Asphalt shingles and wood shake just don’t last that long. At best, you can expect around 30 years out of these roofs. A lot of folks in Colorado want a longer-lasting roof. Today, there are only two metal roofing options: stone-coated steel and standing seam. These are your only two types of metal roofing.
There are a few things to consider when comparing metal shingles vs standing seam. Both cost about the same and last about the same. Both are much more durable than traditional asphalt shingles and wood shakes.
Below, we explain the advantages and disadvantages of each, which one is ‘cooler’, compare costs and longevity, and help you decide between the two.
Short Answer: When comparing steel shingles vs standing seam, a standing seam roof will cool your home better. Steel shingles resemble a traditional residential roof. Both cost about the same to purchase and install.
What is Stone-Coated Steel Roofing
Stone-coated metal shingles are just like traditional asphalt shingles, except that instead of a fiberglass base, they have a metal base. The granules on top are the same, and from a distance, they can resemble traditional shingles, wood shake, or even barrel tile. In fact, stone-coated metal shingles do a better job at resembling wood shake than asphalt shingles. Stone-coated metal shingles are relatively new to the market. We often install these for customers looking to replace their wood shake roof with something that still resembles it but lasts much longer and is much more durable.
There are 3 types of stone-coated steel roofing: shingles, shakes, and tiles. Steel shingles visually resemble traditional asphalt shingles. Steel shake roofing resembles real wood shake. Steel tiles resemble clay and concrete roofing tiles.
What is Standing Seam
Standing seam roofing is smooth sheets of metal. We make our own standing seam metal roofing panels for a precise fit to your home. Our panels come in either 3′ or 4′ widths. Today, metal roofing panels come in more colors than ever before. Solid colors such as aged copper, terra cotta, stone white, matte black, regal red, patina green, and dove gray. Weathered colors like vintage, copper ten raw, and cor-ten azp raw.
Advantages of Steel Shingles and Shake
If your HOA requires your reroof to match other asphalt-shingled roofs in your neighborhood, stone-coated metal shingles achieve this. For example, Decra’s Shingle XD looks just like asphalt shingles, even close-up, and comes in 5 different colors. Westlake Royal Roofing also has two stone-coated metal shingle options. Their Cottage line more closely resembles dimensional asphalt shingles.
Stone-coated metal shingles are easier to install than metal roofing panels, simply because they are smaller in size and weight. The size of metal shingles are about the same size as asphalt shingles, which is about 1″ x 3″. This is much easier to handle than a 3′ or 4′ wide by 10′ panel.
Stone-coated metal shingles are a little quieter than sheet metal roofing during hailstorms, for example. However, this really depends upon the insulation installed and how the sheets are installed.
Another advantage of stone-coated metal shingles is that they come in more profiles or appearance options. For example, you can get metal shingles that resemble traditional asphalt shingles, or wood shake, or barrel tile.
Resembles Traditional Shingles, Shake, or Tiles
Easier to Install
Quieter During Hail Storms
More Profiles
Disadvantages of Steel Shingles and Shake
As with asphalt shingles, the granules on stone-coated metal shingles are held down with adhesive. With metal shingles, that’s often acrylic. These granules can come off over time due to hail, temperature fluctuations, etc. As a result, they can lose their color and appearance. The steel underneath is still there, so you’re still protected from hail, rain, etc., but they might not look as nice as they once did when they were new.
Unless you get Westlake’s Barrel-Vault Tile in Dover (white), stone-coated steel roofing shingles have the lowest reflectivity and emissivity values. i.e., they aren’t ‘cool’ in the warm months and don’t help lower your cooling bill nearly as much.
Although stone-coated metal shingles are easier to install, they take longer than metal roofing panels. Given the same roof square footage to cover, it takes less time to cover it with long sheets than with multiple smaller shingles.
Stone-coated metal shingles don’t shed snow as quickly as metal panels.
Advantages of Standing Seam
One advantage of metal roofing panels or standing seam is that it takes less time to install, compared to metal shingles.
A major advantage of sheet metal panels is that they are cooler than stone-coated metal shingles. In fact, any color of sheet metal panel is cooler than any other roofing material. A white metal roof has an average solar reflectance of .67 and an emissivity of .85. The closer to 1 (or 100%, the better!).
Another nice thing about standing seam is that they quickly shed snow. Let’s say you have a metal roof with a 6/12 pitch. That is, when you measure 12″ horizontally, the roof rises 6″. During a snowstorm, after a certain amount of snow has accumulated, the snow will let go of your roof and slide off. “Look out below!”
Quicker to Install
Saves Money on Utility Bill
Sheds Snow Quickly
Disadvantages of Standing Seam
The only disadvantage of metal roofing panels is that they don’t come in different profiles. They don’t resemble wood shake, tile, or anything other than sheet metal.
Which Costs Less?
We’ve installed both stone-coated metal shingles and sheet metal panels. Both cost about the same to purchase. Although stone-coated metal shingles are easier to work with and install, they take longer to install because you’re working with smaller pieces of roofing material. Metal sheets, such as standing seam, take less time to install, but they require more time to install at the ridges, valleys, and caps of roofs. So, the cost is about the same to purchase and install.
Both stone-coated metal shingles and sheet metal panels are recyclable in our area, such as Colorado Iron and Metal in Fort Collins.
How Do You Decide Between Steel Shingles vs Standing Seam?
How do you decide between steel shingles or shake vs standing seam? Which metal roof do you choose when they cost about the same and last about the same length of time? For one, you have to ask yourself whether you want the shingle, shake, or tile look, or the slick sheet metal look. Keep in mind that sheet metal now comes in dozens of colors and in 22, 24, or 26 gauge (the lower the gauge number, the thicker the material).
Or is it more important that you have a lower summer cooling bill? If this is the most important thing to you, there’s really only one choice – standing seam sheet metal panels.
If you’re shopping for a new metal roof, congratulations! It’s a smart move. Any metal roof is better than traditional asphalt shingles because it’ll last longer and is more eco-friendly. Although a metal roof costs more than traditional asphalt shingles initially, it often costs less in the long run because it lasts longer.
Do you want to save money? Go with standing seam.
Do you want a more traditional-looking roof? Go with steel shingles or shake.
The Best Metal Roof
What’s the best metal roof? That depends on your priorities. Both steel shingles and standing seam last a long time, at 70+ years. Both are highly durable and recyclable. They both cost about the same to install. However, standing seam is more energy-efficient since it has a higher solar reflectivity. So, you could argue that standing seam might be the best metal roof. Although steel shingles and standing seam are currently the only two styles of metal roofing, there are more profiles to choose from, including slick standing seam, steel shingles, steel shake, and steel tiles. Each of these profiles has its own unique appearance.
Ready for a Metal Roof?
When you’re ready for a new metal roof in Northern Colorado, whether it’s stone-coated metal shingles or standing-seam, contact us for a free consultation or estimate.