What is your barn roof material?

[dmalbone]

I've heard shingles and metal roofs both have their pros and cons, but what's yours and why do you love it/hate it? I've heard from some people that shingle roofs are actually a bit cheaper lately, they just won't last as long. I mentioned this/asked my barn guy and he basically laughed at me. I didn't ask about the pricing, but was curious if anyone knows either way.

[goodhors]

Steel on both barns, because it was less expensive then.
Drains very fast, with snow sliding off easily in winter. Lots of roof, means a weighty snow load if it doesn't slide off when the roof warms up!

Our pole barn has insulation under the metal, so pretty quiet in rain. The little barn roof is not insulated. Has the really heavy gauge steel. A bit noisy in the rain, but not obnoxious.

With the metal, I have never had any pieces come loose, like the shingles on the house. Metal went on much faster with those large sheets covering big areas.

We went with metal again when husband's workshop needed a new roof. Insulated over the old shingles, put on the metal. Looks REALLY nice, get compliments on it. Again, really sheds the snow fast when the sun comes out. We are about decided on doing metal on the house, when we replace that roof in a couple years. Metal is more fire resistant, I think you get an insurance break too.

[manyspots]

Metal was cheaper for us because it was installed directly over the roof perlins (sp?). It was cheaper because we did not need to install sheathing underneath.

So far, I love it. I agree it will hold snow under some conditions, but as soon as it warms up the snow slides. No ice dam issues. And it went up in one day with four helpers. I believe mine has a thirty year warranty on the finish.

[msj]

I agree with the other posters that a metal roof is cheaper but up north when the snow slides off the metal roof of an indoor, it sounds worse than thunder rumbling and can/will cause horses to spook when being ridden.

When I had my barn/indoor built, I had a shingle roof put on because the snow doesn't slide and make the same noise that it does from a metal roof. I live alone and ride alone so safety for me was more important than cost. In the 19 yrs I've been on the farm, even with some terrific blizzards and ice storms, I've never a build-up of snow that worried me.

There is more cost also for maintenance to a shingle roof. The first year I started losing shingles on my west side. This continued for a couple of yrs until we had a huge storm and I lost probably 1/8th of the shingles. My homeowners policy took care of the replacement patching job minus my $250 deductible. A couple of yrs later same problem. This time the insurance company said, let's just replace that entire side because it obviously wasn't done well in the first place. Believe me, I love Amica for insurance. :) Again they paid for the entire roof on the west side to be replaced to the tune of over $8000. The roofer that did the original job just did homes whereas the guy that redid my roof did commercial buildings as well as homes. He told me he used almost double the nails he usually used. That replacement was about 8 yrs ago and I haven't lost a single shingle from it.


I do believe that a shingle roof would be cooler in summer. There is no condensation from a shingle roof that will happen with a metal roof. I rode in many an indoor that had considerable condensation. I imagine that insulation would help that but not wanting a metal roof, I didn't ask the builder but it's something you'd need to find out.

[Javasmom]

we wanted a steel roof, but at the time the prices were higher, especially after having to factor in insulation to quiet rain noise, etc. It was easier to go with 30 year asphalt shingles. Entirely price driven decision for us. I love the look of a steel roof though.

[MistyBlue]

I had wanted to go with the metal roof on my barn...I LOVE the looks of those. Snazzes up the looks of any outbuilding, IMO. The nice metal type anyways...the types you can get in different colors.
But steel and other metal prices had just gone through the roof (pun intended, LOL) when we built our barn and it eas a lot more expensive than the 30 year arch. shingles that came with the barn building.
However that came in handy 3-4 years after we had it done since we had roof vent fans put in and the roof has to be cut for those. :yes:
But when that roof needs replacing years down the road I want to go with the dark green metal roof...it would look fantastic. Then I would insulate under the roof though...as of now the barn walls are insulated but the roof isn't. We didn't insulate there due to worrying about condensation building up if we didn't encapsulate it well and the barn stays warm enough in winter. But it would have helped with summer heat build up too.

[KnKShowmom]

30 year Arch Shingles - by the time they need replacing it will be someone else's problem.

Snow doesn't slide and a rain shower doesn't sound like a typhoon.

The only reason my husband thought it was a good idea was so it would match the house! ;)

[theoldgreymare]

Our barns, hay barn and run ins have hunter green steel (with skylight panels throughout on the main barn). I was not a fan of metal roofing to begin with but I have come to like it so much that we are going to redo the roof of the house to match. The house will proably have decorative scalloped metal shingles so it looks less industrial but metal roofs are common on houses in our area.

[grinanride]

I do not know where you are - I have a product called Ondura, bought it at Lowes, it looks sorta llike metal but is made of shingle type material but in sheets, very light weight, cool and quiet - I am in SC so no worry about lots of snow, Ondura comes in green / red / brown - this is my 2nd barn using it - this time it is up 8 yrs to date and still looks new
Risa
HappyTrailsTrailers

[dmalbone]

Thanks, I think we'll go with the metal. :( I'm probably one of the few it seems that LOVES the look of a shingled barn! We are doing a fairly low pitch and I live in Indiana and have the potential to get a ton of snow, so I think I'd be more comfortable knowing it will slide off. We are most likely going to go with a charcoal color for the roof to match our house so that will also help heat up the snow as well. Thanks for all of the input.

[2DogsFarm]

I may have made this offer to you before - but depending on how close you are to Crown Point, you are welcome to do a drive-by or visit my farm to see what the all metal pole-building barn/arena looks like.

I might have chosen shingles if the budget wasn't stretched for the indoor when I was building. I think that would have looked better with the house.

If I had the money now, I might redo the house roofing with metal to match the barn!

[Go Fish]

I live in an area prone to fire so we went with fireproof shingles...asphalt, I think? We didn't go with the metal roof because it gets pretty hot here in the summer. Your barn will cook, I guarantee it.

[Tom King]

Light colored Fabral GrandRib on the roof over the aisleway. The 15' wide aisleway has an 18' ceiling, 3' high open clerestory covered with a 4' overhang along each side. Lightstone color if I remember correctly. The stalls, which have a lower roof that rises to the bottom of the clerestory, have architectural asphalt shingles so it's quieter over the horses heads when it rains. I used metal on the high roof because it was so much easier than getting shingles up there. It works well and it's always a LOT cooler in hot weather in the barn than outside. A little snow blows in but we don't get much anyway. I had planned to add drop down windows on the clerestory but never decided that they were worth the trouble. It's never hotter in the barn than out, but always cooler and more pleasant.

[Equibrit]

Metal (green) with insulation. (Doesn't cook, freeze or drip.)

[spacehorse]

I do not know where you are - I have a product called Ondura, bought it at Lowes, it looks sorta llike metal but is made of shingle type material but in sheets, very light weight, cool and quiet - I am in SC so no worry about lots of snow, Ondura comes in green / red / brown - this is my 2nd barn using it - this time it is up 8 yrs to date and still looks new
Risa
HappyTrailsTrailers


I am glad to hear this. We are trying to figure what is the best for our new building. It will be either metal or this Ondura stuff. I am concerned about how hot the building will get with a metal roof. Did you pick this stuff over metal? Is the temp difference pretty big in summer?