Metal roofs

stirfamily · #1 01/09/10, 09:01 AM

We need a new roof on our house and am thinking of having a metal roof put on this spring. We live in NE Indiana and we can get lots of snow in the winter. We will also need a skylight replaced. Is a metal roof a good idea in an area with ice and snow and will the skylight cause any problems.
Thanks!
Karen in NE Indiana

Beeman · #2 01/09/10, 09:13 AM

www.metalroofing.com

Do your research and install it correctly. Installation is generally the weak link.

big rockpile · #3 01/09/10, 09:16 AM

Metal Roofs work well and should last 40+ years.They tend to sweat so Ventalation is needed.Plus I like Foam board under it to cut noise.

Skylights I like but never had them.Mom had them and had problems with water leaking in but I'm sure with proper Flashing and Calking this could be no problem.

big rockpile

vickie · #4 01/09/10, 09:36 AM

We are in southern In. After the high winds the year before last we needed a new roof. We only had the one on so they could put our new metal one right over the other. It was alot cheaper then taking the other off. We love it. It looks so nice and i got the color i wanted (RED). Vickie

pourfolkes · #5 01/09/10, 10:10 AM

We had a metal roof on this house when we moved into it. I had always wanted a metal roof and was ecstatic! Last year, we had a huge hail storm. The homes around me with shingle roofs had very little damage, but mine was completely ruined! The entire roof had to be replaced, so we went back with shingles this time.

LisaInN.Idaho · #6 01/09/10, 10:21 AM

We can get huge amounts of snow (like 12 feet last year) and most people up here seem to think metal roofs are the BEST idea for an area with lots of snow. Most everyone up here has metal roofs. They're very attractive too, I think.
Added bonus....they make the COOLEST noise when the snow slides off. It'll wake you up for sure!

Last year even the metal roofs had trouble shedding the snow. It stuck like glue. We ended up shoveling the tool sheds...everything else was designed to take a huge snow load. Happily...this year we have El Nino and on some days it's been colder in teh deep south than it has been here.:banana02:

Last year only partway thru the winter:
Metal roofs - Homesteading Questions

and from inside when the snow let loose from the roof:

Metal roofs - Homesteading Questions

egg head · #7 01/09/10, 10:27 AM

For snow the tip of the day is your pitch 8 12 or more. The roofer will tell you. If you don't have it insulated the noise will drive you nuts. I was a roofer for about ten years ran a crew. We moved into our new home and it has a metal roof can't stand it. You can't get on the roof to do the simplest of repairs and to have someone do them the price is through the roof. We have a vent that is stuck that goes from the bathroom to the out side. I could replace this in about ten minutes. The roofer wants 300.00 I don't blame him he has to do a lot of set up with his ladders.

LisaInN.Idaho · #8 01/09/10, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by egg head

For snow the tip of the day is your pitch 8 12 or more. The roofer will tell you. If you don't have it insulated the noise will drive you nuts. I was a roofer for about ten years ran a crew. We moved into our new home and it has a metal roof can't stand it. You can't get on the roof to do the simplest of repairs and to have someone do them the price is through the roof. We have a vent that is stuck that goes from the bathroom to the out side. I could replace this in about ten minutes. The roofer wants 300.00 I don't blame him he has to do a lot of set up with his ladders.

My husband (not a professional roofer) installed ours (after helping a roofer do an outbuilding roof) on our cabin, 2 barns, a loafing shed and various other outbuildings with a few helpers and climbing harnesses. After a nasty windstorm when a tree came down on a barn roof, he rented a man-lift to do the repairs himself. We've never had a leak or any problems whatsoever in the 8 years we've been here.

snoozy · #9 01/09/10, 10:58 AM

I thought noise would be a problem, so I originally wanted to have a tile roof (also, I had a bead on inexpensive tiles from India.) However, when I calculated the weight of the tile roof, it would have come out to something like 40,000 lbs, which didn't seem wise in an earthquake-prone area.

So I went with a 40 year steel roof. Over TJI rafters. No sound insulation. The roof pitch had been engineered for a tile roof without huge snow load, and it has held up to whatever was dished out by Mother Nature.

