West Orange, New Jersey ยท roofing
Roof leaks, loose shingles and wind damage in West Orange
Leaks, lifted shingles and wind damage on houses in West Orange, Orange, Millburn, Roseland and Essex Fells. Call (973) 841-8483 and talk the roof through with a local roofer.
Before the ladder
Four sights that are not for a ladder
Most roof trouble can wait for a roofer. These four situations call for staying put on the ground first.
- A wire on the lawn, the fence or the roof is live until the utility says otherwise: stand well away and call 911 or your electric utility from a safe spot.
- A ceiling that bulges, sags or drips heavily means everyone, pets included, leaves the room underneath, and 911 gets the call if the ceiling seems about to give way.
- Water at a light fixture or an outlet means leaving that room alone.
- A wet, icy or gusty roof is no place for a ladder. NIOSH reports upward of 100 deaths from ladder falls in the United States every year, which makes a leak that waits a day the smaller risk.
The five towns
Five towns, five kinds of roof
West Orange is the base, on Main Street, and most of its houses went up before 1960.
The city of Orange has the most apartments and two- to four-family houses of the five, and about three households in four rent.
The township of Millburn is mostly owner-occupied, and a third of its homes were built in 1939 or before.
The borough of Roseland is the newest of the group, with a median build year of 1975.
Essex Fells is a small borough where about nine homes in ten are detached single-family houses.
The houses under the roofs
West Orange houses, by the decade
Census Bureau five-year estimates for 2024 count about 17,870 housing units in West Orange township, give or take 616. Roughly 4,435 were built in 1939 or before, and another 4,318 in the 1950s. The median build year is 1956.
A house that old has been re-covered at least once, so the roof overhead is seldom the one it started with. Ask the last owner or the roofer's invoice for the year the current covering went on. That date says more about the roof than the house's age does.
Owners hold about 69 percent of the 17,166 households and renters hold the rest. About 53 percent of the units are detached single-family houses, and roughly one in five sits in a building of five or more units. A roof with a gentle slope is its own kind of job; see flat and low roofs.
Questions and answers
What happens when I call about my roof?
The call goes to a local roofing contractor working in West Orange, Orange, Millburn, Roseland and Essex Fells. Three details speed things along: the street address, what is visible from inside or out, and roughly when the roof went on. Renters: roof work is the owner's job, so the landlord hears first. Dial (973) 841-8483 once those three details are in hand.
How urgent is this roof problem, on a scale of 1 to 10?
Think of a ten-point scale. Eight through ten: water dripping at a light fixture, a wire on the ground, or a ceiling sagging low. Leave the room, then call 911, or the electric utility for the wire. Four through seven: a stain that is spreading or shingles lifting, which makes it time to call (973) 841-8483 this week. One through three: a single curled shingle over a dry attic, so photograph it and look again after the next rain.
Which towns can call this number?
Homes in West Orange, Orange, Millburn, Roseland and Essex Fells; each has a page under the nearby towns. A house outside those five is outside the service area. If you own the building and the roof is the trouble, dial (973) 841-8483.
The roof year in West Orange
Winter. The NOAA normals station at Caldwell Essex County Airport shows 25.7 nights in January at or below freezing and 9.3 days that never rise above it. Figures may differ on your street. Thaw followed by refreeze is how ice dams begin.
Spring. After the last snow, walk the yard and look up. A roof inspection from the ground needs only a pair of binoculars and a notebook.
Summer. In afternoon sun, a standard roof can pass 150 degrees, the Department of Energy reports. Flat roofs soak up that heat, and water still sitting there after 48 hours gets the trade name ponding.
Storm season. Tropical Storm Isaias crossed New Jersey on 4 August 2020, and the state weather network called its winds the strongest statewide since Sandy. Sandy's gusts reached 88 mph in Montclair, next door to West Orange. See storm damage and roof repair.
Fall. Leaves fill the gutters in October and November, and a sound chimney flashing goes into winter dry. It is also the season to plan a new roof.
Reaching the roofer
One phone line, no forms
There is no form, email address or chat box here, only the phone. Call (973) 841-8483 with the street address, what you can see and about when the roof went on, and a visit to look can be arranged.
The homes served are in West Orange, Orange, Millburn, Roseland and Essex Fells. Renters: roof work belongs to the building owner, so the landlord or property manager hears first.
The business address on file is 80 Main St, West Orange, NJ 07052.