Metal roofing is an excellent choice for quality-minded homeowners, as metal roof is virtually the only lifetime roof system that light weight, long-lasting, and most of all – affordable. If you compare prices of metal roof to slate or clay tile prices, you will realize that an average metal roof will cost you only about one third the price of natural slate, while it will look the same or better and last at least as long.

There are many styles of metal roofs and many choices for roofing material – your choices range from galvanized steel / aluminum metal roofs, to premium metals such as zinc, copper and stainless steel roofing. You can choose between a “standard” vertical panel (standing seam) metal roof, or a metal roof made to look as either cedar shingles, shakes, natural slate or flat and barrel tile.

You will also get a wide range of colors to choose from. The result will be such that you will get the look you want with the price you can afford, and the long-lasting performance of metal roofing.

Metal roofing – premium roofing material at down to earth prices:

There is much confusion about the prices of metal roofs, as there is a wide range of metal roof styles and materials to choose form and some will cost a lot more than other. In this metal roofing prices guide, we will show you how much you should expect to pay for different metal roofing systems, and how the choice of metal roofing materials will affect your roofing cost. But before we jump into roof pricing for each type of metal roof, let me clarify one thing: metal roofs are pricey as compared to asphalt shingles roof, but keep in mind that metal roof is a lifetime roofing material and so should be compared to its counter-parts in the roofing market – other lifetime roofs, such as natural slate, clay Spanish tiles, concrete tiles, and lately, synthetic slate roofing.

Asphalt shingles on the other hand are not a lifetime roofing materials and you can expect to replace an average asphalt shingle roof every 15 years. Even the “50 years” or “lifetime” asphalt shingles won’t last more than 25-30 years as they will simply dry out / roast under sun’s heat and ultraviolet rays.





Also we want to mention that metal roofs cost just as much as a cedar shingles roof, but they will outlast cedar shingle by at least 3 times on average, as cedar shingles rarely last longer than 20 years, due to moisture, mold, mildew and moss growth, etc. Also you can get a metal roof that looks just like a cedar shingles roof, at almost the same price.

Benefits of metal roofing:

• Metal roof is a lifetime roofing material, and you can expect an new metal roof to easily outlast your house (when installed correctly). Even the galvanized steel metal roof, which is usually warranted for 50 years, will usually last well beyond its warranty period, unless it is subject to corrosion due to external sources/causes, such as salt-air environment or mixing of different, incompatible metals, such as copper, aluminum or zinc.
• Main benefit of metal roof is that it is made out of the most durable roofing materials available, and metal does not deteriorate with ages, unlike asphalt shingles. Sun’s UV rays have no effect on metal roof performance, with the exception for the paint fading, which happens rather slow and gradually, and goes virtually unnoticed, for metal roofs coated with Kynar 500 / Hylar 5000 coating.
• Metal roofs are light weight, and do not require any special framing to support the wight of a roof systems. Average metal roof weights 50-80 lbs. per 100 square feet, or one roofing square, compared to 250 lbs for asphalt shingles and as much as 800 lbs for slate or tile roofs. Due to low weight of a metal roof, they can easily be installed over  existing shingles, which will further reduce your roof installation price. However there are some exceptions, which we will discuss bellow.
• Metal roofs are Cool Roofs by nature, as they do not store solar heat, and unlike asphalt shingles, quickly cool down as soon as sun goes down. When coated with “Cool Roof” coating, metal roofs will qualify for a $1500 cool roof federal tax credit.
• Metal roofs shed ice and water and are a natural solution for ice dams problems and related roof leaks. Although Ice Dams are more than just a “roof problem”, nearly every asphalt shingles roof will be subjected to ice dams, no matter how well it is ventilated and insulated. Metal roofs prevent ice build up, as any snow and ware will slide off a metal roof. Even when ice build up occurs on a metal roof, continuous vertical panels and interlocking metal shingles design will not let the water back up under the roof and leak inside your house.

Metal Roofing Prices:

Although roof prices differ from region to region, metal roofing prices are more stable and even, compared to cost of asphalt shingle roofs. We will look at metal roof prices based on metal roof type and material. Metal roof prices described bellow, are the going average in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island, but there should not be much difference in metal roof cost, where you live, unless the economic situation in your region is very dire. Usually roof prices have direct co-relationship to the cost of living in your area and metal roofs are not exception.

Before we dive into metal roofing prices, lets establish a reference point for which roof prices are given: Our model roof will be a 1500 sq. feet gable roof with one chimney, a ridge and two roof “planes”, as well as 3 bathroom vent pipes. There are also two skylights on the roof and about 50 feet of roof to wall flashing (side-wall flashing). Our “model” roof has a plywood deck with no shingles or any other roofing materials on it and all wood is in sound shape. We will install 3 feet wide Ice and Water Shield along the eaves of our roof and GAF DeckArmor underlayment on the rest of the roof. We also will install 5 snow-guards over each door used in the winter, and over garage doors, and a ridge vent along the ridge.

So here is a basic rundown on roof specs:

• Roof slop – walkable – 3 to 6 roof pitch.
• No tear-off.
• Roof installation to include Ice and Water shield along the eaves / valleys, and GAF DeckArmor over the rest of the roof.
• Roof installation includes Ridge vent cut in and installation.
• Roof installation includes new, color-matching chimney flashing and counter flashing.
• Skylight flashing and chimney flashing for more than one chimney is usually extra, and is not included in the following per-square roof pricing.
• Snow guards are normally installed only over doors which you use in the winter – typically 5 or 7 snow-guards per door. Any additional snow-guards are charge for at about $15 per snow-guard.
• When roof difficulty goes up, the price-per-square goes up. So a roof with many valleys, dormers, side-wall flashing, etc., will cost more, than a simple roof in the picture bellow.

We will list the metal roofing prices for different metal roof materials in the order of low to high price. Also notice that there is a difference in price of steel roof vs. aluminum roof, with aluminum being about a $100 more per square, compared to G90 or Galvalume steel.

Steel shingles metal roof prices:

Steel interlocking shingles is the least expensive architectural metal roof system, though id does not mean that it is “the worst quality”. In fact, steel shingles, such as those demonstrated above, are a very high quality metal roofing system, but cost the least as they are the least expensive metal roof material for us to purchase and a metal roof shingles are the “easiest to install”.

On average, one square of steel shingles will cost you about $800 to install on a simple roof such as the one described above, excluding any tear-off, and other extras such as multiple chimneys/skylights flashing, gutters, leaf-guards, etc. This price includes any one of the three available profiles: Slate, Wood Shingle and Tile.

Aluminum shingles metal roof prices:

Similar to prices of steel interlocking shingles, aluminum shingles will cost $900 per square, which includes the difference in material prices. All other items remaining the same. Aluminum shingles installation is virtually the same as steel shingles, with the exception of using aluminum ring-shank nails and usually not using clips, as aluminum shingles are smaller (1 sq. ft. each) and have a built in attachment “ear”.

Standing seam metal roofing prices:

Standing seam metal roof material costs more to install, and is usually more difficult / time consuming to install if there are any roof penetrations such as sky-lights or chimneys, as the flashing method for roof curbs on standing seam metal roofs is very complicated due to roof design. Additionally, the roofing material prices for standing seam are considerably higher, as the metal gauge is higher compared to metal shingles in both steel and aluminum.





A simple roof with standing seam metal panels will cost about $1000 per square for steel metal roof. As soon as difficulty of a roof goes up, the installation process becomes much more complicated as compared to metal shingles, and the price difference per square  becomes higher than is the case with metal shingles. This is due in part to the lack of a method to install roof staging on a standing seam metal roof, and a need to use the hydraulic lift on most hip roofs, as there is no way to attach a hook ladder on a hip roof.

Aluminum standing seam metal roof will usually cost about $1100 per square to account for material price difference. Also, the snow-guards choices for standing seam roofs offer great range for styles, but also increase the overall cost.

Exposed fasteners (EF) metal roofing – Multi-rib / R-panel / V5 crimp panel / corrugated metal roof prices:

Unlike the architectural metal roofing such as standing seam, exposed fasteners metal roofs cost considerably less, but are also of a much lower material quality and are limited in terms of installation / flashing methods for complicated roofs. EF metal roofs are designed to be a cheap metal roof for farm / industrial / commercial buildings, and are rarely used in residential metal roofing. This type of metal roofing is usually made with a cheap 29 ga steel and acrylic paint / coating, instead of a minimum 26 ga steel and Kynar 500 paint for architectural standing seam. Also the limited flashing method, makes this type of metal roofing a bad choice for complicated roofs. Exposed fasteners also pose a great possibility of a roof leak and will normally require re-sealing and re-tightening in about 10 years, as neoprene rubber gasket dries out and water begins to sip in.

Price of an EF metal roof averages between $600-650 per square. The difference in roof price is due in part to considerably lower quality and cost of roofing material as well as faster, simpler installation.

