Metal roofing has been around for a long time but it has been overshadowed by more popular options, such as asphalt shingles. Now that you’re looking for a replacement, it’s the perfect opportunity to explore your options and get to know what metal roofing can do for you and your home.
What should you know?
For starters, metal roofing has come a long way. From simple corrugated sheets of metal, the roofing material is now available in a number of forms, successfully mimicking a variety of other roofing materials while doing away with their weaknesses. Like the appearance of tile? Want to retain the look of shingles for your home? No problem. Just because you’re using a metal roof doesn’t mean that your home has to look like a barn or a shed. Metal roofing prides itself in offering the best in form and function, ensuring that your new roof doesn’t only protect your home well but that it also does so in style.
Popular Options Available
- Steel – Lightweight but durable, steel is the most popular of metal roofs around. It’s typical for steel roofing to come in a coated or colored finish, which helps it offer superior resistance against corrosion, a problem common with metals.
- Aluminum – Like steel, aluminum metal roofing comes supplied with colored finishes. The material doesn’t age well on its own and colored finishes take care of that problem, while also boosting aluminum’s anti-corrosion properties. In fact, aluminum offers better corrosion resistance than steel, making it ideal for use in coastal areas. Aluminum is also easy to form, allowing homeowners to use it exactly as they wish.
- Copper – Unlike steel and aluminum, copper looks better as it ages. It is naturally allowed to weather so finishes are not applied over it. However, even without protective coating, copper easily resists corrosion, allowing it to withstand the elements on its own. The only drawback is that copper’s natural beauty and durability comes at a steep price.
All of these materials come in shakes, shingles, and panels. Custom profiles are also available, so don’t hesitate to talk to your local contractor about the kind of metal roofing that will be suitable for your home.
So far, you’ve learned that metal roofing blends form and function well. In the next part, we’ll discuss further what the roofing material can do for you by talking about its advantages. Read on for more!
