Maximizing Your Opportunities
Building Your Business With Composite Shakes
by Marcus Dodson, publisher
Are you walking away and leaving money at a jobsite? If you haven’t considered composite siding for a project, then the answer is yes. Apex Home Solutions has been maximizing its business opportunities throughout Oregon and Washington this year by installing both composite roofing and siding on homes. While the company has successfully installed synthetic roofing for six years on mostly reroofing projects, in the past year they’ve expanded to siding.
“We do 20–25 DaVinci® Roofscapes composite roof installations a year already,” said Landon Coggins, co-owner of Apex Home Solutions based in Oregon City, Oregon, a suburb of Portland. “When we were called to the Bergren home, both the real cedar shakes on the roof and the siding were severely deteriorated due to the harsh sea salt and winds. The homeowner in this case already had DaVinci roofs on two homes in Texas, so it was an easy sell for the roofing.
“They chose the Select Shake product in an aged cedar color. But then we started looking at the siding. The DaVinci Hand-Split Cedar Siding perfectly matches the composite roof, so it was a good upsell opportunity. We added in AZEK® PVC trims and HydroGap® Housewrap to all inside and outside corners. Everything is back-caulked and caulked. The house exterior is now truly waterproof. We were able to create an aesthetically beautiful home that requires no maintenance. We turned this from just a roofing job into a full home exterior project.”
How Will Your Customers Respond?
Because the DaVinci products are made to resist everything from algae to fading to salt air, the composite shakes and slate are ideal for Western areas of the country. They’re also Class A fire and Class 4 impact rated. Some insurance companies offer homeowners discounts for using the composite products on their homes.
“The main benefit to this product in my mind is that it is extremely durable and has a long life cycle,” said Bergren.
The homeowner actually has written the sales pitch that every roofing contractor can use. “The real cedar shakes that were on the house took a lot of annual maintenance and a lot of costs to keep them in decent shape,” said Bergren. “I think I will be saving a lot of money every year with much less maintenance on both the roof and siding.
“I believe the DaVinci products have measurably improved the value of the home as well as dramatically improved the curb appeal as compared to the old weathered cedar shakes.”
Made for Western States
“The great thing about using the composite siding is that it perfectly replicates real cedar,” said Coggins, who owns Apex Home Solutions with his wife, Melissa. “Everyone appreciates the maintenance-free aspects, and the product meets many West Coast codes.
“As incentives, we offer discounts for bulk purchases of composite roofing and siding together or multi-project discounts. We’re a woman-owned and veteran-led company, so you’ll also find we provide discounts for military, first responders, and seniors. These resonate with people and help us close more sales. Important things like this have helped us quickly grow our business.”