Specialty metal roofing products – stone coated steel, copper and zinc metal roofs:

Stone coated steel is one example of specialty metal roofing. Although it is pretty common in the south and med-west, it is rather rare in New England, and due to high material costs ad complicated installation, stone coated steel metal roofing is only installed when a specific style of a light metal roof is required. Most common style if stone coated steel roofs is the Spanish tile impressions.

Stone coated steel roofing is usually made form a 24 or 22 gauge, G90 galvanized steel, and is coated with tiny stone granules painted in typical colors of of clay tile roofs installed throughout Southern Europe, with dominating red and orange shades.

Stone coated steel roofs are usually installed over horizontal battens, and installation goes from top to bottom instead of typical bottom-up installation process.

Stone coated steel roofs usually cost about $1300+ per square, including installation of 2×2″ battens, and underlayment. All roof penetration flashing is rather complicated due to design limitations of stone coated steel metal roofs and hence will cost even more than curb flashings for standing seam roofs.

Despite higher than usual roof prices, stone coated steel roofs offer a beautiful look of a Spanish tile roof, at a fraction of the total cost of the real clay tiles, while the roof quality is at lease the same if not better. The relatively light weight of stone coated steel roofs eliminates the need for special framing required to support the weight of real clay tiles.

Spanish tile stone coated metal roof which we installed at Venus De Milo restaurant in Swansea, MA

Copper roofing prices

Copper is rarely installed over entire roof due to extremely high material prices. Copper is usually used for smaller, custom roofs, such as decorative bay-window roofs, curved metal roofs, etc. However if you want to have a copper roof installed over your entire house, the most cost-effective copper roof would be to use copper interlocking metal shingles, which have the same design as aluminum shingles, and are once again, the easiest type of copper roof to install and cost less than copper standing seam.





Since copper is a pretty soft metal, is can be molded and formed to look like almost any type of roof. Copper looks particularly “awesome” when it’s made to look like Spanish tile, especially when the natural green patina occurs on it due to normal oxidation. The Spanish tile copper roofing is by far the most expensive copper roof, when you price it for the whole house. Of course it will still be less expensive per square foot, compared to custom copper roofing.





Copper roof prices:

The least expensive copper roof shingles will cost you about $2000 per square. This number is not very firm though as copper prices are very volatile and have risen dramatically in the recent months (since Jan. 2010). This price includes all flashing made from 16 oz. copper as well as copper shingles which are also made from 16 oz. copper. You also have a choice of 20 oz. copper, but that will bump up your copper roofing cost another $100 per square.

Copper Spanish tile will cost you about $2750 per square, as it is made from 20 oz. copper by default, costs considerably more than copper shingles and the installation of copper Spanish tile roof is also much more complicated.

Any custom copper work will be priced on per job basis as there is really no way to provide standard pricing for custom copper roof work. However, a typical straight panel copper way window will cost you between $2500 and $3000. Any curved copper roof installation will increase the roof price dramatically.

Zinc Roof prices:

Zinc roofing costs virtually the same as copper, though in some cases it is actually less expensive. Zinc roof is usually installed as standing seam, though, custom zinc roofing shingles can be ordered and manufactured as a special order. In general, you can expect to pay $1800-1900 per sq. for zinc roofing on roof sizes over 500 sq. feet.

Metal Roofing Resources:

Use our Roofing Calculator to estimate metal roof prices in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island, as well as get free roofing price quote, when you submit a roofing estimate request.

Solar Metal Roofing – Did you know that standing seam metal roof can be combined with a thin-film solar panels such as PV laminates made by UniSolar? Solar metal roofing is the most cost effective way to combine green metal roofing materials with Solar Panels, and get the best price for both!

You can use the Solar Calculator to estimate solar roofing prices based on the roofs size as well as the size of the solar system you are looking to install. Solar calculator will also help you estimate the break-even period and the solar electricity production of your solar PV panels.

References

Metal Roofing prices – a helpful guide to understanding metal roofing prices for materials and labor.

Roofing Costs – related guide to understand roofing prices for common roof types.

Term “green” has become very popular during last decade and consequently overused, misused and abused. Anything and everything can be called green today, and to make money and to attract environmentally-conscious customers, people will call themselves and their products green, even when it is just a blatant lie to confuse uneducated consumers. Being a roofing contractor, I will concentrate on roofing products and services. For example, many asphalt shingles manufacturers now offer “cool” and “green”  shingle products – to me it’s just a shameless tactics to sell same NOT-green crap  that is painted different color (usually some shade of white). Excuse me, but asphalts shingles are not green, period! The are made with asphalt, can’t be recycled and end up in landfills in 10-15 years.

Since term green is very vague and can be interpreted in many ways, I’ll offer my vision of “green” – green roofing contractor to be exact, which describes the way I think and try to operate our roofing business. I want to mention that when I say “green roofing contractor”, it has nothing to do with with a roofing contractor installing green roofs or roof-top gardens. To me a contractor installing roof-top vegetation is a highly-specialize landscaping company, but not a roofing contractor (unless they also install the actual flat roofing membrane to waterproof the building).


Quick navigation in this article:
What is a “green” roofing contractor and how one is different from regular roofing companies.
Learn about green benefits of Metal Roofing and IB Flat Roof

What is a “green” roofing contractor?

In my mind a green roofing contractor is a company that work hard to help protect environment and reduce its energy consumption and green-house gas production or carbon footprint. Sure, almost any company will have a carbon-footprint as it’s nearly impossible to be carbon-neutral, but here are many ways to achieve a much lower carbon footprint.

Here are some thing we do to make our overall operation as green as we can, all-the-while saving you, our customers, money on roof installation services, by cutting our internal costs:

First of all, we install cool roofing products, such as IB Cool Flat roofs and Metal roofing systems (usually made from about 90% recycled metal).We also try to do this in the most efficient manner possible to reduce waste, conserve resources and reduce our clients’ energy use for cooling of their home or place of business, as a result if installing our cool roofs.

What makes us a green roofing company?

Besides installing  cool and green roofing products, we strive to be green in operating our business. When it comes to estimating a roof, most roofing contractors will go to numerous roofing estimates, many of which they will not sell. Keep in mind that many home owners get as many as 5-10 estimates before they make up their mind and some roofers need to make two trips if they forgot to measure something.

We work differently: to save our time and most importantly, the energy (gasoline) it takes to drive around to hundreds, and the associated pollution, we created a system of making our estimating process as efficient as possible. This benefits everyone, and you – our customers in the first place.

Here is how our “green” roofing estimate process works:

1. When client you (homeowner or small business), contact us by email or on the phone, we collect as much information about your roof as possible. The information which we collect includes:




• Type of your roof including all roof penetrations and other specific details.
• Dimensions of your home.
• Photographs of your house and/or roof. (If pictures are unavailable for some reason, we will use Google Maps’ “street view” and Bing Maps’ “birds view” to get an idea of what your roof is like)
• Number of layers of the existing roofing materials.
• Roof age.
• Whether your roof leaks or not.
• When you plan to replace the roof.
• Any other roof related information, as well as answer as many of your questions as we can.
2. Based on the information we get from you, we assess your roof’s condition, estimate approximate cost of replacement, as well as suggest the most cost-effective solution for you, as well as address ventilation, insulation, ponding water, drainage and other roof-related issues.
3. Once we complete our analysis, we provide you with a “preliminary roofing price quote” which in our experience is about 95% accurate and may/will usually change if A) roof dimensions were provided incorrectly or B) there are more roofing layers that we were informed of and C) any other unforeseen situations, which actually rarely happen (One such situation happened when we were replacing a rubber roof in Boston, MA – there we removed old parapet cap, and found that 4 layers of brick parapet wall were sitting in completely washed out mortar. Therefore we had to rebuild the parapet wall completely, so that we could actually complete the roof installation properly).
4. Once you get our roofing price quote, you decide whether it is within your budget, and whether you want to proceed with the roof replacement and work with us. At this point many customers will ask us about our references, which we will email to you.
5. If you like our products / company / price, and want to proceed, we schedule a mutually convenient time for a Roof Inspection / Estimate, during which we actually measure your roof to make sure our quote was correct, check how many layers your roof has, make sure there will be now unforeseen situations. We also show you the product, and how it works as well as answer any questions you may have. Once we are done inspecting your roof, we give you the final roof price, which may or may not include any extra work, such as new gutters installation  or something else. Besides the extra work, our final price is 95% of the time, the same as the preliminary price quote.

What is so special about the way we estimate roofs?

The process I’ve described above, eliminates 70% of unnecessary “driving-around”, which not only helps the environment, but also saves you – our customers money! Since most roofing contractors provide seemingly “free roof estimates”, while still spending time on gas / expenses, and using their time to drive around estimating roofs, the customers that actually do sign up to work with such contractors, end up paying for all previously unsold roofing estimates. We do it differently – we give you all the information we can, including our pricing, so there are no surprises. When you have this info, you can decide if you want to work with us. To avoid charging our customers for someone-else’ unsold estimate, we implemented a $99 estimate fee, which is included in the price of the roof if you decide to work with us (it is not an extra charge). This way you only “pay” for your own estimate, and only if after the estimate you decided that for some reason you do not want to work with us. If we sign a contract – you do not pay the $99 fee. Bottom line – you, our customers don’t pay for other people who “wasted” our time, as is the case with most other roofing contractors.

