Home / Metal roofs
Standing seam is the clean, modern panel most people picture. Metal shingles look like a traditional roof up close. Here is how they differ and what goes underneath.
Long steel panels run from ridge to eave with raised seams every 16 inches. Fasteners hide under the seams on sliding clips, so the steel can expand and contract through a Moncton year without working screws loose.
Interlocking steel tiles pressed to look like slate, shake or tile. They suit older homes and roofs with lots of dormers and valleys, where short pieces fit better than long panels.
| Question | Standing seam | Metal shingles |
|---|---|---|
| Look | Clean vertical lines | Traditional, textured |
| Fasteners | Hidden on clips | Hidden under the next tile |
| Snow shedding | Fast; snow guards strongly advised | Slower; texture holds some snow |
| Complex roofs | Good, more cutting at valleys | Very good |
| Typical installed price | Usually the higher of the two | A little less on simple roofs |
Gauges and finishes
Stiffer panels with flatter faces and better resistance to hail dents. Our pick for wide panels, exposed coastal sites and long runs on barns.
Plenty strong for most houses and cottages in the region, and lighter on the budget. Most of the roofs we install are 26 gauge.
Holds its colour and gloss the longest under sun and salt air. Worth it within sight of the Northumberland Strait or the Bay of Fundy.
A tough silicone-modified polyester finish that fades slowly over the years. A sensible choice for garages, barns and inland homes.
Colours
Manufacturers offer more, and we can order them. Screens shift colour, so we bring real steel samples to the site visit.
Colour names follow common Canadian steel suppliers. The exact name on your quote depends on the panel line we order.
Underlayment and venting
Steel keeps rain and snow off, but condensation forms on its underside on cold nights. What goes underneath manages that moisture and keeps the deck dry.
Ice and water membrane goes along every eave and in every valley, where ice dams and meltwater try to back up.
Synthetic high-temperature underlayment covers the rest of the deck. It stands up to the heat under dark steel in July.
Venting balances intake at the soffits with exhaust at a ridge vent, so warm, damp attic air leaves before it can frost the nails. If your attic isn't venting now, the quote says what we would change.
We will tell you honestly at the site visit, and bring samples of both.
