If it is time to renovate your roof, you should consider a metal roof as well. “Metal” is a general term. For the manufacture of the roof, stainless steel, copper, aluminum, zinc are used. Copper is initially very bright, but quickly becomes greenish under the influence of the environment. It is one of the oldest materials used to make a roof, but these days, due to the price, this material is not so popular. Stainless steel is also weather-resistant and expensive.
Benefits of a metal roof
Metal roofing is more expensive than others, but it is durable enough and does not require special maintenance. Most often, this is the last roof that the owner of the house has to buy. The roof made of high quality galvanized steel does not need to be changed until 50 years. Metal roofs are environmentally friendly, do not harm the environment, human and animal health.
Metal roofing is more attractive than meets the eye. You will be surprised by the huge selection of colors and textures. In addition to durability, metal roofing has other positive properties, for example, compared to other materials, most metal coatings are lightweight.
By changing the roof of an old house, the metal roof can be installed directly on the old beams, thus saving time and money.
Fire resistance is another advantage of metal roofing. This can be helpful when negotiating with the insurance company about the amount to be insured.
Disadvantages of a metal roof
However, metal roof also has disadvantages. For example, the already mentioned slippery surface. If the roof of the house is very steep, and there is a lot of snow, then falling pieces can hurt people below. Therefore, the owners of such houses install snow stoppers on the roof. While sliding, the snow breaks up into smaller pieces and is not as dangerous.
Another disadvantage of meta a roof is noise. Therefore, it is necessary to install soundproofing. And yet, metal roofs are not as noisy as they might seem. They are usually laid on a solid base and insulating material.
Thermal insulation is also necessary, although the metal reflects about 70 percent of the solar energy, and this significantly reduces the amount of accumulated heat, so little heat enters the building.
Residential buildings are often covered with aluminum. Its light weight, corrosion resistance and ease of installation are the main reasons for the popularity of this roof.
A metal roof is assessed by its thickness: the higher the indicator, the thinner the metal. The thickness of most metal coatings is rated between 26 and 29.
The metal roof is covered with either large sheets or smaller sheet materials. When installing each specific roof, the size of the sheet is selected individually.
For the installation of a metal roof, flat metal sheets, metal tiles, profiled sheets are used.
Smooth sheets can be made of steel, zinc, copper, aluminum, but galvanized sheets are most commonly used.
Profiled sheets are made of stainless steel or galvanized sheet. The latter in the manufacturing process can be coated with a polymer film or a protective layer of decorative paints.
Metal tile combines the best properties of not only clay, but also metal. The metal tile is easily formed, it is resistant to frost and mechanical stress, it is environmentally friendly and relatively inexpensive. This coating is almost 10 times lighter than traditional clay roof tiles.