When we actually go on the estimate, we also as if you have an appropriate ladder at your house, so we could access your roof. If you do not have appropriate ladder or roof access, we will bring a truck with all needed ladders. But if you do have a ladder we’d rather take a “car” instead of the truck. This may sound “cheesy” of us, but here is why we do it:

To be more green, we purchased a Toyota Prius – arguably the greenest and most fuel efficient  production car in US. The sole purpose of getting it was so that we can use it for estimating roofs. Its roomy enough to hold all the needed samples and small hand tools (such as the Hand welder for IB Roof seam welding demonstration), and can also hold additional materials for when your roof needs urgent repair work, which we can perform after the roof inspection / estimate.

Toyota Prius – Green Roofing Contractor’s estimating vehicle.

We would rather take the Prius to an estimate because we usually have to drive long distances, as our roofing jobs take place all over southern New England – we install roofs in Massachusetts, and as far west as NY borders of Western Mass. and Connecticut. Prius will save a lot of gas when we have to drive this far, and as a result a lot of pollution. And no, we do not do it to merely save a couple of bucks on gas – it will take us about 300,000 miles to break even at current gas prices ($2.59 / gallon of unleaded gas here in Massachusetts), if we compare cost of new Prius vs. new Corolla / Civic.

In the end, the way we perform our roofing estimates, benefits you (financially, as we do not need to up-charge you for costs of doing “free estimates”), us – also financially and time-wise, and the environment. This shows just one of the ways we are trying to be the “greener” roofing contractor.

Another way which makes us a greener roofing contractor is our product line of Cool Roofing products which last a VERY long time without leaks and are mostly recyclable and are often made from recycled materials. These products include IB Cool Flat Roofing membrane for flat roofs, Recycled (or new) Roofing Insulation, and different types of metal roofing materials, which often consist of more than 50% of recycled metals.

In some cases we will also recommend that you do not tear off your existing roof (this only applies to 1 layer of existing roofing materials), which will reduce land-fill waste and your costs of roof  removal and disposal. Look forward to our future article on when you should and should not tear off your old roof.

Green benefits of Cool Flat Roofing products – IB Roofs:

IB roofs’ cool white surface reflects up-to 95% of solar heat, and dramatically reduce cooling costs in the summer, and with additional thermal insulation, winter heating costs are also reduced by as much as 25-30%.

IB PVC roofing is long-lasting – you can expect your IB roof to last 30+ years without any repairs (unless there is a physical damage) while average flat roof, such as EPDM Rubber roof or tar and gravel roof, lasts 10-15 years.  Long on-the-roof service life means that you would replace your non-IB roof at least once or twice before IB roof even begins to leak. Beside enormous, non biodegradable or recyclable waste going to landfills, there is also huge amount of energy involved in installation of a new roof:

From roofing crews, each driving their F-250 or Dodge Ram to work each day, to heavy equipment delivering materials to job-site and diesel-hungry dumpster trucks going back and forth from job site to landfill, hauling the waste roofing materials.

IB Roofs are thinner and lighter than any asphalt-based product, and each roll of IB 50-mil membrane has 500 sq. ft. coverage. Therefore, for an average residential flat roof installation  we need only one trip of a fully loaded work truck or van to bring all materials, tools and 3 roofers to a job site. And we don’t need to bring a crane or haul a tar kettle around.

If you have an new hot tar or asphalt roof put on, also think about all the energy going to heat up that tar or asphalt to the point of boiling. For a torch-down modified bitumen roof, think of all the propane gas being burned to melt each square foot of that roof.

Simply by switching to cool flat roof products, a roofing contractor can in time, reduce their carbon footprint by almost 50%, increase profits, production, have happier and healthier employees (just imagine breathing in tar dust or hot asphalt fumes each day), and help protect the environment overall.

Installation video of Cool, White IB roof – hot air welding:

Green benefits of Metal Roofing:

Metal roofing is the longest lasting roofing material for sloped roofs. Some copper roofs in Europe have lasted more than 5 centuries. Metal roofs are readily made with more than 50% of recycled metals content, and will outlast ANY asphalt shingles roof by at least 3 time (when installed properly), and often will last well beyond its warranty periods.This will significantly reduce the asphalt shingles waste that goes to the landfills every 10 to 15 years, when your roof starts to leak and needs to be replaced.

Metal roofs like IB flat roofs are Cool, Energy Star compliant roofs, and will reflect significant amount of solar heat, as well as minimize heat transfer into your house. Reflectivity of metal roofs depends on the color (lighter colors will be more reflective) and the paint or coating used in manufacturing of a given metal roofing systems. The de-facto coating used in metal roofing is Kynar 500 paint and any of its variations / modifications by third-party manufacturers. These paints have in them cool roof reflective pigments, and will usually qualify of $1500 federal tax credit for energy efficient home improvements.

If your metal roof was installed incorrectly or is way past its warranty period and starts to rust / leak (only steel roofs can rust, as other metals used in metal roofing are usually rust-proof, except for corrosion caused by mixing of different metals, such as copper and aluminum). This old metal roofing materials can be recycled, and there and numerous metal recycling facilities around, where contractors bring old metals.

When we replaced old metal  roofs on IHOP restaurants (which were in part incorrectly installed over 35 years ago) in Hyannis, MA and Brighton, MA, we recycled every single piece of each of those roofs, including clips and nails used to hold them down. For more information, read or article on pros and cons of metal roofing.

Installation video of Standing Seam Cool Metal Roof:

Why hire green roofing contractors?

Basically, when you are dealing with a green roofing company, you can usually expect to work with caring and responsible people, who charge a little extra for their products and services, but will give you a lot more than your neighborhood roofer from yellow pages. It is almost a given that level of workmanship and quality of roofing products will be above and beyond than most roofing contractors. And of course the green roofing contractors will use earth-friendly products and will run their operations in a green way, which will benefit the environment. You don’t have to believe in global worming to agree that using green products and conserving energy / resources is a good thing.

If you live or own a business in Massachusetts, Connecticut or Rhode Island and need a new roof – let us know and we will give you some of the best deals around. Fill out our roof estimate form and we will help you get a “greener roof” and we promise to be gentle with mother earth!

You may use our roofing calculator to estimate the cost of your roof replacement, find out your potential energy savings (in dollars) and compare the prices of IB Roof to “not cool” EPDM rubber and Modified Bitumen (torch-down) roofs.

So is your roofing contractor green?

Forewords: If you are a building inspector / official, please try to understand that this rant from contractors point of view… Or at least be objective and unbiased.

Pros and cons of building permits:

Why do we need building inspectors (and do we really need them)? Well, they are supposed to inspect – right? They are there to protect homeowners from shady contractors, and ensure that construction goes in accordance with state / national building codes. That’s why we also have specialty trade inspectors (electrical, plumbing, mechanical, etc). But do they really do their job? Another question – why do we need building permits? Yes, to pay the building inspector for doing his/her job – do the inspections. Yea, right!

I will purposely omit building inspectors in charge of large construction projects such as bridges, sky-scrapers, factories, etc. There is a lot more responsibility there and these inspectors are a lot more knowledgeable  than your average “Joe the building inspector”.

In my being a roofing contractor, I had to pull many permits in the last 6 years – for almost every job we did. In all this time, only once have I seen a building inspector at a job site, and he was there to harass the home-owner about the “illegal kitchen” that came with the house they just purchased. In the beginning of my construction life, I needed to get permits, but did not have sufficient / adequate insurance and in some cases did not have the Home Improvement Contractor registration in a state I was doing work. Luckily for me, I was able to get permits, and because I have dignity (I’d like to think so) I did decent work without code violations and nothing bad ever happened. I once had a “stop job” order posted at a job site, where we forgot to pull a permit. Ahh… the good old days.

When you get into serious contracting like the Metal Roofing and IB Roof installations, you can’t afford not to have proper insurances and licenses. Your clients by default expect everything to be current and you to be fully insured – both worker’s comp and general liability.  And besides, it is easier to show proof of insurance than to explain why you do not have it, or better yet to ask home owner to pull “owners permit”. It is also much easier to get a permit in 5 minutes instead of waiting 3 days and hoping that inspector is not a complete a$$ or is looking for a bribe – for some reason, I have a very strong suspicion that some building inspectors in Lynn, Revere, Malden and other surrounding towns in Massachusetts, purposely jerk contractors around, as if telling them – “give me $300 and you have your permit”. I really believe so. Or they just hate people in general. But let me get back to building inspectors.

My experience with building inspectors and permits:

I will try to be logical here, and present information in chronological order. Here is a work day of a building inspector as I see it:

In 85% of the times I walked into a building department of any city and town, building inspector is not there. Apparently they are out, doing inspections. But as I mentioned before, I had never seen and inspector on my job site, to inspect my roof. If inspector is in the office, he (I will use a “he” as all building inspectors I’ve met, were guys) will make you wait 2-5 minutes before asking you what you need. Apparently they need to feel as if they have power and are in control. After the initial coldness I did get permits, so there is nothing to complain about. But there is. And it is about how I got my permits and why do we actually need to pull them and pay for them. It is my honest belief that permits were instituted as means for towns to raise money, and biased on this assumption I’m more than happy to pay the fee. But any building inspector will tell you that permit is to pay for the inspection and enforcement on the building codes.

