Metal Roof For A House?

[jyl]

I'd like to learn about metal roofs for residential uses.

(No need for a new roof anytime soon, just curious.)

Occasionally I'll see a standing-seam metal roof on an industrial building, usually painted brown or green. I know you can also get a standing-seam metal roof in galvanized steel or bare copper. I like the looks, even though it is "different".

How long will these last? Okay in hot weather, cold weather, freezing weather? Interfere with cellphone reception? Are they lightning hazards? Any disadvantages other than initial cost?

[MT930]

They are great, I have one on my barn.


We have bought a lot of it for building business with these guys They are awesome,excellent service!
they are local for us.

Metal roofing and siding | Bridger Steel

[masraum]

I was curious too after reading your post, so I did a search. This site seems to have lots of info.

Home Tips : DIY - Metal Roofing

There are several houses in my neighborhood that have what look like metal shingles designed to look like wooden shingles.

[myamoto1]

jyl - they're pretty common as residential roofs in the boonies in the NE. In the Adirondaks, nearly every house up in "heavy snow country" has a metal roof. They don't allow the snow to accumulate - it slides right off.

I also think someon in the, "How to earn some extra cash," thread mentioned they made a lot of money painting metal roofs. I think they were in AZ or So. Cali. Wherever it was, it was a temperate climate.

I can't answer your lightning question with certainty, but in the NE, almost every metal roofed house had lightning rods. That also could be due to there being a lot more thunder/lightning storms there compared to the PNW.

I never thought about it interfering w/ cell phones, but my current house has aluminum siding, and we occasionally have reception issues. We're also across from the airport tower, so that my play into our issues as well.

Oh - and they sound great in the rain!

[red-beard]

My House in Massachusetts was wood shake with Steel on top. As long as you have paint/coat it every few years, they last a long time. They make some great alumanized coatings which insulate and reflect the heat away.

[pete3799]

I have metal roofing on all my buildings-house,garage & woodshed.
They are all corrugated not standing-seam.
Heat (tops 90's here)no problem. Cold (minus 20's) no problem.
The main advantage here is i never have to shovel snow off the roof.
What is this cellphone reception you speak of? I honestly can't answer this one as their is no cellphone reception here.
Never had a lightning strike yet.
Can't think of any disadvantages off hand.
Quite certain the metal roofing will out last shingles.

[jyl]

I was most interested in the metal roofs that do not require periodic painting. I also have a copper fetish. So a copper standing-seam roof is interesting to me. Not sure they make corrugated sheets in copper. Don't need a "traditional" appearance so not sure why I'd choose metal shingles.

Presumably I'd have to sell a kidney to pay for one, but my current roof has 10 yrs or so left in it, and at that point I could probably get by with one kidney for the rest of my life expectancy.

[tcar]

Most standing seam metal roofs have a factory finish with clearcoat - warranted. Lots of color choices.

Goes for some of the 'copper' ones as well. The ones that remain copper color. The ones that turn 'green' have a real unprotected copper coating on them... or are really sheet copper roofing ($$$$).

Very, very common in snow areas.

Lightning is not a issue any more than with other roofs.

If your cell works in your metal car, it'll work with a metal roof.

[Eric 951]

I have yet to see a widely available copper roof panel--I have seen small copper roofs on outcroppings of bay windows--but never an entire roof in copper.

The only disadvantage to a metal roof is the inital cost--other than that, they are far superior to a shingle roof in every way. We install alot of metal roofs on industrial/commercial buildings(both standing seam and screw-down) and our office building has a standing seam roof that has been in-place since 1983 without any issues.

If you do get a standing seam roof, you should also get ice guards over any mandoors/garage doors or even along each eave--very inexpensive and can prevent a large chunk of ice/snow from damaging a person and/or anything it may strike.

[myamoto1]

John - if you haven't already, check out Steve's link above. In the NE, hail isn't usually an issue like it is here. I'm still amazed at how many hail storms we get here. Per Steve's link, copper and aluminum roofs tend to dent more easily from hail than a steel roof would.

I know a lot of the old state buildings in Albany, NY are copper and are probably at least 50+ years old. They have that nice patina, like the Statue of Liberty. There are also numerous old buildings in NYC and Boston w/ old copper roofs that seem to be holding up fairly well over time (again guessing 50+ years).

I think to pull off copper, the rest of your house would need to have the "modern" PNW look to it. Otherwise, I think it wouldn't look right on a traditional Craftsman or style housee we typically see around here.

[BRPORSCHE]

The house down the street from my parents has a metal roof. It look's pretty impressive. I have heard that it's a "hurricane" roof. WHo knows if it's true though. There are little lighting rods spreads across.

[red-beard]

Suny Building in Downtown Albany

[BeyGon]

I had a metal roof on my house in Costa Rica and never had a problem with the rain, if it is insulated well it's not a problem. but, the most it ever rained there was a foot overnight when I was there.

[Cdnone1]

I have a metal roof on our home in the mountains. I believe it is tin. It was on the house when we bought it and has never required any maintenance. It is not painted and has not leaked in the 20 plus years we have owned the home. The place is at around 7000 feet elevation, gets cold and snowed on in the winter and very hot in the summer but has never given us any problems.
I can try and find a picture and post it if you are interested
Steve

[jyl]

http://www.grantlogan.net/copper_standing_seam_roof_g_500.jpg

http://www.craftsmanroofer.com/images/copper_turret_roof_1.jpg

Some pics of copper standing seam roofs on houses. I think they'd look better after weathering.

My house is a traditional PDX craftsman or four square. The roof is high up, not that visible. As long as the roof is brown, it would look okay.

[masraum]

this looks like $50k worth of copper. You'd have every crackhead and numbnut in 500 miles wanting to steal your roof for scrap.



I like these, but I suspect they look best on a certain type of building.

[The Gaijin]

me an' 'pa been aiming to put up this new fangled tin roof.

traded ma banjo for a whole mess of it..

[porsche4life]

Ok around here metal roofs are done with a similar panel to what they build barns with. All of that has a baked on enamel coating that is guaranteed no fade for 20-30years depending on color. If you do go with one make sure you get 26ga metal as it holds up better and is less likely to be hail damaged. Make sure whoever you get to do it knows what they are doing and does not provide for a space for water to get trapped in between the metal and the roof decking....


Mueller, Inc. - Residential Metal Roofing
There is a very good site to look at.

[porsche4life]

Oh and most Copper look standing seem isnt actually copper. It is that enamel in a copper color. Looks just as good. Way way less $$$

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Agreed about copper. Beautiful and durable, but also extremely expensive and looks very out-of-place on all but stone neo-gothic type buildings.

Standing seam systems are very, very good. They can last many years without requring any sort of maintenance. However one issue I do see with them is that the openings need to be properly detailed for penetrations. Bathroom vents, exhaust fans, skylights, chimneys, etc. need to be properly flashed, counterflashed and sealed and have crickets provided where appropriate. This is quite often forgotten and your local handyman residential roofer won't have a clue how to do this properly, so you'll either end up with a leaky roof (bad) or a clean, nice looking metal roof with huge gobs of sealant glop around every opening that looks like hell. You NEED to use a roofing contractor that installs these systems a lot (find guys that do commercial buildings - they probably wouldn't turn the work away these days). And make sure the manufacturer provides flashing details and the penetrations are constructed accordingly.

If everything is done right by a skilled, familiar roofing contractor, a standing seam roof should last 50 years with no leaks.