Roane County woman wants fix after new rubber roof starts leaking

by: Don Dare

Posted: Feb 14, 2023 / 06:03 PM EST

Updated: Feb 14, 2023 / 06:05 PM EST

HARRIMAN, Tenn. (WATE) — A Roane County woman paid nearly $15,000 for a new roof on her home as it is already leaking and looks “awful”.

The roof is half asphalt shingles and half rubber. Wilma Wright told WATE where the rubber was laid there is already a leak.

Asphalt shingles are the most common residential roofing material used in the United States, because they are economical and easy to install, according to the Builders Association. A rubber roof can be bonded to either shingles or plywood, but it needs special backing to keep the rubber membrane flat. Yet the rubber roof on Wright’s home in Harriman doesn’t look like it was successfully bonded.

At 89, retired from Oak Ridge, Wright’s lived in her home for over 70 years. When the dormer on the front of her house leaked in November, she hired Woods Roofing and Repair out of Harriman to fix it. The charge was $3500. In January, there was another leak. The roofer suggested a combination of asphalt shingles and rubber roofing.

“He told me all about rubber roofing. It would never leak. It would last a lifetime,” said Wright.

However, it appears the rubber isn’t adhering to the roof’s surface and Wilma is not at all pleased.

“I think it stinks. It looks awful. Have you seen it? It’s all bubbled up. He told me he’d shingle it all,” said Wright.

In January, she paid $11,100 for the half-rubber and half-shingled roof. Wright went on to explain that the roofer did not give her a contract and he didn’t explain how many shingles he was buying or how many pieces of plywood he was buying.

“My understanding was my aunt expected it to be shingled. At some point, there was some discussion about rubber roofing and how they fixed the first repair,” said Mark Wright, Wilma’s great-nephew.

“First he was going to rubber it. He said, no he couldn’t do that. I said, well shingle it then. Then he couldn’t shingle it. I said I have lived here all my life practically, it has always had shingles on it,” said Wilma Wright.

On the roof, Mark Wright pointed out some trouble spots.

“It’s just not good quality work. It’s not worth the $15,000 to get done. it doesn’t look like it is even glued. You see how easily (he lifts the rubber on the roof), if that was glued you wouldn’t be able to pull it up,” said Mark Wright.

Around the chimney, there’s no flashing to prevent potential leaks. Mark Wright also found another potential weak spot.

“Typically when you have a vent coming through a roof like this, it should have some type of rubber boot over it. They’ve just cut a hole in the rubber,” said Mark Wright.

With no boot, it does leak. Below the vent, David Wright, Wilma’s nephew, stood in her bathroom. Above him, a fresh soft wet spot in the ceiling’s sheetrock can be seen.

“A leak it looks like to me. You wouldn’t think it would be wet after you just had a new roof put on,” said David Wright.

“I have spoken with the contractor several times, yes. They kept saying they want to make it right. I told him what to do to make it right. He never did say he’d come and shingle the whole roof,” said Mark Wright.

WATE’s Don Dare went to the office of Woods Roofing and Repair in Harriman, but no one was there. Patrick Woods, the owner, did call us. He said “I did nothing wrong, period. I don’t do bad work and I did what she wanted me to do. I took off two layers of shingles and re-decked the roof and now they want to say it’s not right.”

“Yes, there are wrinkles and creases in the rubber roofing,” Woods added. “The temperature was 38 degrees when I put it on.”

Regarding the leak in the bathroom, “No, I don’t put boots on vents. I don’t use boots on roofs. My work comes with a 7-year warranty, and I will come back and fix things and will put shingles if that’s what she wants.”

“I shouldn’t have fooled with him. I either want it fixed right or my money back,” said Wilma Wright.

Patrick Woods also told us, he’s “not trying to pull anything over on Miss Wright” saying he’s “never had any trouble with any of his customers before.” Woods said he has many happy customers who are pleased with his work.

Wilma Wright said she’s ready for Woods to fix the leak, remove the rubber material, and replace it with asphalt shingles.

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