So I will tell you a few instances of how I got some of my permits, how horrendous the process can be for a contractor, and why so many contractors, including honest, illegal and shady ones, never pull permits. There is a provision in Mass. Building code that inspector has up to 30 days to issue the permit. We installed a Metal Roof on an IHOP restaurant in Hyannis, MA (down at the Cape Cod). When I vent to pull the permit (which was an hour drive one way) I almost got rejected, as my Worker’s Comp certificate was generic and not made out to Town of Barnstable. Fortunately, my insurance agent faxed in a copy 2 minutes before town hall closed.

As a side note, due to insurance fraud, in MA, your insurance agent cannot really give you an “all purpose” worker’s comp certificate, and the actual insurance company must print one out and mail it to you. This takes at least 3 days. Imagine a regular residential roofing company which installs a roof in one day and works 5 days a week. They have to get worker’s comp certificate for each roof, for every town they work in.

As my insurance certificate came out of fax machine, the office lady called over the building inspector to look at my paperwork (after being there for an hour and a half, he never looked a it). He asked me for HIC registration ONLY, although all commercial work required me having a CSL (construction supervisor license) and HIC implies that i do home improvement. When I offered the inspector my CSL, he said that he did not need it. Neither did he need my general liability insurance. Once he verified what he was looking for, he said: “You are all set – you can start in two weeks.” Why??? Why on earth do I have to wait two weeks??? I can loose a contract in two weeks. “Fortunately” half the roof on the restaurant was blown off by a storm wind, and it was more of an emergency roof work – this was the only reason he “allowed” us to start right away. So why do we need to wait two weeks I still don’t know. Time spent to get the permit – 4.5 hours.

Another time we did a roof in Grafton, MA. An IB low-slope roof on a residential home. Nothing fancy – a pretty straight forward roof. As I applied for the permit, I was told to firs fill out 7 different forms, pay three different departments for some ridiculous things (even the health department) and I also had to submit a SPEC for IB roof installation, including MSDS sheet (why?). They did not expect me to be back for a few days, but I was determined to either get a permit or permission to start work the same day as once again I drove pretty far to make sure every thing is ready for us to start when we planned to. I quickly ran to town library and printed about 20 pages of IB specifications describing exactly the parts of the roof we were going to do (I love IB online Quick Spec writer). When I brought back the whole package, the inspector was so surprised that he gave me an “ok” to start any time. Later, his secretary told me that he will actually read the spec. If I had know, I’d print out 200 pages, of exiting reading material.  Time spent to get the permit – 5 hours.

There are many other stories I can tell about pulling a building permit. I do want to say that not all inspectors are evil. One time we told a building inspector in Abington, MA that we did not have MA HIC – only the one from Rhode Island. He was cool enough to tell us: “get the homeowner to pull the permit”, which we did and all worked out well. I also absolutely love the Boston building department. The flow of contractors there is so heavy that they do not have time for stupid things like full spec for a small residential re-roof. They check your insurances and licenses, collect a fee and give you a permit.

Many towns in MA and CT will give you permission to start and mail you the permit. Some will make you run around as a squirrel. They will want 3 days before you can start a job. So I adopted and “evolved”.  Now I call the building department of any city or town where I’m going to work and tell them that I have a 3 hours drive to just get to their town, and if the could “please let me start the same day I apply for a permit”. This usually worked great. For example, when we installed an IB flat roof in Andover, CT – I never actually met the building inspector in person. I spoke to him on the phone – told him roof leaks and is covered with tarps (which was true) and we need to start ASAP. He gave an ok and all I had to do, was apply for the permit and provide proof of insurance and a construction license.

The second flat roof which we did in the Andover, CT – I still had to talk to him on the phone. This time he wasn’t as happy but since we already came to town, I “begged” him to let us start the job, without looking at it. Once again it was a complete tear-off and pretty straight forward, so he gave us a green light. But from now on, I have to apply for permit by mail and he wants to see my work. Next time I’m in Andover, I’ll give him a call ahead of time. Here you can see the pictures of our second roof in Andover, Connecticut and on of a roof in Westminster , MA: http://www.coolflatroof.com/flat-roofing-blog/low-slope-roofing-on-shed-dormers/

Why you should have a building permit for any construction work:

Bottom line – not all building inspectors are evil. Some are very nice, some are just bored and need things to do, and some need to feel powerful. All depends on your luck. I learned how to coexist with any building inspector, and no do everything in advance – even have my insurance agent fax over my certificates before I arrive at city hall.

Why did I write all this? Well – this is my blog and I can do it! Where else can I talk about it?

What is the point of all of this? I just had to get it out of my system after years of contractor – inspector interaction. Also my friend tried to pull a roofing permit for a VERY simple and straight forward roof – a measly 9 squares  on walkable gable roof in Malden, MA. And the inspector wants to inspect … maybe he had a bad day, but my buddy has to wait a few days until he can start. Really? So this was my inspiration.

Also, I want to make a point that many inspectors let shady contractors with fake certificates slide through or don’t even check for insurance and construction license, all-the-while they make other contractors chase their tails and waste time (and money) as if they have nothing to do. They also harass homeowners and issue stupid fines for stupid violations that should be grandfathered in. This creates situations where homeowners  and contractors knowingly do not pull permits. It also creates risk for homeowners to be left out if a shady contractor does bad job and screws them – without a permit they cannot use the Mass. Homeowner Protection Fund.

Can this be fixed? I don’t see a solution since there are too many hack inspectors and contractors out there and homeowners really need to do their due diligence – check references, call people, look at the jobs, licenses, insurance certificates, etc.

I encourage any homeowner to read my article on how to choose a roofing contractor. You should also know that it is pretty easy to “scam” the building permit process. For example, a roofing contractor must have a full roofing general liability insurance, which can easily cost $10,000+ per year, and worker’s come which runs at about 35-40% of payroll ($35-40 for every $100 you pay your guys). Many contractors will buy a siding insurance for $500-700 per year and use that certificate to pull permits.  The can also claim to be “sole proprietor” on the Worker’s Comp form when they apply for a permit and get away with not having the insurance at all – even if they have employees.

As for licenses – in Rhode Island there is no construction license at all – only a contractor registration. You can do everything with it, except for electrical, plumbing, etc. In Massachusetts, only recently have they implemented a mandatory requirement for CSL to perform roofing, siding and windows work. Before, any hack could get a roofing permit with just and HIC registration.

So once again, always do your due diligence when choosing a contractor.

As for the contractors – have your paperwork ready, do good work and, good luck guys!

PS. I’m not an angel and did not start my roofing business with $20,000 to buy all proper insurance. I did my share of getting around the permitting issue. Every one goes through it, but some remain in that stage forever. As for me – I prefer to do everything the right way or not do it at all.

It is October, and the cold weather is upon us. Now most homeowners who did not have a chance to replace their leaking roofs during spring and summer, want to get it done now – before he cold weather arrives. August, September and October are the busiest months of the year for a roofing contractor (for us at least) we get many calls and online estimate requests from homeowners looking to install a new IB Flat Roof or a Metal Roof on their home. At least 75 percent of these inquiries, mention that they would like to have a new roof installed before the winter.

While we do understand your concern about having a new roof before winter weather comes, I must point out a misconception among homeowners, assuming that a roof can only be installed during the warm months. While this is partially true, due to limitations of specific roof types (technologies), for us, installing our roof systems in the winter is the same as if it was summer – just a little colder.

Basically, it is the best time for homeowners to have their roof installed during winter, as you will get the best roof prices, as well as a choice of best roofing contractors, as work is limited and contractors compete for work and lower their prices to get the job. However, be aware that some roofs can’t or should not be installed in the winter – read bellow to find out what you should know about winter roofing and which roofing materials should not be installed in the cold weather.

Which roofs can be installed in the winter and which can’t:

As mentioned before, there are certain types of roofing systems that should not be installed in the winter, and also those that can, without any compromises in quality. Let’s look at them, but first I will divided them into two logical groups - flat roofs and sloped roofs. Also lets establish that by “winter” I mean temperatures bellow 40 degrees F.

Flat Roofs:

When it comes to flat roofing, there are virtually only two systems that can be safely installed in the winter – PVC and TPO. These two are thermoplastic single ply flat roofing products which are installed using the Hot Air Welded seams instead of various types of adhesives.

In the winter, glues and adhesives will freeze, which will distort it chemical composition in one way or another, which can and will cause premature failure. This is why most, if not all liquid roofing products (be it adhesives, or liquid-applied roofs such as acrylic or urethane coatings)  should not even be stored under 40 degree F temperatures – never mind being installed in cold weather.

