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Asphalt shingles or metal roof?

DRTDEVL

DRTDEVL

Mothfukle
Joined
May 19, 2020
Member Number
78
Messages
768
Loc
Austin... TX? Nope. Minnesota!
It's time to get a new roof on the house, and we got quotes for both asphalt shingles and a steel panel roof. The quotes are $2,500 apart.

What are the pros and cons of each, and why would you pick the one you do?

This is a split level home at the edge of town in the upper Midwest, and it is usually very windy. The shingles are rated for 130 mph. I don't know about the steel, I didn't ask, but I'm pretty sure that it should hold up better in the long run.
 
I put metal on my offgrid log cabin in the mountains of Colorado where we get some bad winds.

I sleep well at night.
 
Standing seam is a 100 year roof in ideal conditions, realistically 50-75 assuming it’s not damaged, shingles are 15-20 year roof.

That said your roof is only as good as the installation and warranty they give you.
 
Standing seam is king shit, but the prices I was getting were 2.5x of shingles and exposed fastener metal.

I'm getting 26ga R panel, about 9500 installed, 2250sqft or so.

If the weather was nicer, I'd save 4k and diy.
 
Asphalt shingles like roads are consumable, metal roofing isn’t for the most part.
 
Pt_Ranger_v8 said:
How many 'naders have you seen in the last few years?
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Plenty. 2 years ago, a small town in our county was completely wiped off the map. They were just struck with another tornado last month. There is a photograph floating around of a funnel cloud flying over my subdivision this past May, a tornado went through the Eastern side of the county last night, and two weeks ago one past about 10 miles north of here.

I guess you could say it's pretty active.
 
If you can afford it…. METAL roof is better .

For a residential roof that meets the wind code here…. It’s easy triple cost here.
 
How bad is metal with hail? Central Texas gets a shit ton of hail, and the roofing companies are out in force after every storm. My roof was replaced the year before I bought my house due to hail, so it's in good shape now but I'm prepared to see it trashed at some point.
We have some folks promoting these metal shingles with what looks like colored bedliner as a coating. I have no experience with these things, so I thought I would ask.
 
I get more than my share of hail on my cabin. The metal is still pretty perfect after 3 years.

I have an area on my north side where the snow/ice falls off the roof onto the porch roof that is slightly messed up, but that is quite a bit of weight.

I still vote for metal. Standing Seam if you can afford it (I couldn't).
 
Etyler2 said:
Here metal is 3x the price of comp.

That’s a good price. Do metal.
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depending on the metal, yes.


Here in the OKC area, it was 2-3x the cost for metal And the asphalt hail resistant shingles lowered my homeowners insurance a fair amount.
 
If you have straight roof with no valleys l, then metal roof.

If you have valleys then do the best architectual comp you can get.

Never do 3 tab or other cheap shingles, even in a dog house .
 
Pt_Ranger_v8 said:
If hail isn't a concern, I'd go with metal. But you don't want corrugated tin, you want standing seam hidden fastener shit that doesn't leak at the screw holes. Might raise the price a little.
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Will raise the price alot. And is the much better product, if, you are going to stay till you die or more them 30 years.
 
MoabFJ said:
How bad is metal with hail? Central Texas gets a shit ton of hail, and the roofing companies are out in force after every storm. My roof was replaced the year before I bought my house due to hail, so it's in good shape now but I'm prepared to see it trashed at some point.
We have some folks promoting these metal shingles with what looks like colored bedliner as a coating. I have no experience with these things, so I thought I would ask.
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Much like any new product to market... let someone else be the test subject. That said metal shingles have been around for ever. My concern would be the bond between the metal and whatever coating they are pushing.
 
Benny said:
If you have straight roof with no valleys l, then metal roof.

If you have valleys then do the best architectual comp you can get.

Never do 3 tab or other cheap shingles, even in a dog house .
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1000003252.jpg

Valleys are not a problem with standing seam, they can be an issue with corrugated or rib through fastened roofs. Mostly because you need to keep your fastener away. Might not be a problem in areas with no snow.
 
Another vote for metal. If you're up on your roof a lot doing shit, it can be dangerous. They make rubber cleats to strap on to your shoes though. Got mine on Amazon. Go ahead and get them.

Have them install anchors if you have a steep roof. Fuck walking around on those without a harness.
 
Boss said:
Another vote for metal. If you're up on your roof a lot doing shit, it can be dangerous. They make rubber cleats to strap on to your shoes though. Got mine on Amazon. Go ahead and get them.

Have them install anchors if you have a steep roof. Fuck walking around on those without a harness.
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One of My favorite urban legends is about the guy who threw a rope over the roof and used his trailer hitch as an anchor point for his harness, and then a helper moved the truck.
 
grumpy356 said:
One of My favorite urban legends is about the guy who threw a rope over the roof and used his trailer hitch as an anchor point for his harness, and then a helper moved the truck.
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That one has been around as long as there have been roofers! Lol
 
Grnjp92 said:
That one has been around as long as there have been roofers! Lol
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My roof is a 12/12.

When they roofed it not one of them tied off.

They were all part Mexican, part mountain goat.

I swear, I looked up and they had their kids up there picnicking at lunch time.
 
grumpy356 said:
My roof is a 12/12.

When they roofed it not one of them tied off.

They were all part Mexican, part mountain goat.

I swear, I looked up and they had their kids up there picnicking at lunch time.
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Yup. I started roofing in PA in the late 80s, all white guys, scaffold, roof Jack's, and picks. Pretty safe but slow. Moved down to VA in the mid 90s. Get on a crew, first job they pulled out foam sofa cushions! I asked the foreman, what are these for? He laughed! 4 stories up on the beach front on a 8 12 nailing starters and shingles upside down on that cushion!
I moved To the DC area a year later to work for a white guy who did high-end work, tiles, slate, and copper. We had scaffold!
 
12 years ago I went with stone coated steel shingles for my roof. It pretty much looks just like it did when it was installed and there's been minimal granule loss in my gutters. At the time, it was a 50% upcharge over the architectural shingles I was quoted.

Overall I'm happy with the decision.

edit: It's a stamped/formed panel with overlap joints. Aesthetically, it looks like a regular shingle roof at first glance but if you stand and stare at it, you can see the "tile" pattern. My house is two stories, so the roof isn't super visible up close.
 
I have had quotes for standing seam vs asphalt a few times in the last several years. The spread of 2,500 seems way too small. I would want more info on the metal roof because I would be suspicious of the quality.

Typically a metal roof will be louder in rain and such, but holds up better.
 
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