Metal Roofing has many benefits. Now there are attractive profiles that change the look of your home, adding beauty, texture and value to your most prized possession, your home!! There are a great deal of benefits under the surface that make metal roofing a very good option when its time to replace your roof. The first response we normally see in the industry is “Isn’t it expensive?” . The quick answer is yes!! Is that what you are looking for ? Expensive compared to what? Its only expensive if you don’t take into account all the hidden benefits. We are going to focus on just one today, Energy Savings!
Today there are highly durable metal roofing options that greatly enhance your homes beauty and its performance. Todays metal roofing comes with durable finishes and coatings designed to lower your energy bills. Alunar which is Interlock Roofings coating system and Kynar are the premier coatings in the industry, all rated as a cool roof. These advanced coating systems can achieve up to 70% solar reflectance. Reflected solar energy can make your roof system cooler, not allowing heat to transfer through the roof into your home. Metal Roofing also dissipates heat faster than regular roof shingles, helping to lower energy bills. With a cooler attic, there is less heat to cool in the summer which also cuts down on your HVAC system cycling on and off as much.
The term ” cool roofing ” is used to describe a solar reflective roofing system. It is measured using ” SRI “, which is the solar reflectance index. It is defined by ASTM E1980-01. That is a great deal of technical information using reflectometers , spectrometers and pyranomerters holy cow!! In laymen terms, how much the sun reflects heat off your home and not into it. Today’s metal roof coatings have polymers in the finish that reflect heat, so basically the sun sees a brighter color that the roof actually is. That is the least technical description we could find.
Something to think about is how much energy will you really save. There is no direct answer to that question but industry experts calculate up to 42% can be saved. Every home is different, so using a value that is much less is probably a safer bet. The savings typically come in the summer, when the sun is beating down on your roof. A great example is the pavement in the sun. Typical roof shingles have similar composition, and exhibit similar characteristics. In the dead of summer, that pavement is hot!! It also retains that heat well after the sun goes down. Roof shingles do the same thing. Retain and transfer heat right into your home, hours after the sun disappears
Lets use 10% savings as a conservative number. So take your average heating bill of $185 per month. Then we take 60% of that to calculate how much energy you use to heat and cool your home. That leaves us with $111. Lets take 10% of that as a savings, just as a low estimate. That is $11.10, not too much but lets put that into perspective. $11.10 every month , for the life of and asphalt roof can add up to thousands saved. Not to mention rising costs of energy. Remember we are using a really conservative number also. So, if you do not install a cool metal roof, this is actually a cost to you.
In closing, metal roofs are attractive and have many benefits beyond adding value, strength and beauty to your home!!
Photo courtesy: Sheffield Metals