PVC and TPO on the other hand are attached to the deck using mechanical assembly with heavy duty screws and plates, and all seams are sealed using Hot Air welding equipment which usually operates at 800-1100 degrees F. Such high temperatures ensure that even during cold winter months, all seam welds will not be affected by the outside temperature. I do have to mention though that PVC and TPO roofs are not equal or identical. They are only similar in how they look and installed. Besides that, PVC and TPO roofs are very much different and cannot be compared directly. I encourage you to read our PVC vs. TPO roof comparison.

Following flat roof systems should not (cannot) be installed in the winter:

- Rubber Roofs (EPDM)

- Modified Bitumen (cold applied or torch applied)

- Any type of Peal-n-Stick flat roofing products, such as GAF Liberty or similar.

The three roof types listed above represent some of the most common roofing systems available on the market today, with the exception of PVC and TPO single ply membrane flat roofs. The PVC and TPO did not not make the list above since the can easily be installed in the winter without and spec violations, or quality reductions. As for the rest of these systems, they are installed using adhesives (except torch applied Mod. Bit. roof) and therefore installing them in the winter will result in leaks and potential roof blow-off.

In example of Rubber roofs, entire system is usually installed with several different adhesives (one to glue rubber to the insulation, on for seams, special seam primers and cleaners, etc.) and EVERY rubber roof manufacturer explicitly points out that their roof should not be installed in temps bellow 40 degrees. I encourage you to read the following heated discussion on Roofing.com forums about flat roofing in frigid north where many contractors, including some from New England, will insist that Rubber can be installed in the winter, by pre-warming the glue and working when the sun is out, so it would warm up the black rubber membrane, for better adhesion. I also was talking to on of the sales reps for a big rubber roof “private label” distributor, who was telling me that winter months installation should be times perfectly – all glue applied between 10 am and 2 pm, only when the sun is out, and then the seams can be done between 2 and 5 pm, provided that all glues and primers are kept warm.  My take on it is following: Rubber roof manufacturers clearly state that such roofs should not be installed in less then 40 degree temperatures. Reps will encourage their contractors to install in the winter, because the make a sales commission and contractors will install because they need to stay busy, all the while violating installation specs. The only one at a disadvantage is you – the roof owner and here is why.

Because rubber roof installers have to go through so many additional hustles to install rubber in the winter, while they still have to charge their normal rates or even less, because competition is fierce and there is not enough work to go around, they will have to cut SO many corners to stay a bit profitable. Therefore, what you get is a roof that was installed outside of manufacturers specifications, frustrated roofers installing it, and and potentially frozen adhesives and glue which will most likely result in roof leaks, and warranty claims would likely be denied. Despite the fact that PVC is far superior to the above roof types, if you still choose to have a rubber roof installed (for financial reasons for example), do not do it in the winter.

Peal and Stick roofing systems and underlayment should not be installed in the winter for obvious reasons – they will not properly stick to the roof deck or base ply, making leaks or even blow-off almost certain. Such roofs should ONLY be installed during warmer months of the year.

Sloped Roofs:

When it comes to sloped roofs, the choices are many and very few at the same time. Basically you have asphalt shingles, metal roofing, and other very rare types of roofing material which usually cost at least as much as metal roofs or more. These are Slate roofs, Tile roofs, Synthetic slate, Cedar shingle or shakes and that is about it. Since asphalt shingle is the most used typo of roofing material (merely because it is the very cheapest roof you can find) rivaled by metal roofs on the premium side, I will only consider these two types for the comparison.

Asphalt shingles can be installed in the winter, but extreme care must be taken by roofers installing it, not to bend and crack the shingle as well as not to trap moisture under the shingles. Because of the reality of winter roofing, very often both of the above are ignored by roofers, causing premature roof failures. Also, because asphalt shingle roofs are highly dependent on the proper seal between the overlapping shingles, which requires the solar heat to melt the seal strip, such roofs installed in the winter, often do not seal properly until warm weather rolls around, causing them top leak, and as a result, wood rot often develops under a brand new roof.

Another major limitation of asphalt shingles is its weakness against Ice Dams. Ice and Water (I&W) shield is the most commonly used method to prevent ice dam leaks. First of all I&W fails about 25 percent the time, and because it  also requires sun’s heat to properly adhere to the roof deck, in the winter, moisture develops between roof sheeting and underside of ice & water underlayment potentially making it useless.

Metal Roofs on the other hand can easily be installed in the winter without any compromises in quality of installation. First of all, with metal roof it is actually absolutely not necessary, as metal roof sheds water and ice, minimizing ice build up on the roof. Also the interlocking design prevents water from traveling upward. All this renders the ice & water shield useless. At the same time it prevents the proper breathing (ventilation) of the roof deck which shortens its service life. And ultimate goal is that the roof deck lasts as long as the metal roof over it, which in the case of aluminum shingles is a very long time. Therefore, unless you or the building inspector want Ice & Water to be there, I think it is best not to put it on. We use a premium breathable synthetic underlayment – GAF DeckShiled which makes the roof watertight even without a metal roof over it, and helps the wood “breath”.

Cold weather also does not affect metal roofs as they won’t crack due to “improper handling” and metal roofs are designed to allow for expansion and contraction, so the outside temperatures won’t make a difference.

As you can see, IB PVC roofs and Metal roofing systems are the best system to have installed, year round!

If you are looking to replace your flat or sloped roof, we invite you to look at jobs we’ve done around New England. You can also fill out our Roof Estimate request form to get a free price quote for replacing your roof, or use our interactive roofing price calculator to estimate the cost of your new roof.

- Massachusetts Roofing

- Connecticut Roofing

We constantly update these pages, adding jobs we’ve done recently and those that were done some time ago. It is a slow process as we try to describe each job in as many details, and point out certain common roofing problems and how we overcome them. Soon we will add roofs that we have completed in Rhode Island and New Hampshire, as well as more MA and CT roofing jobs.

Some Massachusetts and Connecticut roofs we’ve installed in the winter:

Flat roof in Lowell, MA – one of the most recent roofs, installed in the beginning of Dec. 2009. Here we removed old epdm rubber roof, which shrunk and pulled away from the walls and roof edges. We replaced this roof with new IB PVC flat roofing membrane, and added 4″ of ISO insulation to improve weather-tightness and energy efficiency of this home.

Flat roof in Andover, CT – this roof was installed in January 2009, right in the middle of brutal cold storm which overtook New England for almost two weeks, and temperatures reached as low as -16 degrees F. There, the homeowner, with help of his buddies, removed the old roof, and fixed the roof deck, and covered the roof with a tarp. We had to quickly come in and install a new 50-mil IB roof, right before another snow storm hit.

Metal Roof in Brighton, MA – an new aluminum shingles metal roof was installed on a roof of a very busy IHOP restaurant, while it was open for business. This large roofing project involved complete removal and replacement of old metal shingles, all plywood decking, which was mostly rotted, replacement of some rafters and installation for new GAF Deck Armor underlayment and a new metal roof. Due to many major snow storms during that winter, this project took almost two month to complete. About same time 2 years ago we also installed another metal roof on an IHOP restaurant in Hyannis, Massachusetts.

When a flat roof begins to leak, repairing it usually will get you about 3 months, after which it will leak again. This is especially true for roofs such as built-up tar and gravel, rolled asphalt or modified bitumen, because these roofs degrade with time, and start to leak because of material failure, seam adhesive breaking down, ponding water and in some cases, faulty roof installation. Hence, if possible, I recommend avoiding roof repair all together as it is in my opinion a waste of money in most cases.

Jump to:

• Our rubber roof repair services – overview of what we will do to professionally fix your roof
• Cost of rubber roof repair – learn what we charge to fix your roof.

Video example of a rubber roof repair in Cambridge, MA

This video shows about how much roof repair work we can do in 2 hours, and what’s involved i a rubber roof repair.

Rubber roofs are different, and although the whole EPDM rubber roofing system is inherently flawed (IMHO) because it relies solely on adhesive (seam glue, primers, peel-and-stick tapes, etc.), the membrane itself will not break down for many years, so even if it begins to leak you can often salvage the roof by doing a roof repair, fixing the seams, installing new flashing at skylights, chimneys and other protrusions. With the recent move of EPDM roofing industry to peel and stick accessories, you can expect the seams to last at least a couple of years longer than older black glue seams.

We now offer rubber roof repair service in Massachusetts, Rhode Island & Connecticut

We understand that money can be tight and you want to get as much out of your roof as you can or maybe you do not want a new roof at all or just waiting unlit finances allow for it. Although we will never install a new rubber roof because we consider it to be inferior, we can professionally repair your existing rubber roof, at a reasonable cost and highest workmanship standards.

If you need to stop roof leaks now, and have a repair that will last, or want to get a some more time out of your rubber roof, until you are ready to have a new IB PVC roof installed, or just need a quick and inexpensive fix, we will professionally repair your rubber roof using the best materials, and will pay special attention to details, to make sure you get the best repair that will last.

If your roof is located anywhere in southern New England – Massachusetts, Connecticut or Rhode Island, we will come to you, inspect your roof and perform repairs during the first visit.

