<div dir="ltr">On Tue, Jul 23, 2013 at 7:20 PM, James Sumners <span dir="ltr"><<a href="mailto:james.sumners@gmail.com" target="_blank">james.sumners@gmail.com</a>></span> wrote:<br><div class="gmail_extra"><div class="gmail_quote">
<blockquote class="gmail_quote" style="margin:0 0 0 .8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">I'm hoping to replace my shingles with metal some day. Evidently they<br>
put an insulation under it now that essentially deadens the sound of<br>
rain. And screw that regular replacement cost for shingles.</blockquote><div><br></div><div>If you have any intention of doing this, there is no time like right now. ALL metal that is used for making metal roofs is now sourced from China and the price has been constantly rising for the past few years and will continue to rise. Much like everything these days, the price of "quality" these days is actually the amount of warranty that you are wanting, and that's nothing but a prorated insurance plan and it's the paint that is warranted, not the metal itself.</div>
<div><br></div><div>There are some drawbacks. They are highly sensitive to abrasion (you can't walk on them often or you'll damage them) and are more susceptible to thermal expansion and damage than asphalt. (screws backing out and breaking) You can't clean your gutters out from on the roof, you almost have to use a ladder.</div>
<div><br></div><div>The comforting sound of "raindrops on a metal roof" means you have a cheap, thin gauge roof. Traditionally, the "tin roof" that everyone associates with rain is a 29 gauge 5V panel that you see on barns and looks like this /\/\_____/\_____/\/\ and begin to rust after a few years.</div>
<div><br></div><div>Residential metal roofs are 26 or 24 gauge, and make no sound in the rain with or without insulation. Commercial roofs are 20 gauge or more. The purpose of the insulation under the metal is to reduce the heat sink effect. Five tons of asphalt and rocks baking in the sun makes even less sense.</div>
<div><br></div><div>Source: My girlfriend works at a metal roof company (I keep their computers going) and I worked there part time long enough to learn how to install roofs and also learn that it's not something that I want to do for a living.</div>
<div><br></div><div>If anyone has any questions I'll be glad to tell you what I know, or find out what I don't. Just PM me off list.</div><div><br></div><div><br></div></div></div></div>