Sears Leaky Roof Disaster Longwood Florida
In March 2012 we noticed water stains and a crack in our ceiling due to a leaky roof. We consulted Sears and they set up a presentation which told us that they offer extensive training to their roofers and that any plywood damage would be replaced. The roofers were shown the water damage and crack inside.
In April 2012, the roofers installed new roof shingles,but arrived with no plywood. They told only a few small pieces needed to be replaced. About a month later, we noticed wetness on the ceiling and wet line during a rainy day while sitting in the living room, at the site of the original leaky spot. Also the wet spot would dry within a day or two. Immediately we called the Sears representative and he directed us to call the regional office. They came out on a dry day and said we see only the old stain. They took pictures each time they came out. They did not check the roof. Sears service logs document this service call and state that we needed to call back during a rainstorm so they could detect the source of the leak.
We called Sears during a rainstorm as instructed. Sears sent out a man to check where the leak was coming from. He did not walk the length of the roof space and I was present during his examination. He did not see a leak but noted the floor board was damp. Sears service logs have omitted this service call and we received no paperwork from the serviceman.
We called Sears a third time to complain about the same problem. Sears sent a contractor who caulked the crest of the roof and around a pipe coming from the ceiling, after which he announced that the roof was fixed. Sears service logs have omitted this service call and the contractor refused to give us any paperwork.
We recently noticed the water damage had spread about in diameter about three feet further on the ceiling sheetrock and additional cracks in the ceiling. We hired a professional leak detection company who documented that the water damage was from the roof leakage and identified a large leak in the roof right above the cracks in the ceiling. He also provided us with photographs of the roof leak and water meter readings
that were off the charts.
On May 10 2014 an independent roofing contractor inspected our roof in order to provide us an estimate on repairs. He "saw daylight" in our attic, indicating gaps in the coverage of the roofing. While walking on the roof with him, he showed us that the roofing bounced up and down under our steps, demonstrating the gaps between the shingles and the rotten plywood. His repair estimate totalled $9500, and included replacing all the plywood.
Sears products are expensive and the district managers and roofers they use are rude and unprofessional. Sears is clearly in breach of our
contract which specified they would "Replace any rotten wood found in the deck area at a rate of $2.90 per square foot". The roof inspector lacked the proper training and did not do a through evaluation. The roofers did not replace the rotted plywood as was agreed to before we signed our contract with Sears. This resulted in them putting new roofing, poorly done, on rotten plywood. The water damage has grown
about three feet in diameter and we have additional cracks in our ceiling. We are very displeased with Sears and will not be using them in the future.