Here is how it works:

Our initial roof inspection includes looking for all the sources of leaks, identifying wet insulation, ponding water problems, rotten roof decking and most economical ways to fix your roof related problems. We will also perform a roof repair during the first visit, using only the best (yes, most expensive) rubber roof accessories such as Peel-and-Stick flashing, seam tape, Peel and Stick cover tape and will use if necessary, reinforced rubber membrane. We will not use the cheap, and outdated rubber flashings that are installed using black rubber glue (Rubber Seam Adhesive) unless it is necessary.

PLEASE NOTE: We do not want there to be any confusion about Peel-n-Stick rubber roofing accessories. Peel and Stick is better, lasts longer and costs about 3 time more than regular, non peel and stick accessories, which are installed with black rubber glue.

What we will do during our rubber roof repair visit:

• We will look for all possible sources of roof leaks – seam adhesive failures, flashing failures, ponding water, etc.
• We will perform up-to 1.5 hours of repair work using ONLY Peel and Stick flashings and accessories.
• If after 1.5 hours of roof repair work, there is more repairs to be done, we will identify problem areas to you and will give you a price to perform those repair. If agreed upon, we will continue with repair work, or will come back at your discretion.
• During roof repair, we will thoroughly clean the the area of repair using water and brush to get heavy dirt off, and then with Rubber Membrane cleaner to remove any carbon settlement and other contaminants that will prevent a proper adhesion of slashing membrane to the roof. We will not use gasoline to clean the repair area, as it is against the manufacturers requirements (although membrane cleaner costs about 10 times more than gasoline).
• We will identify thing that in our professional opinion need to be done to extend the service life of your roof, and will think of the lease expensive ways to do it.

Cost of roof repair:

The cost of initial visit, roof inspection and TWO hours of repair work is $350 if roof is located within a 50 miles form North Attleboro, MA. If your roof is located further than 50 miles from our office, we will charge an additional $50 for added travel.

Cost of additional repairs will be determined on site and you will get either verbal or written quote. If agree, we can either perform repairs while there or come back at a later time.

Warranty:

Because of variety of rubber membrane manufacturers, different age of rubber roofs and as a general industry practice, we (nor do any legit and reputable roofing contractor) do not warranty a roof repair. However, we will perform the repair service to the best of our ability, not only because we want your potential future business and value our reputation, but also as a homeowner, I personally know what it’s like to hire a bad contractor, and do not want my customers to experience it when doing business with us.

Schedule rubber roof repair now, or call: 617-444-9020

Roof repair service: $350 flat fee for 2 hours of roof repair including peel-and-stick rubber flashing materials. Any work after initial 2 hours will be discussed and priced accordingly.

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	Please describe your roof, leak problems (eg near skylight or at the roof-to-wall flashing, etc), and any additional information that would help us better prepare for your roof repair.
Roof Details:

You can also request an estimate to replace your existing roof. Select one or more products. You can select multiple products by clicking on multiple boxes.

IB Standard Membrane: IB 50-mil White IB 80-mil White/Color IB 80-mil ChemGuard

IB Specialty Membrane: IB DeckShield IB Tradition Classics IB Solar PV Roof

Other Roofing products: Metal Roofing (Standing seam, Steel or Aluminum Metal shingles) Thermo White Spray-On Roofs (For steel standing seam)

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Additional roof repair information

How to request a rubber roof repair or IB roof installation:

You can either call us at our toll free number – 617-444-9020 or fill out our roof estimate request and specify that you need a rubber roof repair service performed.

You can also use our interactive roofing price calculator to estimate the cost of your roof replacement and compare the IB PVC roofing systems prices to Built-up roofing, Tar and gravel and EPDM rubber roof cost.

Other roof repair resources:

If you do  not live in MA, CT or RI, or want to try repairing your rubber roof yourself, we’ve created two detailed how-to guides:

1 – Our original Rubber roof repair guide that focuses on fixing a roof using rubber membrane adhesive (black glue).

2 – Our second EPDM rubber diy guide that is focused on using Peel-and-Stick flashing, seam tape and cover strip.

Additional information if you’re considering to fix the roof yourself:

While fixing the roof yourself may be a good choice if you are handy and want to save some money, the “save some money” part is what you need to consider.

All rubber roof accessories such as flashing tape, patches, seam tape, adhesive, membrane cleaner, rubber primer, etc., are sold in contractor quantities – usually 100 feet rolls, or 1 gallon cans, so if you need to just patch a skylight, you can easily spend 250-350 between all the tools (membrane roller, seam probe, etc.), shipping costs and so on. In the end you will be left with 95 feet of flashing material and nearly full cans of cleaner, primer and adhesive, which you won’t be able to return and probably will not need any time soon. At the same time, your firs repair has a high chance of leaking fairly soon because of lack of experience in fixing rubber roofs.

You may also purchase something that you will actually not need, or the wrong type of flashing as there so many choices. This happened to me a few time even considering that I am a roofer.

We now have a new, dedicated website that covers EPDM rubber roof repair ONLY – Massachusetts Rubber Roofing – there you will learn more about EPDM rubber roofing material, detailed DIY rubber roof repair guide, and complete EPDM roof installation how-to guide.

Dear visitors, It is my pleasure to announce that our main site – www.CoolFlatRoof.com – is now officially running on the awesome WordPress Blog / CSM platform, which makes it run faster and offers you, our visitors great usability and ease of finding information about Flat roofing, Metal roofs, Green roof top gardens and Solar PV roofing systems. New website feature include:

• Extensive Site-wide search. With over 30 different articles about cool flat and metal roofing it was difficult to navigate to the right page, but now, all you have to do is type what you are looking for into the search box at the bottom of side-bar, and you will find will find what you are looking for.
• Comments & Feedback. You can now leave comments about every article that we have and also subscribe to those comments (you will get responses by email). I personally answer most of the comments you leave on our blog, and will do the same for the comments on our main site. As always, please respect us and our readers and do not post offensive commentaries. All comments are moderated by a human and all spam gets filtered. If you post a genuine comment or question, it will post and I will answer it as best as I can.
• Blog Roll / Green blog links: If you are an author of a green or renewable energy related blog, I welcome you to add us to your blog-roll, and I will do the same.
• Publish your green articles here: If you want to write about anything related to green construction and renewable energy, I welcome you to become one of our Authors / Contributors. You can post relevant links to your own site or blog, which will help you promote your site with search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing and others.

These are just few new options that a new platform offers to make your search for roof related questions easier and more pleasant. Just a few roof related articles you may consider interesting for you:

IB Flat Roof: “A good roof is the one you can forget about” – such is the moto if IB Roof Systems – a great roofing materials manufacturer, who’s single-ply membranes we use exclusively for ALL our flat roof installations. We use IB roofs because we as a contractor know that once installed correctly, IB roof will outlast any conventional flat roofing systems by 2-3 times. With a proven track record of 30+ years of real life, leak-free performance, IB roofing systems have nothing else to prove. IB roof is  a cool, truly sustainable roofing systems that can be use for Green Roof-top gardens, Solar roofing and conventional flat roofing application in both residential and commercial markets.

Flat Roof Repair: Learn what to do when your flat roof begins to leak, how to choose a roofing contractor, what a roof repair will cost you and whether your should repair or replace your roof.

IB Roofing prices: Learn how much it will cost you to replace your old roof with IB Cool Flat Roof.

EPDM Rubber Roofing: Discover the truth about rubber roofing materials, scam contractors that install residential rubber roofs without proper training / experience and why you should definitely avoid these “super roofers”, and the inferior rubber roofing materials all together.

Rubber roof repair: Learn DIY techniques involved in fixing your leaky EPDM roofing system. This guide includes a complete list of tools & materials you will need and a step-by-step instructions for Do-It-Yourself homeowners.

Home Solar systems: Comrehansive guide to designing, implementing and installing a Solar PV System on a roof of your home or small business. Lear now to position your solar panels, which inverter to use and how to minimize power losses, maximize Solar PV efficiency and make your solar system pay for it self in as little time as possible.

These are just some of numerous informative and practical guides that we created to help you solve your flat or metal roofing problems, find information on roofing materials and contractors. Let us know what you think of the new platform, the design of this site, and how we could make navigation / usability better and more comfortable for you. Enjoy! Sincerely, Leo – CoolFlatRoof.com

Rubber roofing is a popular choice for low slope and flat roof construction, because relatively inexpensive, and “does not require any special training” on the part of roofing contractor, to be able to offer it to the customer and install. Do understand  that actual installation of rubber roofs is somewhat complicated and requires experience with flat roofing to install it correctly. However anyone can buy rubber roof form a roofing supplier and install it, without being certified by the manufacturer. Discover how many residential roofing contractors “learn” to install a rubber roof, nature and limitations of EPDM roofing membrane and why we recommend that you avoid putting rubber roof on your house. Since manufacturer’s certification is not required, many roofing contractors with little or zero experience in flat roofing, can and do install rubber roofs. However, without contractor’s proper installation training training and experience, such roofs begin to leak very soon after being installed. Discover the secrets of residential flat roofing market and contractors installing EPDM membrane or simply rubber roofing.

