When you need a new roof, you have to go through a bunch of decisions. It’s a long list, but the most important is choosing what kind of roof you are going to put on your building. Roofs come in so many shapes, sizes, colors, and materials that this choice is a big deal.
Before you make up your mind, it’s important that you understand one of the best new options in the industry. While metal roofing has been around for ages, standing seam metal roofs are only just rising in popularity. Here’s why.
What Is a Standing Seam Roof?
Before we can get into the benefits of standing seams, it helps to understand what they are. For the most part, metal roofing is installed in one of two ways. The older and better-known method is corrugated roofing. This is where the metal is pushed across rollers. The sheets of metal have ridges in them, and they are screwed into the underlying roof structure along the ridges. You have likely seen this on industrial or storage buildings.
Standing seams represent a completely different method of installing metal roofing components. Most commonly used with steel and aluminum roofing, standing seams aim to conceal the fasteners and panel system. They use vertical legs and a flat area between the legs to attach each sheet of metal. This creates the raised seams and paneled look that the style is known for.
Because none of the fasteners are exposed, the roof forms tight, nearly seamless locks on the outside of the structure. The more vulnerable structural components are beneath the solid metal paneling. The roof protects itself and produces the desired benefits listed below.
Five Leading Benefits
There are many benefits that stem from standing seam designs. Just as many benefits can be found in the choice to use metal roofing. The five listed below tend to be the most compelling.
Aesthetics
Standing seam metal roofing has gained a lot of popularity for residential housing over the last decade. Most of that comes from aesthetics. The seam structure creates a regular pattern on the roof, and people like how it looks. Combine it with a nice color, and you can have a unique roof in your neighborhood that draws positive attention. And while it looks great, it gets all of the other benefits.
Seals
Metal roofs are reliably tough, but you have to worry about water. With a traditional corrugated roof, hundreds or thousands of screws have to attach the metal to the roofing structure. Those screws puncture through the metal and create a potential leak. Washers and sealants can prevent leaks to a point, but the total vulnerability always rears its head eventually.
With standing seams, all of the connecting pieces are underneath the sheet metal. There is nothing puncturing the roof. Leak vulnerability is minimized, making standing seam metal roofs one of the best leak-resistant roofing options you can find.
Durability
First, it’s a metal roof. That’s always promising. Even the lowest-quality metal roofs tend to last decades longer than traditional shingles. With standing seams, you can opt for an aluminum roof. Aluminum is incredibly strong, and it’s virtually impervious to rust and corrosion. If you get a standing seam aluminum roof, you can expect it to last 50 years or longer. That’s why it is commonly called a lifetime roof in the industry.
Maintenance
Your standing seam metal roof is tough, resistant to corrosion, and designed so that the connecting and vulnerable pieces are protected rather than exposed. In short, there are not many things that can go wrong with this roof. If it’s painted, it might need a fresh coat or touch-up over the years, but for the most part, there is shockingly little maintenance associated with these roofs.
Weight
Perhaps the most surprising benefit to standing seam metal roofs is their light weight. Typically, metal is thought of as a dense, heavy material. While that’s true, the structure of the standing seam design allows roofers to install a great roof with much less material. This leads to metal roofs that frequently weigh less than their shingle counterparts.
With reduced weight, the roofing material can accommodate a larger range of architectural styles and choices. Standing seams are available where many other roofing styles are not. Standing seams are also very customizable, giving you and professionals in the industry more freedom than ever when it comes to designing or installing the roof. Standing seam metal roofs are one of the best ways to protect any building. If you would like to explore the idea further, you can see how we make custom sheets and fittings at Alpine Sheet Metal Systems. Contact us today. We’ll discuss your plans and, if it’s right for you, install your new standing seam metal roof in DFW or the surrounding area.
