New Roof!

​The biggest-ticket item this year, despite our bathroom being the most expensive room to date, was by far purchasing our new roof.  In May, like many families here, we got a massive hail storm... the day our roof permit went on the house.  I knew a roof was in our near future, but it turns out the hail damage - and resulting insurance claim - made the project more financially possible than the original scope. 

Because I wanted a roof that would last and would be recyclable at the end of its roof-life, we decided to go with a metal roof.  It definitely wasn't the least expensive option, but it was a decision we could make once and never need to address again.  A good-quality asphalt shingle roof would've cost us (not including sheathing) around $15-18K.  The metal roofing was $29K, and with the old roof installed on the original purlins with no sheathing, we needed an additional $6K to add decking underneath.  Because the condition of the old roof was so rough, the cost of sheathing was just a little less than we acquired from insurance.  Since we plan to be here a long time, we knew this would be the best long-term investment for us.  Instead of purchasing another roof every 15-20 years -and spending another $15K+, this one should lost longer than me.  

Affording a $35K roof wasn't an easy task, but we were definitely helped by refinancing in the spring.  That allowed us to use the equity the house had to pay for itself, while lowering our interest rate.   With this finished, we shouldn't have to address roof issues on the house again.  One and done!

​Standing Seam 

​There are a few different types of metal roofing; the type that we used here is standing seam metal.  This was the best option for our situation for a few reasons. With hidden fasteners, any potential entry point for moisture is concealed by the interlocking panels that prevent water penetration.  This type is also great for shedding snow, an essential in Minnesota winters.  Even though this was an additional cost over a like-replacement, it was less expensive than a metal shingle.  That also means it's the most popular metal option in our area, making our roofing crew experienced with this material as well.  

The experience of our crew definitely served us well!  The previous roof was not re-flashed when it was installed, which led to rot along the porch gables.  When we did our window work last year, we found the gutters undermined the siding, and started the process of fixing that as well.  The roofers also added kick flashing to direct water completely away from those corners into the new gutters.  I'll have some work to do along the flashing where the cedar shakes had to be removed, but I can address that when we restore the original gable window in the front of the house.  At this point, our flashing is well sealed along the house, and that area is no longer is urgent.

​Sheathing and Water Shield

Our previous roof was nailed over tar paper directly into the attic purlins (horizontal boards between rafters from the original roof system).  In Minnesota, building code requires sheathing under all shingle roofs, and in my city it is required under all roof systems.  So, we added 3/4" OSB under all of the new roofing. 

The roofing was not directly attached to the sheathing. We also have ice and water shield that runs all the way from the eaves to the ridge.  Some municipalities will allow ice and water shield to stop at 6' up from the eaves to prevent leaks from ice dams (the most common culprit for leaks here), but we have it under the entire surface.  This basically just adds one more layer of protection from moisture against the sheathing. 

History

Even though metal roofing seems to be a modern convention, it has been around for a long time.  When the big kids and I travelled this summer, there were century-old tin-roofed barns dotting Ohio.  Sheet metal began to be widely produced in the US in the mid-1800s, and until a few weeks ago, our house still had its original lead flashing.  

While copper, red, and green metal were most popular metal colors historically, we chose a cream coating for our metal roof.  To maximize the functionality in our roof system, the light color helps to reduce solar heat gain.  Aside from bright white and metallic, this is the lowest heat gain color available from our roofer.  Solar heat gain, while not a problem in the winter, does affect the interiors for our homes as soon as the temperature approaches and goes beyond the temperature we keep prefer for interior.  As for exterior colors, the roof is the really the most important when it comes to heat gain, even accounting for old, poorly-insulated houses.  

When all is said and done, this is really the best roofing option for our situation: a long-standing roof that we can trust in perpetuity.  It's really the best-case scenario.