Compare Each Roofer's Plan for Your Compost Bin Before the Debris Lands

A compost bin is one of the few yard items meant to hold material from the ground, and that is exactly the problem on roof day. Tear-off debris is light, sharp, and easy to miss. Shingle granules, bent nails, scraps of old felt and pieces of metal flashing can drop off the eave, bounce off the ground, and land in a bin that you later open every spring to feed your beds. The bin itself is small, so it often sits in the one corner of the yard where a crew wants to stand, set a ladder or rest a bundle of shingles.

Most roof bids say nothing about it. The scope lists the tear-off, the underlayment, the drip edge and the cleanup, but it rarely names a bin, a lid or a compost pile. This page is for a homeowner who has a bin near the house and wants each roofer to answer one specific question in writing: what happens to it while the roof is open?

Why a compost bin is a separate line

A bin differs from a trash can or a stack of firewood in two ways. First, the bin is opened by hand, so the lid is often left up or propped, and anything that falls in stays there. Second, the material inside is meant to be used, so the nails and granules you miss now can turn up later in soil that goes onto vegetables or flower beds. A magnet sweep of the lawn does not reach a bin that has been tipped or pulled apart.

St. Louis freeze and thaw cycles add a second issue. A bin that has sat through a freeze holds water and packs down, and a crew that walks over it may crack the lid or the slats. Chesterfield clay also holds water, so a bin on soft ground can shift or tip when a crew member leans on the side. None of these outcomes is large on its own, but they are the kind of damage nobody photographs unless someone asks for it before the job starts.

Roofer comparison

When you put two bids side by side, look at four things about the bin. The first is location. Does the plan show where the bin sits, or does it say only that the crew will work at the back of the house? The second is protection. Does the plan say the bin will be covered, moved or left alone, and by whom? The third is cleanup. Does the final sweep include the bin contents and the ground around it, or only the lawn? The fourth is timing. Does the plan say when the bin will be checked, at the end of each day or only at the end of the job?

A good answer names a method. For example, a roofer might say the bin will be covered with a tarp at the start of each day and that the lid stays closed while the roof is open. Another might say the bin will be moved to a clear spot before tear-off, with the contents left in place so nothing is disturbed. A weak answer repeats the words "we clean up" without saying what happens to the bin. That answer is not wrong, but it does not tell you what the crew will do when a nail lands in the bin on the afternoon of the third day.

Ask each roofer to describe the bin in their own words. If the description matches what you see in your yard, you have a crew that looked at the property before the bid. If it does not, the bid was probably written from the street view and the back yard was never walked.

What it costs

Protecting a compost bin is usually a small task, but it is still labor and it still belongs in the price. Moving a bin, covering it each day, or running a magnet over the bin area after the final sweep each take time. Some bids include that time in the crew's normal cleanup. Others list it as an allowance or as a separate charge. Ask which one applies, and ask for the number in writing before you sign.

If the roofer proposes moving the bin, ask who does the moving and whether the crew or you will handle the contents. A crew that lifts a bin full of soil and compost can strain its back and spill material. A crew that asks you to empty the bin first has moved the work onto your schedule. Either option can be reasonable, but the bid should say which one it is.

Keep the price question separate from the damage question. A low bid that leaves the bin uncovered is not a better deal if the lid cracks or the compost picks up granules you later spread in spring. Compare the bids on what each one covers, not only on the total.

What to ask

• Where will the compost bin sit during tear-off, and will the crew move it or work around it?
• Will the bin be covered with a tarp or a lid at the end of each day, and who checks that it is covered?
• Does the final magnet sweep include the bin contents, the ground under the bin and the space around it?
• If the crew moves the bin, who lifts it, and what happens to the material inside?
• Is the bin work in the bid as a line item, an allowance or part of the normal cleanup?
• If a lid or slat breaks during the work, who replaces it, and is that stated in the proposal?
• Will the crew photograph the bin before they start and again when the job is finished?

Ask for the answers in writing. A roofer who can name the bin, the lid, the tarp and the sweep in a proposal is likely to have walked the yard. A roofer who answers only by phone may change the answer once the crew is on the ladder.

Before you choose

Walk the back yard with your bids in hand. Stand where the bin sits and look up at the eave above it. Note how far the roof edge overhangs the bin and whether the ladder path runs past it. Take a dated photo of the bin, the lid and the ground around it. Send that photo to each roofer and ask them to point to the spot on it where their crew will stand.

If the bin is near a wall where a crew will set a ladder, the answer about the bin and the answer about the ladder should match. A bid that puts the ladder three feet from the bin and says nothing about the bin needs a second look. The same goes for a bid that puts the dumpster beside the bin without a plan for the debris that will fall between them.

Keys Roofing can be reached at (314) 220-2333 if you want to talk through what a bid should say about your yard before you decide. Ask for a walk of the bin spot and for the answer in writing, alongside the rest of the scope.