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Old Sep 20, 2010 | 01:25 PM
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anyone on here a roof contractor? im looking to get a new roof on my house here soon and just getting some pointers. well there is obviously two options here. a shingle roof and a metal roof? with the rising price of shingles *holy shetz* is it in the price range of just doing a metal roof and being done with it? what are some advantages/dissadvantages between the two? Damn with a new roof on the way, there goes ANOTHER mod for the car
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Old Sep 20, 2010 | 02:49 PM
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Let me say first that I am not a roofing contractor. I did however work with my fathers company for about 6-7 years while in college and in the summers throughout highschool. So here are my pointers.

A shingled roof will be expensive but a metal roof is going to be insane. On average a metal roof is three times as much. With that in mind I would go with a dimensional shingle (vs a 3 tab shingle). It looks great and comes with a minimum warranty of 30yrs and can go all the way to 50 years if desired. Just recently when speaking with him he mentioned the cost of shingles were right at $72 - $80 a square for 30 year dimensionals. So lets say your house is 1400 sq feet then you would need about 24-27 squares for a rancher style house or $1,750 - $2,000 just in shingles alone. In addittion to that you will most likely want ridge vent, will need felt paper, and misc. materials. Do you happen to know the size of your roof, pitch and how many layers you currently have on the roof? That will ultimately decide how much the new roof will cost you.

If you do decide to go with a metal roof besides the price, you will still need to remove the current shingles on your house and may also need to paint the roof after about 20 years. The installation cost for a metal roof has always been much higher as well.

Hope this helps.
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Old Sep 20, 2010 | 03:29 PM
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Originally Posted by SLOW30th-TA
Let me say first that I am not a roofing contractor. I did however work with my fathers company for about 6-7 years while in college and in the summers throughout highschool. So here are my pointers.

A shingled roof will be expensive but a metal roof is going to be insane. On average a metal roof is three times as much. With that in mind I would go with a dimensional shingle (vs a 3 tab shingle). It looks great and comes with a minimum warranty of 30yrs and can go all the way to 50 years if desired. Just recently when speaking with him he mentioned the cost of shingles were right at $72 - $80 a square for 30 year dimensionals. So lets say your house is 1400 sq feet then you would need about 24-27 squares for a rancher style house or $1,750 - $2,000 just in shingles alone. In addittion to that you will most likely want ridge vent, will need felt paper, and misc. materials. Do you happen to know the size of your roof, pitch and how many layers you currently have on the roof? That will ultimately decide how much the new roof will cost you.

If you do decide to go with a metal roof besides the price, you will still need to remove the current shingles on your house and may also need to paint the roof after about 20 years. The installation cost for a metal roof has always been much higher as well.

Hope this helps.
Though most of what you said is correct, I will modify your statement slightly based on my experience as an Architect.

Metal roofs are more expensive without a doubt, and in a residential area you may not be able to use them depending on your town's "Established Esthetic" rules, if they have them. Some towns do not allow metal roofs for residential homes based on energy efficiency and light pollution.

A metal roof will not need painting. Companies like Englert and Barridge use baked on Kynar finishes that are just about bomb-proof.

Metal roof installations require specialized tools to roll the seams and sometimes machines to striate the panel to prevent "oil-canning" [where the roof looks wavy]

I would never recommend installing new asphalt single roofing over existing shingles. That is just a recipe for leaks, and it’s just a cheap *** shortcut. If any contractor recommends doing this, say thank you and RUN! Always remove the existing roof assembly down to the plywood decking. That way you can see if any of the sheets developed rot, water damage or warping. Replace any and all plywood that looks even the least bit damaged. 5/8" T&G exterior grade plywood can be as much as $55-75/sheet installed. If it has to be fire rated in the case of a town house/demising wall situation your cost per sheet can be as much as $105 installed. But luckily most times you would only have to do 4' to either side of a demising wall.

Use 30# felt if you are using a heavy shingle or slate roof, 15# felt is using traditional asphalt shingles. Always use a good Ice & Water Shield.

Don’t forget all the small stuff like drip edges, ridge vents, attic fans and most importantly FLASHING for all valleys and ALL roof penetration. Use metal flashing only, no preformed plastic BS.

Also, if you choose “White” as the shingle color, which is actually light gray you can get a federal tax credit since it’s the only “Energy Star” color lol.
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Old Sep 21, 2010 | 06:14 AM
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thanks to both of you. the information is helpful. right now there is only a single layer on the roof, which will be removed. and im looking at needing about 30 sq
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Old Sep 23, 2010 | 02:17 PM
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i've been a roofer with my fathers company for 7 years and up here on cape cod theres not much demand for metal roofs right now.. so i dont know to much about them. but i do asphalt and it would prob be the easiest way. if you want the longest life span theres 50 year and life time a big heavy expensive shingle. 30sq we'll get around 9-$10,000 all done.
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