Shingles or Steel roofing

[Johnny Generic]

Going to stick build a 12' x 16' shed. Pros - Cons shingles or steel roof.
Thanks Johnny Generic

 

[JRC3]

Going to stick build a 12' x 16' shed. Pros - Cons shingles or steel roof.
Thanks Johnny Generic

I need to roof my house in a year or two so I checked into steel...Holy **** it's expensive, like 3x. I know a shed is smaller but I'd still asphalt.

 

[Jackfre]

Depends upon what you want for a look on the building. I’m re-building the shed and going with metal, but I’m looking for fire prevention here in CA. It is pricey to get a decent product, but I The way it looks.

 

[finn]

Shingles if the building has eave side overhead doors or valleys and you live in a snow climate.

Steel is an ok choice otherwise, although I have had more leak issues with steel than with shingles.

 

[Jazz1]

I shingled my garage when I built it 20 years ago. Time flies and my shingles need replaced! Should have gone with tin, just never considered it’s we were in such a hurry to get the damn thing built in December!

 

[MushCreek]

I prefer tin, but I'm in the south, where it's more prevalent. My house, barn, and shed are all tin, in galvalume, which is the natural metal color. On my shed, I put the tin on over purlins, which eliminates the need and expense of sheathing. It is noisy in rain and hail, though. If you buy it direct from the places that make it, tin isn't that expensive. The big sheets install quickly, too. I never understood why roofers charge so much for tin. On a simple roof, I can install tin much faster than shingles.

As mentioned, if you have a doorway under the eaves, snow can slide off rather dramatically, and dump on your head. When the snow slides off of my 27' tall barn, we can hear it in the house.

 

[JamesW84]

On a building that size, it might not matter as much, but for my 32x64, I would have had to put trusses every 2 ft and sheath it for shingles vs 4 ft w/ purlins for the metal. The cost ended up being about the same in that scenario, so metal won for (hopefully) longer life.

 

[Ben W]

Any names for companies to buy direct from? the ones I've come across in searching are:
Discount Metal Roofing
Corrugated Metals Inc.
Union Corrugated Company

 

[pontiacjeff]

we just did/doing our barn roof. We ended up going with 40 year shingles. The look of th emetal roof is awesome, but we did not want to pay double price for it. Ours is 34x56, with a few pitch changes

 

[volleyball]

I built a 12 x 14 shed with a very low slope. I put foam board on top of the joists and the metal directly on that. I did frame from side to side to eliminate the need for purlins but if you do it conventionally you could put down purlins the foam and metal on top.
Many years no leaks. Not noisy.
There is local lumber yards to get panels from where I am. But I got scrap panels from roofer who does metal predominately really cheap.

 

[readhead]

This is one of those Ford vs Chevy conversations. On my house I removed the metal and installed shingles and I sell metal roofing. I like the look of shingles but more specifically I don’t like piles of snow around my house from sliding off and then rotting the siding, crushing the landscaping, leaking under the foundation and freezing and tearing up the valleys. But that is just me. I used to work on a lot of large custom homes and most all of them had shingles and I live in snow country.

Upside of steel is that for large simple roofs it is faster and less expensive. Someone mentioned weight. A roof is designed for a specific load without considering the type of cover. However the advantage of not having to sheet the roof first will save a lot of money.
Then you have the exposed screw vs standing seam conversation with metal. A screw down roof is pretty economical but for applications over wood where the screws can back out there can be problems. I’ve never liked the idea of installing a metal roof and then drilling a thousand holes in it. A standing seam roof is probably the best roof you can buy but at a premium cost.

 

[stm317]

Asphalt shingles require more venting to stay cool and avoid damage for what it's worth.

 

[PAToyota]

Steel:

• More expensive
• Depending on style and quality - 40 to 70 year lifespan
• Less chance of wind damage
• Can repaint/recoat to get more life out of it.
• Can recycle when you replace it.

Asphalt:

• Less expensive up front
• Depending on style and quality - 20 to 50 year lifespan
• Wind and other factors can reduce lifespan
• Have to send it to the landfill when you replace it.

 

[Notgrownup]

Are you DIY? I guess they both have their plus and minus, that size fora shen I would use metal. Easy to install... I did shingles on my 24x24 with a 3/12 pitch but metal on the side shed/shelter that is 12x24 for storage since the pitch is 1.5/12.

 

[Showkey]

Metal roof........I would never use a exposed screw install.......several prior posts on the screw issue. Metal roof on the home does ( or can) completely change the “look”.........in some cases not for the better.

Asphalt shingles are very often recycled as opposed to land fill.

Same boat........I am about to get estimates on both.......suspect I will going with asphalt, for the reasons already mentioned.

 

[BD1]

In snow country with metal, you could have a roof full slide down onto your driveway. They do have clips that do help prevent it. Sister in law did her whole house roof in metal. Garage slopes onto drive, not good. Snow always drops on to drive.

 

[volleyball]

MY 2 story house is metal and the snow does avalanche off where I do not have the clips. But having a row or 2 of clips resolve that. My shed uses a side door but with the very shallow pitch, it doesn't avalanche even without clips.
Since the OP is building a shed he can build to optimize for metal or asphalt

 

[readhead]

Snow brakes or snow bars will stop the sliding but then you just removed the main feature of a metal roof in snow country. Now if you have to shovel the roof you have to be careful not to damage the brakes or bars. Around here brakes or bars are installed at strategic spots like over doors or decks but with a lot of snow in layers sometimes the top layers will slide over the brakes and bars.

I’m a metal roof fan but it has to be the right application. I built a tiny house a couple of years ago with a single slope roof. I put standing seam on it. It took three guys two hours start to finish. Any roof properly installed will keep the weather out. The choice comes down to appearance, cost and for DIYers ease of install.

 

[JRC3]

This is one of those Ford vs Chevy conversations.

But those are brand names of the exact same product. The roof question would be more of a pickup truck vs utility trailer conversation. Ford vs Chevy is based mostly off opinion. Asphalt vs metal is mostly based off of cost, installation requirements, and the longevity of the two products. These are facts. Preference on the appearance between the two would be opinion, that would also be weighed against the previous facts to make a decision.


And the correct answer between the Ford vs Chevy is...


Dodge.

 

[readhead]

Feel better now?

 

[Oldbear]

I used metal for the roof of my shop (siding, ceiling and wainscotting too). If I had the choice on my house roof I would have gone with metal - but it was an insurance job and they were not willing to let us switch without a pile of extra money (which I was out of at the time).

Pros
Love the look
Long life if installed correctly
Safe in snow if you use the snow stops (over door/walkways)
Both need a few people to install - but tin is faster
Better against hail, fire and wind.

Cons
More slippery than standard shingles if you have to go up there.
Shows the pine sap more than shingles
It does cost more - but look around for a manufacturer - I buy straight from Versasteel (local Hutterite colony)
Without sheathing and insulation, it will be loud in the rain and hail (mine is not loud)

 

[mustangfan]

Ok, so if you only want to do your roof once in a lifetime, spend the money on hidden fastener metal roof. Yes the snow does slide off sometimes all at once, but if designed correctly that isn't a problem.
My house has the original standing seam metal roof from before 1950, and it still does the job! It doesn't leak, but it does show some rust. I have painted it once, but that was for the insurance company to cover it.
Now my Dads house has shingles. He has re-shingled it 2 times himself, and hired complete removal new roof another time. You may pay more for the steel up front, but you won't have to pay again!!
I never worry about snow load, and never worry about wind or hail for that matter. Standing seam steel is almost indestructable.