See what’s involved in doing rubber roof repair your self:

Repair rubber roof yourself or hire a professional?

As a home or small business owner you should understand that to perform a repair of your rubber roof you will need to buy special supplies needed for the repair and allocate at least 3-4 hours on a sunny or at least dry day, with no rain in the next 12 hours, to allow the repaired patch or seam to cure and become watertight. Here is a list of supplies and approximate prices you can expect to pay to acquire these supplies form a commercial roofing supplier such as ABC Supply, Beacon Supply, Bradco or Harvey Building Products. Your local Home Depot or Lowe’s will not have rubber roofing so don’t waste your time there.

Rubber roof material prices

• Black Glue – $35-40 / Gallon
• Membrane Cleaner – $25 / Gallon
• Rubber Primer – $29 / Gallon
• 50′ x 6″ roll of peel & stick  FLASHING tape (uncured)  - $109
• 100′ x 6″ roll of  peel & stick cover tape – $179
• 100′ x 3″ roll of seam tape – $79
• 2″ silicon or steel roller – $25-45
• Tube of seam caulking (30 ln. ft. coverage) – $9.50

These supplies are ONLY sold in “contractor” quantities, and you cannot buy 10 feet of tape or 1 quart of Rubber primer. The list above is a minimum quantity you can purchase. As you can see, you will easily spend $200-300 just on supplies and you will also need a ladder and of course your time (usually a weekend). Hire us to fix your rubber roof in MA, CT and RI: If you do not feel confident that you can fix your rubber roof or lack certain equipment, or do not want to purchase supplies that you will never use again, you can call us 1-888-6-Flat-Roof (888-635-2876) or fill out our online rubber roof repair request form. Here is how we charge for rubber roof repair. The service call fee is $350 and includes up-to 50-mile drive (one way) and an hour of repair work. We provide the supplies such as peel-n-stick tape and cleaners and adhesives, etc. Each additional hour is $95. Usually a small to medium repair is done in one or two hours. So for $445 (two hour of on-the roof repair work) you will have your roof professionally repaired, won’t waste your entire weekend and will not end-up with unused, unusable, non-returnable materials and supplies, while still wandering if your did the repair correctly. If you still want to do the repair yourself, keep on reading.

DIY how-to guide to repair rubber roof:

The default rubber roof installation method of 1970′s-1990′s and that of today’s shady roofing contractors looking to save every penny, instead of providing quality products and workmanship, is using Black Glue instead of peel-and-stick membrane tape. While black glue was in wide-spread use a decade ago as it was the only way to seal the rubber seams, it has been replaced by more efficient way, using seam tapes with peel and stick surface, which is activated by rubber primer, and creates a much better bond than a black glue can. This guide will describe how-to procedures to fix seams and flashing using Peel & Stick tape – both cured and uncured/flashing tape. To learn how to repair your roof using less expensive (and less reliable) black glue method, refer to our original rubber roof repair guide.

Tools you will need:

Seam probe, silicone / steel roller, scissors, clean rags, sharp utility knife, ladder to get on a roof, broom to clean loose dirt off the roof and squeejee with a body of warm water.

Finding the roof leak:

Flat roofs usually leak where there is ponding water, through the seams or near a roof penetration.

I assume that you have already purchased needed tools, accessories and membrane cleaned + primer, etc., and are now ready to  identified where the leaks are, using a probe tool or a nail. Step one – Clean the roof: Using a wide semi-soft broom, clean the roof of large pieces of debris. Use a water hose to wash other loose debris and dirt off the roof – this will help to soak the dirt and it will come off easier. Wipe the roof dry with a squeegee. Note: You do not need to wash the entire roof. Just the low spots where there is biggest chance to find a leak. You can also use soft wet cloth to soak and wipe clean the seams, so you could test them with a probe. There is a good chance that you can find a break in the seam without using a probe tool – these are usually very obvious. Step two – open up the seams: Assuming that you’ve found a leak that is coming through the seam,stick your probe in gently, making sure not to damage the rubber. Pull the seam apart about a foot in each direction from the spot suspected to leak. Make sure that there won’t be any rain coming soon, otherwise you may not have enough time to seal the roof.

If your seams are not very long – 20 0r 30 feet, it might make sense to open up entire seam and to seal it completely with seam tape, as this will greatly increase the effectiveness of your repair, rather than just doing 2-3 feet of seams.

Step three – clean the seams:

Using clean piece of cloth soaked with membrane cleaner, wipe both sides of the open seam, in and around it. Make sure u clean the edge of the seam opening. Make sure you get all the old glue off, before proceeding to the next step. Use something thin to get the cloth into the corners of two pieces of rubber membrane. Put a small block of wood inside the seam to let the cleaner dry. Once again, I will recommend to open up the entire seam to be able to better lean each side of overlapping rubber. This will allow you to get a better, continuous adhesion.

Step four – sealing the seam: If you opened the entire seam up (preferred method), brush on the rubber primer, making sure that it covers area wider that your seam tape – this will provide better adhesion, without any laps and lips. Put primer on both sides of the membrane.

If you only opened a couple of feet of seam, cut a piece of seam tape that is just about the same length as the opening. Using a paint brush, put generous amount of primer on both top and bottom lap of rubber membrane, making sure to get it all the way into the cracks of the seam.

Step 4.1 – installing seam tape:

After both sides of the seam laps are primed, starting at the end of the seam, unroll the seam tape, without removing the top paper. Try to be as straight as you can. It your tape starts to zig-zag left and right, it will create wrinkles and may pose a risk of leaks. Also your tape has to stick out from under the top lap, by about 3/8 of an inch, to ensure better adhesion. Make sure that it is not hidden under top lap, ans that also can create leaks down the road. you can use yellow chalk or special yellow pencil (sold at roofing supply warehouses) to mark the outer edge of the overlap plus 3/8″. Once you unroll the needed length of seam tape, fold over the top ply of the membrane and start removing the paper from upper side of seam tape.

If your seam tape is too short, and you need to splice two pieces of seam tape, overlap the my two inches, making sure that you prime both sides of each piece of seam tape before splicing (just the end 3-4 inches, as the res of the seam should already have primer). Once the needed length of seam tape is installed, flatten the top layer of the rubber membrane and roll it in, starting at one end and making sure not to miss a spot. Put some weight on that roller, but also don’t go too crazy. Too much rolling may make your wrist hurt.

Viola – your seam repair is complete! PS. Pictures used for this article were taken at a contractor training class on rubber roof installation, set up by Harvey Industries and RPI.

Discover a permanent solution to low-slope roof leaks on shed dormers and other flat roofs.

Many homes in New England have shed dormers, which are build to use otherwise unusable space in the attic, and greatly expand square footage of the home, without huge expenses of building an addition. However, the way these shed dormers are built, requires them to have a very low sloped roof, at times almost flat. These roofs are the first to leak, as conventional roofing material cannot stand up to the Ice Dams build up, and wind riven rain water penetrating the roof between the seams in shingles and rolled roofing products.

The problem with shed dormer roofs is that often asphalt shingles or rolled roofing materials are uses, and the seams on such roofs are held together with adhesives – usually tar that melts under the sun’s heat and seals the seam. When asphalt shingle is used in such roof assembly, the joints between the shingles and the overlaps between them and an easy way for water to penetrate the roof. In the winter, moisture between shingles freezes, expands and breaks the seal. At this point roof leaks constantly and no matter how many patch jobs you do, it will still leak. Also, a low slope on the roof greatly shortens the life of the shingles, and not to mention that when shingles are installed on a pitch of less than 3 in 12″, the warranty is immediately void on them.

While many roofing contractors will try to convince you that with use of Ice & Water shield such as Grace (considered by many to be one of the best I/W shield products),  will make your roof water-tight and leaks free, the real life experience shows that even on a steeper slope such as 3 or even 4 in 12, the  roof still leaks, and Ice dams find its way inside your house.

A metal roof could be used to solve the constant roof leaks and ice dams on such low slope roofs, but in this particular case (the picture above), the pitch of the roof is too low for even a standing seam metal roof to work, and the best solution in this case would be IB Flat and Low-slope roofing membrane. Besides, standing seam would cost double of what an IB flat roof cost would be.

Another solution commonly used by residential roofing contractors is the rolled asphalt roofing, or simply rolled roofing. Please bear in mind that most flat roofing systems come in rolls, but each type has it’s own trade name, such as Tar & Gravel, Rubber roofing, etc., and rolled roofing usually refers to fiberglass  membrane saturated in asphalt and asphalt, and coated with stone granules – very similar to asphalt shingles. Learn more about different types of flat roofing materials. Rolled asphalt was a popular choice for DIY roofing projects and many residential roofing contractors would use it as it was fairly easy to install and easy to buy from a local roofing warehouse, without any special training involved. Unfortunately, these roofs only last about five years, and often begin leaking even sooner, causing expensive to repair structural damages, such as those shown in the picture below. Because the seams of rolled asphalt roofing are sealed with roof cement and fastened with roofing nails right though the membrane, the condensation below and the ice above the rolled asphalt, quickly break the seal and roof begins to leak. Patching such a roof will temporarily stop the leak, but it will actually create more damages and you allow water more time to destroy the roof decking and rafters.