There is not much noise -- it is not like a corrugated tin roof in the tropics or anything, as I feared it might be. You can hear the rain more on the skylights. I personally like the sound of rain on the roof at night, like a blanket of soft sound - and me safe and dry and warm in my house. Knowing that I got a watertight roof is really a good feeling!

soulsurvivor · #10 01/09/10, 12:37 PM

We really like our metal roof replacement done 3 years ago, but for us, there is the problem of the old gutters not handling the increased water run-off of a metal roof. I can't say this would a potential problem for you, but I'd check with the roofer and make sure the gutter system will work with the metal roof. For us, there's been less noise with the metal roof and better insulation factor.

soulsurvivor · #11 01/09/10, 12:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaInN.Idaho

Lisa, I'd have been frantic on witnessing that! We've had something close to that, but not that much up close to the window. The ice storm last year really worked on my mental factor regarding snow and ice. I almost got to the point of needing a drink.

I guess I've watched too many avalanche movies.

artificer · #12 01/09/10, 01:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by LisaInN.Idaho

...
Added bonus....they make the COOLEST noise when the snow slides off. It'll wake you up for sure!

Then you change your shorts, and go back to bed. At least the first couple of times it happens.

Michael

big rockpile · #13 01/09/10, 01:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by pourfolkes

We had a metal roof on this house when we moved into it. I had always wanted a metal roof and was ecstatic! Last year, we had a huge hail storm. The homes around me with shingle roofs had very little damage, but mine was completely ruined! The entire roof had to be replaced, so we went back with shingles this time.

I just can't picture this.Seen too many Shingle Roofs distroyed with hail.

big rockpile

#14 01/09/10, 01:33 PM

On one of the houses I own & used to live in the shingles were nearing their useful lifespan . I became interested in the painted steel roofing & people told me I could install it right over the existing shingles . I contacted the manufacturer & was told to put roofing felt over the shingles & install the steel roofing over the felt . That's what I did . Went on really quick & didn't really notice much rain noise but wouldn't have minded if I had . Like the sound of rain on a metal roof . Didn't have any problem with gutters not handling rain but snow would slide off & leave piles around the house . You can install guards ( forget the proper name of them ) around the eaves to prevent the snow sliding off . I did this in a couple areas I didn't want piles of snow on . If I had it to do over I would do it again .

uncle Will in In. · #15 01/09/10, 01:52 PM

We put a pole barn metal roof on our house three years ago here in northern Indiana. We are very happy with it. Our house had 3 layers of shingles on it already. We stripped the roof with 2x4s and put a vent down the ridge. We also took a chain saw and cut an air vent between the rafters on the ridge of the old roof before installing the metal roof. That way the atic will vent out through the metal roof. We also built a stub roof that extends down the sides of the house half way to the ground. and is about 2 feet out from the house at the lower end, The only way we can tell it is raining or hailing for that mater is when the wind blows it against the windows. The only noise we hear from the roof is the snow slides on warm afternoons. It sounds like thunder.
We have three sky lights. They were in the roof since 1988 and havent leaked yet. They should be installed by a professional.
We don't have any eaves troughs. See no need for them. The extended roof is cut out around the windows and carries the water out over the windows. The roof comes down to the bottom of the windows between the windows.
Thew extra roof protects the house about like having a pole shed over it. The cost may be greater than you would like to spend however.
PM me if you have questions.

soulsurvivor · #16 01/09/10, 02:46 PM

I watched our roofer do some of the installation of our metal roof. He laid felt over the existing shingles and on top of this he nailed what he called wooden spacers that keeps the metal off the felt. He said it was for further ventilation. He did the front half of the roof first. Then at the top ridge he laid down long gray foam strips. Then he did the back part of the roof and the final thing was putting what he called a cap across the ridge that set on top of those foam pieces. I think that's what I saw. All of this was and still is like trying to speak a foreign language to me.

gladetop · #17 01/09/10, 02:53 PM

how about summer issues with a metal roof. I am considering a "white" metal roof for my home back in southern missouri to reflect heat back out and cut cooling cost. Anybody have any thoughts on this. Wife is'nt to thrilled about the color but I think the saving would be worth it.

uncle Will in In. · #18 01/09/10, 05:27 PM

GLADETOP <> I think the white roof would be a good idea, but a dark color won out here too. Burgandy.

Soulsurvivor <> You gave a very good discription of your roof installation. I understood it perfectly.
The gray foam along the top keeps the wind from blowing rain and snow into the opening to the underside of the roof.

Joshie · #19 01/09/10, 06:03 PM

How expensive are metal roofs? How much would you expect it to cost to roof a 1200 sq ft ranch?

Dexter · #20 01/09/10, 06:13 PM

Before choosing metal, walk around the house and make sure there are no decks, fences or other issues in line of huge snow dumps.
Consider entranceways that will need shoveling after half the snow on your roof lands in it in one plop.
I'm all about metal roofs but some houses just suit other materials better.

When going metal, you don't want to use snow retention bars unless you absolutely must...