Anybody have some experience with metal roofs for a residence?

[Mabouya]

Next year when it warms up I need to get a new roof for my house. I like the look of the Decra shakes. Decra Shake Link (or something like that)


Other than the high costs, are there any significant drawbacks I need to know about?

(Rain noise is not a problem for me.)


Thanks
M

[rydesteel]

Louis, Compare the cost of metal to one of the new 50 year or better architectural shingles. My neighbor the engineer looked at both options and chose an asphalt roof over metal. His reasoning was they'll both last longer than he'd want to look at. Metal has come a long way from the old raised rib roofing of old but so have asphalt shingles. We put these on quite a few of our garages and every house we shingle. Most of the time we use the Duration 30, but some the others shapes look nice as well. What pitch does your house have? Snow load shouldn't be as much of an issue where you live but what about wind and are you shaded most of the day? Make sure you look at some jobs the contractor has done and ask for referrals. Have a great holiday.

Frank

[Mabouya]

Thanks Frank. I'll check out the Owens Corning web site.

I was planning on finding some homes with the type I'm interested in to see what they look like in person.

Louis

[WadePatton]

Let me preface this by saying, I hate asphalt shingles. There.

Tin roofs work, are easy to install, retard fire, and last _way_ longer than any asphalt shingle.

My pal installs multiple types of asphalt shingles and metal roofing onto his products every few days. I ask him to PRICE me some shingles to patch my roof up until my "replace roof with tin" envelope fills up and he said, "not enough difference to matter" wrt price that is.

Our discussion flushed this out: Remember back when gas was a dollar cheaper than it is now? Then it went sky high for one excuse after another? (i think "futures" was the last scam.) Some petrol products (asphalt shingles) went up at that time and have yet to come back down. Price difference is a wash in TN.

I don't like the look of asphalt shingles, the damage done every time I walk around on them, the gravelly crap they fill the gutters with, the way they blow off or leak in impossible to trace ways, the moronic warranties (just another sales gimmick-like most retail applications), and they're a bitch to haul up a ladder. Also they burn like...well, petrol. No thanks. I'll hand make shakes before I buy shingles.

Tin is in. Be aware that there are different thicknesses (likely controlled by codes wherever you are) and multiple styles these days. Installation, albeit simpler and faster must be done properly. Durable as _painted metal_! Golf-ball sized hail stones may leave a dent--but unlike shingles, the dent won't leak. A dimpled roof makes your house more aero.

I do really like terra cotta shingles. Too fancy for this installation yo. I'll look into those when I do my cob cottage.

[Zimmermanbicycle]

The tin roof I installed on my mothers place in 1979 has been leak and trouble free for over 30 years through many frosts and lots of snow in the northern new mexico winters.
-Eric

[crumpton]

standing seam gavalon is the shit. asphalt shingles never last as long as the warranty and no one has ever had success warrantying a 25yo asphalt roof freaking promise.

[steve garro]

Nothing but metal on ALL my buildings, and we saw over 14 feet of snow last winter alone, see days & days of 30-50mph winds with gusts going higher, are forest fire prone {got insurance discounts for house & shop just for having it} have no leaks, and drink the H2O off of it. The *only* downside is that snow can avalanch off it if it is wet. - Garro.