Learn About Metal Roofing Materials and Research Metal Roofing Prices:

Standing seam metal roofs, metal shingles, corrugated metal roofing and stone-coated steel roofs, etc .

Here you will learn about benefits of different metal roofs – financial benefits, environmental and health benefits, as well as discover different types of metal roofs, metal roofing materials, and DIY metal roofing installation tips.

Benefits of Metal Roofing:

Metal roofing is the greenest and longest lasting type of roofing materials. Metal roofs protect your home from rain, snow, high winds / hurricanes, ice dams, fires, lightening, etc. No other type of roof will stand up to the power of nature as well as a metal roof. In addition to great waterproofing properties, metal roofing also makes your home look beautiful, and your house becomes the envy of your neighbors.

Metal roofs improve the comfort of your home. The thermal properties of metal roofs will keep your attic space cooler in the summer, and a Cool Roof coating will further improve the reflectivity of your roof. In the winter, a metal roof will act as a natural barrier to any ice dams formation. Most snow will slide off your roof before it has a chance to freeze, but even if it does freeze along the eaves of your roof, the design of metal roofing panels will prevent any water from traveling up and penetrating your roof.

Metal Roofing Materials:

There are many types and styles of metal roofing, as well as many types of metal used in manufacturing metal roofing materials. Here, we list the most common and popular types of metal roofing, as well as a detailed overview of each metal roof material type:

Standing Seam Metal Roof – vertical metal roofing panels, installed over a solid roof deck or over space sheeting / battens. Standing seam metal roofs usually come in two styles:

• Architectural Standing Seam – snap-lock or mechanical lock design with concealed fasteners. Uses 22-26 gauge steel, .032-.040 aluminum, 16 oz copper, Zinc or other premium metals. Painted standing seam uses Kynar 500 premium 7-layer baked on coating.
• Exposed Fasteners Standing Seam – usually lower gauge and quality steel (29 ga galvanized steel) panels, installed directly over roof deck or battens, without underlayment / vapor barrier, using roof-penetrating fasteners with neoprene / rubber gaskets. Most common profiles include corrugated steel panels, R-panel, V5 crimp panel, etc. Exposed fastener metal roofing is typically painted with lower quality (as compared to Kynar 500) acrylic paint. This acrylic paint usually lasts 15-20 years, and requires resealing and re-tightening of every fastener after about 10 years. These systems are not very suitable for complicated / cut-up roofs, as the flashing details are not designed for multiple roof penetrations, valleys and pitch changes.
• Learn how to install a standing seam metal roof – topics covered include preparing a roof deck and installing roofing underlayment, installing a starter strip, the first metal roof panel, field panels, doing sidewall flashing, valley flashing and installing hip / ridge cap. Includes metal roofing installation video guide.

Metal Shingles Roofing – Interlocking design metal panels installed in horizontal rows, over properly ventilated solid roof deck. Metal shingles roof is a true architectural metal roof – you can choose from many profiles of metal shingles that imitate natural slate, cedar shingles and shakes, concrete and clay tile, asphalt shingles, etc.

Compared to standing seam metal roofs, metal shingles are less expensive to buy, and also cost less to install. Metal shingles also offer better flexibility for a roofing contractor, in terms of great variety of flashing detail for almost any roof penetration, and can also be installed on round towers (whereas standing seam metal roof cannot, unless a very expensive and sophisticated rolling equipment is used in manufacturing of standing seam panels).

Metal Roofing Prices:

Metal roofing prices are something of a mystery for many homeowners, and also vary greatly from region to region. Metal roofs are generally more expensive to install than a typical asphalt shingles roof – about 2.5-3 time more. However, if you consider the lifetime cost of a metal roof vs. an asphalt shingles roof, you will see that on a per-year basis, a metal roof is actually about 25-30% less than asphalt shingles.

Simple math will show that an average asphalt shingles roof that costs $6000, and lasts 15 years, will cost $400/year, on a per year basis. A metal roof installed on the same house, costing $18000 (3 times the cost of asphalt shingles roof) and lasting 60+ years, will cost you only $300 per year.

If you also subtract all the roof and interior repairs associated with the end of life of a typical asphalt shingles roof – that time when your roof starts to leak, your ceilings, walls and carpets get ruined and you have to get up in the middle of the night to put up the buckets when it rains – a metal roof becomes much more appealing.

Additionally, most metal roofs qualify for a $1500 cool roof tax credit, which further reduces your out of pocket cost. Use our roofing calculator to estimate the installation costs of different types of metal roofing and instantly compare roof prices to the installation costs of other roofing materials – asphalt shingles, cedar shakes, slate, tile, etc.

External metal roofing information and resources:

If you are not the DIY type homeowner, we can professionally install your metal roof or you can “hire” us to assist you in the installation process. We are a quality Metal Roofing Company serving Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut and Southern New Hampshire area.

We specialize in permanent residential and commercial Metal Roofs and IB flat roofing technology.

To learn more about metal roofing materials, prices, colors, and manufacturers refer to Metal Roof informational resource.

Metal Roofing Costs:

If you were wondering about the cost of metal roofs, use our interactive Roof Replacement Cost Calculator to estimate roofing costs to install different types of metal roofing systems (Standing Seam metal roofing, Metal Shingles, stone coated steel, and specialty metal roofs such as tin, copper, zinc, stainless steel, and lead roofing). Our roofing calculator will also provide you with prices for other roofing types, such as asphalt shingles, cedar shakes, tiles / slate, etc. Our roof pricing guide will also explain how roofing contractors come up with their prices, and what is included in a “roof package” of a reputable roofing company, versus fly-by-night and storm-chaser roofers.

In some instances, a metal roof may not be feasible for you – e.g. when a roof slope is too low or flat. That is when our excellent IB Flat roofing membrane is the best option for you. For low-slope / flat standing seam metal roof and Flat roofing installation, repair and consulting services, visit MA Flat Roofing Contractor website.

You can also use flat roofing calculator to estimate roof prices for an IB roof, as well as an EPDM rubber roofing and modified bitumen (torch down) systems.

Contact us by email: info@lametalroof.com

If you are a roofing contractor or a Do-It-Yourself homeowner looking to buy metal roofing products, visit our online metal roofing store, where you can purchase metal roofing materials and learn step-by-step professional installation techniques in our “customers only” section.

with 2 comments