Metal roofs have been around for a long time; roofing shingles made of copper are known to have been in use as far back as the third century BC, in Sri Lanka. In the United States, however, where asphalt shingles occupy a commanding 80% majority of the roofing market, metal roofs have long been associated with industrial or farm buildings, as opposed to residences. In the last 15 years or so, however, the demand for residential metal roofing has tripled in size to 12% of the market, a far cry from the 1% or so recorded back in 1989.
Despite the rising trend in metal roofing, however, there’s still a sort of stigma associated with metal roofs. Aesthetics have typically been one of the biggest and most common arguments against installing metal roofing. Where metal is durable and long-lasting, its “newness” is seen to detract from the look and feel of the house, whereas materials like wood, clay, and slate are seen as more traditional and thought to impart a certain character, and thus value, to the house.
The fact is, standing, looking around at the houses in your neighborhood, you could be looking at a metal roof and not know it.
Adding a coating of stone to a metal roof (sand, originally, as it was first done in the United Kingdom) was first conceived as a way to help protect the metal from the effects of the environment. The coating of stone, however, helps to disguise the metal, and can make it appear to be any of the other common roofing materials.
Metal’s malleability – the ability to shape it into different forms – is one of the many reasons it makes such a versatile crafting material, since it can be fashioned into just about any shape desired. Far from being limited to galvanized sheeting, metal roofing can take the form of any other style of roofing, such as shingles or tiles. It is these metal tiles and shingles that are at the head of a roofing revolution in residential America.
At Arry’s Roofing, we are experts in metal roofing and can answer any question you may have.
Stay tuned for Part II of Stone-Coated Metal: A Roofing Revolution, coming soon, which goes on to discuss the advantages of metal roofing in detail.
