Wisconsin is no stranger to temperature extremes, from freezing winters to brutal summers. Despite our state’s ever-changing seasons, you can always rely on your home to keep you comfortable, so long as you use the right materials. This is where your roof enters the picture.
Though you might not realize it, your roof can play a significant part in how cool your home is during the summer, which begs the question: Are metal roofs cooler than shingles? The short answer is yes, but you need to think about a few other things before going for metal roofing. As one of the top roofing companies in Eau Clair, WI, FOREVER Exteriors can help you learn more about how your roof impacts your home’s indoor comfort and how you can choose the right roofing material.
When imagining roofing materials, asphalt shingles are probably your first thought, which isn’t surprising considering they’re one of the most popular options. However, more and more Eau Clair residents are turning to metal as their roofing of choice.
Why? To answer that, let’s take a look at how a quality metal roof compares to an asphalt shingle roof during the summer and why you might want to consider one for your home.
Are metal roofs cooler than shingles? Yes! Rather than absorbing heat from the sun, like shingles, metal reflects it, keeping your home cooler.
A shingle roof absorbs and releases heat from the sun. By releasing heat, it transfers some of it into your home, which increases indoor temperatures by up to 25 degrees!
Since a metal roof helps keep your home cooler, it can also boost energy efficiency. The cooler your home is during the summer, the less your air conditioner has to work, which means it uses less energy to cool your house. As a result, you can enjoy a more energy-efficient cooling system and lower utility bills!
Shingles, on the other hand, may force your HVAC system to work harder to cool your house.
Wisconsin weather goes from snow-filled lawns to uncomfortably warm homes every year, so you need a roofing material that can withstand these dramatic weather changes. Although durable, asphalt shingles aren’t as robust as metal. While the sun causes shingles to crack and split, metal stands strong, giving you a longer-lasting roof that won’t need as many repairs when the weather takes a turn for the worse.
When you replace your shingle roof with another, your old shingles typically go to the local landfill. Asphalt shingles alone are responsible for creating 20 billion pounds of waste in the United States each year. Meanwhile, metal roofs are completely recyclable, and most even consist of around 25% recycled material.
We’ve established that the answer to “Are metal roofs cooler than shingles?” is yes, so do they get hot at all?
Metal can get very hot in the summer — up to 145 degrees Fahrenheit! Meanwhile, black asphalt shingles can get up to 168 degrees during Eau Clair’s sunny season. You can further reduce how hot a metal roof gets by using reflective paint, making it up to 42% cooler.
Although reflective paint can help keep your metal roof a lot cooler, painting your roof in different colors can also impact how hot it gets in warm climates. The general rule of thumb is that going darker will make your roof hotter since black and other dark colors absorb heat. Conversely, brighter colors like white, beige, pale blue, and light green help reflect sunlight, keeping your roof and home cooler.
If you want a roof that helps keep your home cool while enhancing curb appeal, you can’t go wrong with metal. Plus, you can customize the look of your roof with a wide range of paint colors and styles, but you need a team of skilled, reliable roofers to get the roof you want.
FOREVER Exteriors is Eau Clair, Wisconsin’s go-to team of roofers. Whether you need answers to questions like “Are metal roofs cooler than shingles?” or want to learn more about the indications of a bad roofing job, give the team a call!