We recommend to homeowners with a flat of low-slope roofs to avoid the cheap alternatives which may last you 5 years, and will cost  much more the next time you ave to replace it, as additional repairs of rotten wood replacement and tear-off / disposal fees add on to the total price tag. Instead, choosing a lifetime IB roof system will make your roof last for decades of leaks free performance and will reduce your cooling costs, as its Cool Roof surface will reflect almost 90% of solar heat. You will also be eligible to receive up-to $1500 tax credit for installing an Energy Star rated Cool Roof, making you final price almost the same as that of a cheap leaky alternative.

Benefits of installing an IB Roof are many, but here are some of them:

• IB Roofing membrane is a fully watertight system, utilizing hot-air fusion welded seams, which insures permanent bond between sheets, flashing and even the drip edge.
• There is no glues or adhesives involved in the installation, as is the case with EPDM rubber roofs. Rubber roofs use splice tape or black glue to keep the seams together and after just a short period of time the adhesives break down, and the roof begins to leak.
• IB Roof is a complete roofing systems with all the components made out of PVC / CPA material which are welded right to the membrane, ensuring permanent water-tightness. There is a flashing for every possible roof penetration, such as in-roof drains, inside and outside corners, air vents, pipe boots, etc.

• IB Roofing membrane does not cure over time, and remains weldable even 25 years after installation. What this means for you? If there is ever a mechanical damage to the roof, such as falling tree branches or accidental cuts,  the roof is easily fixed by just welding a patch to the damaged area. No need for special cleaners or glue. Just wipe the dust off and weld.

As an additional benefit to the environment and to your wallet, IB roof will outlast 2, 3 or even more conventional roofs, which would otherwise have to be dumped in a landfill. As a certified IB Roof Systems Installer, we can install and IB roof for you in any part of Massachusetts, Connecticut & Rhode Island, as well as in southern ME, NH and VT. Schedule your flat roofing inspection / estimate today.

We have not updated our roof project profiles in a while, but now since we started using a blog, it became much easier. This is one the first in a series of projects we’ve completed in the last 12 months, that never made it to our website. We start this series with a flat roof in Connecticut.

I will try to objectively describe the roof problems that our customers had, and what we did to eliminate the roof leaks, as well as give them a piece of mind that their IB Cool Roof will protect their home or building and provide our customers real money saving on ever-rising energy costs.

On the roof in Andover, Connecticut – with happy homeowner after IB flat roof installation was complete

Roofing problems and our roof installation in the words of the homeowner:

In December of 2008 my wife and I awoke to a dripping sound in our master bedroom. Much to our dismay the drip quickly became a steady stream of water as we were experiencing a rain storm that totaled 4″. We placed buckets under the stream to mitigate the damages. The next morning I opened up the Sheetrock ceiling which was sagging down. Upon opening the ceiling I could see that all of the insulation and plywood was wet. As I moved across the room I found that it wasn’t just that area that was leaking but several places. Our flat roof measures 20′ x 34′ and has a 1 pitch covered with 5 year old roll roofing. We tarped the roof and called a water damage restoration company to come in and dry us out. Unfortunately, MOLD was discovered growing on the underside of plywood decking, framing, and Sheetrock. An industrial hygienist was hired to do testing and determine the mold spore levels. We ended up have to demolish the entire area and have the mold professionally re-mediated. The insurance company did not like to hear about mold. The have limit on coverage of $10,000.00 and were facing $24,000.00 in damages!
This is very small amount when you see how much it can cost to remove mold. Insurance companies also will not pay to repair your roof. Especially a flat one. They will only cover the resulting interior damage. I was frustrated with the extent of damages that occurred all from what appeared to be a little leak. Often times by the time water comes through your Sheetrock it is too late and you have lots of mold and wood damage waiting for you. After settling with the insurance company I began to research possible ideas to make sure this never happens again. I investigated the idea of raising the roof pitch which proved to be very expensive. Next I looked into flat roof systems such as rubber. I found that the seams end up leaking after a while. Not to mention the fact that it is ugly and retains heat making the inside of your home hotter in the summer. I also, looked into metal but no one could install on such a low pitch and guarantee me that it won’t leak. Finally, I found Leo’s website talking about the IB Roof system. I was amazed by the fact that this product provided a lifetime guarantee for the product and labor. I also love the fact that it is attractive looking and reflects the hot sun keeping my home cooler in the summer. As an added bonus in the future I can add IB solar panels to my IB Roof and generate my own electricity. I’m told that in some places the cost for IB Roof may be a bit more than the alternatives. However, for me the cost of the IB Roof was actually less than my quotes to go with a rubber roof. Therefore, it was a no brainier. Leo and his crew were on my job-site within just a few days after our initial contact. It was impressive to see how the construction is preformed and you can really see the quality of the product. Leo and his crew were very respectful of our home and they kept the property clean. I have already recommended Leo and IB Roofing to a few people that I know have up coming flat roof projects. If you are considering a flat roof project you can’t go wrong with Leo and IB Roofing. Do it once, stay green, and enjoy!

Alex from Andover, CT

Roof problems, causes of leaks, and installation of a new IB Roof.

When I first met with Alex, the roof had an expensive, heavy-duty tarp on it and about 5 inches snow. Although it was a time of very cold arctic air front in New England, it was actually good for Alex’s roof and cold temperatures kept snow from melting for a couple of weeks.

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Flat roof covered with tarp to prevent more leaks

Alex planned to tear-off the existing rolled asphalt roofing with the help of his friends over the weekend and, put the tarp back on, until we would come to install our roof. All went as planned, but it snowed the day after Alex and his friends removed the old roof, and replaced rotten plywood decking and fixed some rafters. On monday morning snow melted and the roof began to leak again. The heavy-duty tarp turned out to damaged in few spots, and the roof was virtually unprotected.

We had to adjust our works schedule to quickly come out and make Alex’s roof watertight, to prevent any more water damages and additional repair expenses. Fortunately the weather was dry for a few days, and on Wednesday we came to install our roof. Once on the roof, we found that there were numerous causes of leaks. The major contributing factor was due to roof rafters caving in, and creating cavity for water to puddle on the roof.

It is know among roofing professionals that standing water causes majority of flat roof leaks. Standing / ponding water easily breaks the bond between roof laps, and enters the house, destroying insulation along the way. If left unattended, or unnoticed, these leaks will create thousands of dollars worth of damages, as well as pose a health risk – mold causes and/or aggravates allergies, asthma and other respiratory illnesses.

My estimation is that most water damages occurred were water ponded on the roof. Other leaks occurred due to Ice Dams, where ice slowly “traveled” between the seams, and melted under the rolled asphalt, causing slow, but steady rot of plywood decking and mold. Although Alex’s roof is not completely flat, Ice dams are known to affect roofs that are completely non-walkable, so this very low pitch roof was an easy “prey”.

Roof Installation:

We use IB PVC roofs exclusively, because in my opinion it is not only the best flat roofing product in US market, but it creates a completely watertight blanket over entire roof. With IB, I can look customers straight into the eyes and honestly say: “My roof will not leak!”

New IB flat roof

Reason why IB is such a great roofing system is the hot-air fusion welded seams. Once we weld two sheets of IB roofing membrane, a permanent bond is created, eliminating a possibility of water penetrations. Additionally, IB manufactures all the flashing components, which speeds up installation process, and minimizes installation error.

Alex’s flat roof is actually an addition and was added as a shed dormer to a pitched roof. When this roof was constructed, builders put in a soffit / ridge ventilation system, which is always a good idea to have in a for wood roof frame / deck. However, a ridge vent can create many leaks problems as it is very easy for water to be blown in by wind past the vent, and into the attic.

Normally, roofing contractors would just cover the ridge vent completely to eliminate leaks, but this would take away the ventilation, causing the plywood deck to dry out, de-laminate and slowly “dry-rot”.

We have created a custom design ridge vent assembly for low-slope roofs and shed dormers, where the vent sits two inches above roof level, eliminating a possibility of wind driven water entering the roof. Although the installation of such assembly is tedious and consumes a lot of time, it is the right was to go about maintaining proper ventilation and preserving the roof deck.

Ridge vent assembly for IB flat roof eliminates wind driven water leaks.

As sou can see from the picture, ridge vent sits on top of a 2×4 wood, which is completely wrapped with IB membrane to create a water-tight barrier, and prevent leaks through the ridge opening.

Conclusion:

Overall, it was a straight forward installation which took 2 days to complete.

Special thanks to Alex for providing us with delicious hot chocolate, which made our work easier and warmer during these cold January days.

If you have a flat roof in Connecticut, Massachusetts or Rhode Island, you can fill our roofing estimate request form. You can also get an instant price quote with our online Roofing Price Calculator.