When we bought this house, the insurance company told us that we needed to replace the roof by the one year anniversary of closing. In spite of having a calendar in my face on a near-daily basis, I suddenly realized that we needed to get cracking on getting estimates and getting it DONE!
Of course, once the ball started rolling, there were all these OPTIONS to think about. Did we want conventional three-tab asphalt shingles - 15, 20, or 30-year architectural? Or should we consider a metal roof?
I started calling around to various roofing companies. Wound up with a couple of shingle roofers and a metal roof guy. The shingle roof guys showed up without an appointment, measured the house and called in their estimates.
The metal roof guy set up an appointment, then spent two hours with me answering every question I had about metal roofs, installation, durability, speed of service and any other thing I wanted to ask, plus volunteered information himself.
Metal roofs aren't what they used to be...
In fact, these days, some of those metal roofs don't look any different from a shingle roof!
You can fancy them up with metal shingles that look like slate!
But for someone of my budgetary restrictions, those two options were out - but a standing-seam roof was a distinct possibility.
When all was said and done, we went with the metal roof. Yes, it costs more. But the durn thing lasts 100 years. We won't ever have to mess with it. It holds up to winds of 150, hail, and branches without blinking an eye. It will also save us about 25% on our electric bill. So while it's more expensive at the outset, it pays for itself rather quickly - especially in light of where we live. Shingle roofs don't last as long as they supposedly should. The sun and the heat ages them prematurely, so a 20-30 year roof is really only good for about 15-20 years. And since we're not moving until someone dies, we could be here a long, long time (if we're lucky).
So - metal it is. Contracts get signed and money passed around tomorrow!
9 comments:
Your timing is so good! We lost about 10 to 15% of our shingles in the recent windstorms and are looking at replacing the whole roof. I have been toying with the idea of a metal roof and now I think I will do more than toy.
Thank you.
I love the way the metal roof looks, with that slate look. Pretty.
Never knew there was that much to think about when re-doing the roof.
Just also realized that I've been reading you for a long time. I remember when you moved into the house last year, and the pictures and everything .
My my time flies.
Soooo??? Which style did you select?
Awesome! I love the metal roof option - we almost did that, but our roof span would not have looked good with it, unless I had known about the shingle-look-a-like option! That is snazzy!
Good choice! If I end up staying in this house until the shingled part of the roof needs replacing again I think I'll choose metal too. Now, if I could just find something as durable and maintenance free for the flat part of the roof (grrrrr).
-Phre3D
Very cool! I've never paid attention to a roof, ever I think. lol What a lesson I got today!
Enjoy that new roof and a friendlier electric bill!
"one year anniversary" is redundant--not to mention bad English."First Anniversary" The word anniversary meaning the celebration of an annual event..tsk-tsk-tsk.
Your Father
OOooooo, do we get pictures of the new roof when it's up?! Yay for new roofs!
Wow! This was a very informative post. I never knew metal came in shingle look alike. There is a home in our subdivision that has a metal roof and it sticks out like a sore thumb...but it is a bright blue...
I thought that it was a cheaper way to go...that's what I get for thinking!
Thanks for educating me!
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