The roof is the most crucial part of your house, so while installing it, you have to consider more than one factor for the long term. Other than the shingle roofs, which prove to be the most popular type of roofing system across the country, metal roofing has shown a high rise in popularity lately.
When a homeowner is making an investment as big as the installation of an entirely new roof, he definitely wants it to go in place for something that is going to last quite a long time. Even besides the instinct of getting the most out of your investment, you surely want to choose something that is going to require your lest attention in maintenance as well.
Is Metal Roof the Ultimate Choice for Roofing?
Table of Contents
The dramatically trickling sound of rain on metal roofs is soothing to some while annoying to others, but it is in no way related to your decision about getting yourself a metal roof. It has been estimated that over 11% of Americans have installed metal roofs in their house the past year, which is technically quite a decent amount of homeowners.
If that sparks curiosity in your mind about what so many homeowners found so attractive about this specific type of metal roofing. You might as well want to find out about the metal roofing pros and cons that provoked them.
Pros of Metal Roofing
1- Metal roofs are durable and long-lasting.
As already spoken of, the thing that attracts the interest of most homeowners to the metal roofing is its amazingly long lifespan and robust durability. Nearly a quarter of homeowners mentioned the long lifespan of the metal roofs to be the “sole” reason why they choose to install the roofing type in their houses, while another quarter put their hopes in the strength of the metal roofs.
Metal roofs can be said to last as long as the house does itself, with an average lifespan ranging from about 60 years to 80 years, it is far ahead of any roofing material as its competitor in lasting. The even better part about it is that most roofing contractors or manufacturers offer a warranty on their roof for up to 50 years! This is twice, and even thrice the overall lifespan of asphalt shingle roofing, which is the most-liked and used type of roofing material in America today.
2- Metal roofs are environmentally friendly.
Today, the environmentalist are increasingly stressing on the utilization of sustainable and renewable energy because of the dread we might face in the future. Now keeping that in mind, when you look at the manufacturing process of asphalt shingles or other roofing materials, they have increased dependency on petroleum and fossil fuels. And neither are the other roofing types renewable or recyclable, once they are past their expected lifespan, their only good place remaining are landfills.
Metal roofing on the side uses about 25% of recycled materials during its production and is completely recyclable itself. Thanks to the rustproof coating, it can remain intact for ridiculously long duration of time, resisting all the harshness of the environment. And once it has reached the end of its life, it can be completely recycled to produce an equally strong and durable roof again.
3- Metal roofs are energy-efficient.
Energy efficiency from the type of roofing material is not the type of a thing that your mind shall drift to quite often, but it really can affect your energy consumptions by as much as 25%, and that is a decent amount. The additional expenses invested in the installation of metal roofs can be recovered in the same season through power savings.
Metal roofs basically have reflective properties, unlike the other roofing materials, which work mostly on the principle of absorption. Leaving the winters out, it can prove to be a real blessing in the long days of summer.
4- Metal Roofs Are Available In Variety Of Styles
Modern metal roofs are available in a variety of colors, styles, and functionality that make them easy to find the perfect look that can complement to the interior or exterior of your home. It can also be great to enhance the beauty of your home.
5- Metal Roofs Are Light In Weight
Metal roofing is the best choice for installing in the home because they are lighter than other roofing materials available in the market. If you are changing the outlook of your old home or building a new home in town, you can save your costs that can be spent in buying supports and building designs as metal roofs contain lightweight that can reduce your roof weight.
And due to the lightweight, it can directly be installed on the top of your existing roofing materials without struggling to remove it first.
Cons of Metal Roofing
1- Metal roofs are expensive.
The reason why most homeowners find themselves hesitant about installing a metal roof in their homes is sole because of the high product and installation prices. Some of the best qualities metal roofing material can go as high as ten times the cost of a traditional asphalt shingle roof. Not only that, with such advanced and expensive material, you also should be expecting for the labor and installation costs to rise equally.
The installation of metal roofing requires a unique skill set among-st the labor, specific tools, knowledge, and training, which is hard to come by with ease. However, the price tag on the metal roofs is not all bad; at the end of the day, you always get what you pay for. If you are investing much more than a traditional roof, the metal roof is surely going to last 6 or even 8 times longer than the traditional roofing option, and that too with minimal roof repairs.
2- Metal roofs can be dented and are noisy.
When it comes to the strength of metal roofs, only the higher-grade quality and the expensive options seem to be highly resistant to all sorts of abuse. Lower-grade qualities like the aluminum and copper are easily damaged and dented, even with the fall of dead branches, and do not permit you to take a walk on your roof either.
As mentioned at the beginning of the writing, the sound of heavy rain or hail on metal roofs can be soothing to some homeowners while very irritating and annoying to others. So, if you find yourself to be easily bugged by such noises, you better consider all your options before putting your money into one place.
3- Metal Roofs Don’t Absorb Noise
The another disadvantage is that these roofs do not absorb noise. When there is heavy rain, it can make the noise higher than other roofing materials. Most of the time, the noise is unpleasant, but you can minimize the noise by installing proper insulation with some additional layers but you need to consider the overall budget for this as well.
Conclusion
In the end, you’ll have to decide on the type of roof that you should have for your house. Be considerate about your choice of style along with the area that you live in. Steel roofs are surely a reliable quality of metal roofing that is going to resist all sorts of abuse from the harsh weather, whether it is hail, snow, or even high rains and strong winds. Make sure that the roof you choose makes perfect sense.
