If you are considering a metal roof for your Nashville home, you’re not alone. The material is durable and long-lasting, and the environmental benefits are unparalleled. They can save you money on your energy costs, and they can keep your home looking dazzling for decades. With all this in mind, you might be wondering how exactly a metal roof could work so wonderfully. We attribute that to how they are made and what they are made from. Today, we are going to discuss those things!

Residential metal roofs are typically made of mostly steel or aluminum. Manufacturers will also use copper, zinc, and titanium for specialized architectural applications. Steel is a preferred material because of its lightweight properties. Most steel roofs never get heavier than a pound and a half per square foot after being installed. This is because the products are usually produced in large rolls at steel mills, then they are coated with a metallic coating to prevent any rust. These rolls are painted at a coil coating plant that also bakes the coating. Then, they ship the painted coil to a roofing manufacturer to make it into long panels made for pressing shingles.

Aluminum metals follow the same process, but it doesn’t necessarily require the metallic coating step. You can also select granular coated steel shingles or tile, but they are produced differently. These tiles are made by stamping galvanized steel and then sprayed with an acrylic coating with granular stone.

Metallic Coatings

The steel roofing we install on Nashville homes has a protective barrier on both sides of it. This is the metallic coating, which protects it from rust and keeps your home impervious to the elements. This is underneath the paint of the tile and therefore has nothing to do with the color. We use two types of metallic coatings:

• Galvanized: This means that we use 100 percent zinc in different thicknesses.
• Galvalume: We use both aluminum and zinc mixed, about 55 percent aluminum.

These metallic coatings are used to protect the iron within the steel from oxidizing when exposed to the air. Zinc is an active metal, so it tends to oxidize first and create a protective barrier over the steel. Combining zinc with aluminum for galvalume is usually a way to ensure even more protection for your home!

Protection Levels

We use different amounts of metallic coating on the steel depending on what our plans are for the final product. For houses, the MRA recommends a minimum of G-90. The greater the number is, the longer your roof will be rust-resistant! The “90” refers to the ounces of zinc per 100 square feet of sheet steel. G-90 means there are 90 ounces of steel.

Galvalume either comes in AZ-50 or AZ-55, and these are both considered to be the G-90 equivalent. However, galvalume has been shown to be almost three times better at preventing rust than galvanized roofs.

Paint Systems

You likely want your roof to match the rest of your home, meaning the color matters. With that in mind, most residential metal roofs have a paint coat applied to the outside of the steel or aluminum, along with a metallic coating. This paint can also be applied to help with energy savings. Keep in mind that paint isn’t just blindly applied. The roofing material is only painted when in sheet form and in coils. However, the paint is flexible enough to withstand the future shaping of the roof into tiles or sheets.

Of course, just like regular paint for your home, you can select levels of paint quality that will affect the ending price. Take a look at reviews and ask your contractors what will stand up best over time. In general, you can trust the saying “You get what you pay for.”

Contact Sparks Roofing

If you would like to learn more about metal roofing and how it can help you, take a look at our blog posts! We cover metal roofing topics all the time. And, of course, nothing beats talking to the professionals yourself. Reach out to Sparks Roofing today to speak with metal roofing contractors you can trust. We look forward to giving you a strong, durable roof you are sure to love.