My new metal roof

Q. We saw that you’re installing a metal roof on your home, and we have questions about it. I was surprised that it doesn’t look bad, but I wonder, can you hear raindrops? That would drive me nuts. Is it expensive? Why did you choose it? Isn’t it more for shopping centers and that sort of thing? Does it need painting, and if so, how often? Will it rust, and does it get hot? Will it get hail damage? I know that’s a lot of questions, but I’d consider it when I replace my shingles. I saw that you put it over your shingles — is that allowed? I thought you’d have to strip all the shingles first.

A. Now I know who the stalker is. How long have you been watching my house?

Actually, steel roofs have been around for more than a century. My first assignment, interning in an architectural firm, was to develop renovation plans for a historic building in Monroe, Mich. (the birthplace of Gen. George Armstrong Custer, whose museum I also worked on). The historic Victorian Home became the children’s wing of the public library. I had to inspect every inch of the building and, standing on the roof, I asked the caretaker how old the metal roof was. It was in very good condition, and I suspected it was about 20 years old. He said, “Oh, that’s the original roof” — from 1865. I was looking at a 115-year-old pristine metal roof! That convinced me that, someday, if I could afford it, a metal roof was the way to go.

The metal is molecularly coated, will not rust, and never needs painting. It costs about $2.40 per square foot more than shingles. You can put a metal roof over one to two layers of shingles, because it’s lighter. The issue with not exceeding two layers of asphalt roof is weight.

A metal roof reflects 30 percent of the sun’s heat. By placing reflective insulation blanket under the metal (over the shingles), it reflects about 50 percent of heat back into the house and also into the sky. This increases the energy efficiency significantly.

Insulation deadens any ping-pinging from raindrops, and metal is strong enough to not dent from most hail. Normal shingles resist approximately 100-mph winds, although we lost shingles in each recent major storm, whose top winds were all under 80 mph. Metal roofs will resist 150-mph winds. And the best feature is that the standing ribs are crimped so that water can’t get in, and allow for fasteners to hold solar panels above the roof. Shingles have to be lifted, and the brackets inserted under them.

I really don’t care what solar panel companies tell me, shingles age, become brittle, and even in the shade of panels above them, will eventually leak. When they do, the panels cost about $3,000 to remove and reinstall.

©2013 Monte Leeper. Readers are encouraged to send questions to yourhousedr@aol.com, with “Herald question” in the subject line, or to Herald Homes, 2 Endo Blvd., Garden City, NY 11530, Attn: Monte Leeper, architect.