (old) tiles from under the array and put in the broken tile areas and put the shinier ones under the array. They were totally fine with that.

The corners on yours look especially bad - like they should not even be walking on the corners where two edges meet and the tiles aren't full squares. I think they need to pay a roofer and come back to address this ASAP.

Good luck and hope it works out!

[mbronto]

Update

Thank you all so much for your advice, it is very helpful. I did have a discussion with the installer today and he has agreed to replace the broken and "repaired" tiles, but who will do it is another matter. I want a professional roofer to handle it, but that gets very tricky because most of the solar panels will have to be removed for that to happen. The roofer will not want to touch the panels, of course. Now I am no expert, but I am guessing that to do this right with all the broken corners and under the panels...this is a BIG expensive job. It's going to require a roofer and solar guys to remove all the panels and some brackets. I'm obviously worried how this will all turn out and this is a lot more than I signed on for.

And, yes, the work was inspected and passed. I don't think the inspector cares about the condition of my roof but in whether the installation was up to code. Broken tiles are not a code violation. I also have an arbitration clause in my contract, so I assume I can't sue him if he reneges on the promised repairs.

Some things I have learned so far from this experience:
1. Hire solar installers that have their own crew. The company I went with sub-contracts the work to "professional solar installers" and they install for many different companies in the area. Apparently this is common.There is little accountability this way. They just want to get paid for a job and get out of there.
2. Take pictures of your roof before installation and then inspect your roof after the job is done, preferably with the installer present.
3. Make sure your contract talks specifically about damage to your house during installation. The roof is one thing, but what if they broke a window with their ladder, bent your gutters or damaged landscaping?? That is nowhere in my 8 page fine-print contract. It should be discussed and added in there.

That's it for now. If anyone has any further advice, I would love to hear it.

[mbronto]

@qcfish, thanks a lot for the advice. You mentioned I can file a complaint with the Registrar of Contractors. If things aren't going well, would you say that is my best course of action to start with??

You can file a complaint with the Registrar of Contractors but that will take a few weeks to get an inspector onsite. Inspector would not accept repairs to the tiles in my opinion but you can get a roofer to give you an estimate.

[qcfish]

@qcfish, thanks a lot for the advice. You mentioned I can file a complaint with the Registrar of Contractors. If things aren't going well, would you say that is my best course of action to start with??

Yes. Complaint will take a few weeks to get action so it is better now than waiting a few weeks. The complaint does not cost you anything and you can always withdraw the complaint. Make sure the contractor is registered otherwise you have no recourse through the registrar. If the contractor is in good standing and honest they will hate getting a complaint on their record. Try to work with the contractor too, but understand this work is totally unacceptable. I just can't believe any contractor would do this bad of a job and verbally mitagate his damages. Good luck

[silversaver]

Sealing a broken tile is ok if it is the 1st tile attach to the roof line because it is so much trouble to replace that tile, rest of the tiles should have been replace instead repair. My installation start today and I have seen lots tile been replace. I have only 1 tile that were sealed which were broken before the solar installation, and the installer were nice enough to seal for me.

[kad153]

Since I saw this thread figured I'd ask a question. Have a solar install going on right now, where a number of my vents and an attic fan had to be moved. Noticed the other day a crack that seems to be in the wood of my roof from where they moved one of my vents and sealed it up. It's not too deep, but is probably about 3-4 feet long. I know I have shingles and a bunch of stuff sitting on top of this, and we have had a lot of rain lately and its bone dry in my attic, but wondering if this is something that could be a problem down the road that I need to worry about, or if a crack in the wood is no big deal. Thanks.