Fowl Play: A Roof Replacement Turned Goose-Saving Saga

Two Months. One Mission: Bring Howard Back To Life

It was a routine Indianapolis roof replacement that went off without a hitch – something we’re used to at Clemens Home Solutions.

But then…

Upon further inspection, and to our horror, we discovered the resident goose statue on the premises had… fallen in battle. And (how do we put this nicely?) broken at the neck and in two pieces, at that.

Other roofers might have left him in shambles and the homeowners in dismay.

But we at Clemens Home Solutions had to make things right. Because not only do we strive for excellence always, we put people first.

So we sprang into action and commenced Mission “Save The Heirloom.”

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Part 1: The Break

There he lay. Even more lifeless than the statue he’d already been just a day before. But how could this possibly have happened?

Well… there’s an easy answer to that, and we’ll be the first to admit it – we did it.

But why would we admit to such a thing – and in a public blog post, at that? Are we as unhinged as the removed head of our troubled goose-statue friend?

No, we’re not, we promise. Let us explain.

Can property damage easily be avoided during a roof replacement with a pro process and diligent oversight? Absolutely. Which, of course, is how we do things at Clemens Home Solutions.

But there’s a catch.

You see, roof replacements are inherently disruptive, and any roofer who tells you otherwise is lying – flat-out. There is simply no way to remove thousands of pounds of raw roofing material and install a similar weight of new material without risking minor property damage. (Or worse, depending on the contractor.)

But as we’re a roofer who strives to do things unequivocally right, we:

• Greatly reduce the chances of any property damage.
• Own up to ALL of our mistakes and make things 110% okay with the customer if damages do occur.

As was the case with Howard the Heirloom – with much care, patience, and surgical precision.

Oh, right. We collectively named him ‘Howard’ during his almost two-month recovery at our training center, where we brought him back to life.

Part 2: Brought Back To Life

The initial reaction of Cory, our Marketing Team Leader and all-around customer satisfaction all-star, was… okay, just buy the homeowners a new one! Problem solved, AND they get a fresh, upgraded front-yard goose. Perfect.

…but only if life were so simple.

In the case of Howard, he wasn’t just any landscape-enhancing goose statue. He was a gift from the homeowner’s mother. In other words, he carried great sentimental value.

This is where things became complicated.

Because there was no way around it – we HAD to fix the original Howard and make him whole again.

The First Attempt

The celebration of our first revival quickly subsided when Howard’s poor head fell off again. Even though we attached his head with strong adhesive and sanded him down anew… the weight of his head was just too much.

Okay – back to the drawing board.

Bringing Out The Big Guns

Because a simple adhesive application wouldn’t do the trick, we needed a more thorough method to make Howard stand proud again.

So here’s a brief overview of what we did:

• Drilled pilot holes into his neck.
• Inserted rods, like a surgeon would actually do to a broken leg.
• Attached his head and secured the internal rods with epoxy.
• Waited for everything to dry properly (this took some time).
• Sanded him down to make the break indistinguishable from the rest of his neck.
• Spray painted him a brand new, glorious white, making him look better than ever.

We could have grumbled about this and considered it extra work on top of our already busy roof replacement schedule.

But it was all a part of making things totally right with the customer – an extension of the homeowner’s original roof replacement.

So instead of letting it stress us out, we just chose to have fun with it and bring us all together as a team. Howard soon became a fixture in our facility, being greeted by passing team members. It wasn’t uncommon to overhear:

“Hey there, Howard.”

“How’s it going, Howard?”

In this way, we turned this potential negative customer experience into a more significant positive experience than if the roof replacement had happened without issue.

How many other Indianapolis roofers could tell you they went so above and beyond to make up for an error that they bonded with a cement Heirloom?

We’re guessing not many.

Epilogue: Clemens – The Chivalrous Roofer

We get it – we’re extending this whole “adventure saga” theme to the very end of this blog post at the risk of sounding corny.

But it’s because this really was one big adventure for us.

From taking a broken Howard into our training center for two months to driving him back to Indianapolis, alive and riding shotgun, buckled up and surrounded by pillows.

It was a story that united us all as a team at Clemens and showed our customers they couldn’t have asked for a better East Central Indiana roofer. Even when we made a mistake.

In the end, our now lifetime customers were beyond thrilled to see their new and improved heirloom when we arrived at their home to put Howard back in his rightful place.

Where he’ll stand proud for many more years to come.

If you want a roof replacement in Indianapolis with exceptional, above-and-beyond service like Howard and his homeowners received, then contact Clemens Home Solutions for a free quote today!