What to do with a leaky roof, new tiles don’t match?
Robert, I read your articles and now I need some help. I live in Castaic and have a dilemma with roof leaks. Some of the flat concrete tiles on my home are broken and in need of being replaced. Unfortunately, they have been discontinued and are not readily available.
I did find a place, which they call the Bone Yard, out in Canyon Country. They do have the quantity I need in the same style. However, the color doesn’t match. My
question to you is, should I paint these? Is that possible? What is to be done in this case, to have the aesthetics of my home unaffected? It is the front of my home and the colors are vastly different. Thanks for your help.
— Mickey Z.
Answer:
Mickey, this can be a relatively common problem. What we will usually do in this case is to find an area of the roof that is less visible, and swap out the tiles. In other words, put the new, different-colored tiles in a less conspicuous area and take the original color tiles from there and replace them in the affected area.
Hopefully this works with the orientation of your home — usually it can be done. To lessen the severity of the color difference, you can buy aerosol concrete paint in a color closest to the original and paint the new tiles to more closely match. This should lessen the difference greatly, and camouflage the repair. Best of luck.
Robert Lamoureux has more than 40 years of experience as a general contractor, with separate licenses in electrical and plumbing contracting. He owns IMS Construction Inc. in Valencia. His opinions are his own, not necessarily those of The Signal. Opinions expressed in this column are not meant to replace the recommendations of a qualified contractor after that contractor has made a thorough visual inspection. Email questions to Robert at robert@imsconstruction.com.