HOMEOWNER EDUCATION: DIFFERENT TYPES OF SHINGLES
Homeowner Education: Different Types of Shingles
If you have taken a look at our previous Homeowner Education post about the Anatomy of your Roof, you may be wondering now – what kind of shingles exist to put on my roof? While there may be other types of roofs available for you to install, these are by far the most popular and common types of shingles used on roofs – especially in our area. To dive into even more details check on Roofpedia’s page on Types of Shingles as well!
- Asphalt Shingles
- Fiberglass
- Organic
- Three Tab
- Tile Shingles
- Wood Shingles
- Metal Roofing
- Slate Shingles
Asphalt Shingles are easily the most common and most popular shingle, one reason being how affordable they are. They also come in a wide variety of colors, sizes, and styles to choose from allowing you to customize your home’s look more than the other shingle types may allow. There are also numerous options if you want to get a roof that meets Energy Star standards. The drawbacks being if you live in an area where the weather shifts suddenly there is a higher chance of cracks and damages, you allow need a steep roof to have these shingles installed on your home.
Tile Shingles may be the direction you may want to look in if you have specific style of home that compliments it – Spanish, Mediterranean and other style homes. Compared to other shingles these are much more expensive to install. Even though they are among the most expensive options, they also last longer than most other type of shingles (up to 80 years!) and has a unique style to it. This shingle will really bring your home to the next level also keep your home protected and cool for some time to come.
Wood Shingles are the most environmentally friendly shingles available. They fall in between Asphalt and Tile shingles as far as price goes. These roofs are extremely energy-efficient and durable. The downside being they are prone to a little more potential issues. You have to regularly check for termites and mold/moisture but one of the biggest is that they are the most likely to catch fire compared to other shingle types.
Metal Roofing is another great cost effective shingle type that is used on many steep or flat roofs. The cheaper option in this category would be low-galvanized metal, but other options exist in the form of aluminum, copper, tin and zinc material roofs. One of the biggest issues and complaints with metal roofs is the noise level – when it rains or hails it can potentially get very loud.
Slate Shingles are by far the longest potential life-cycle shingles lasting from 80 to 100 years, even more than Tile shingles. They are some of the most durable shingles and can take on many different types of damages/weather conditions. The only downsides to a Slate shingle roof is it much more expensive than the other options available, and you may not be able to install these shingles on your home if it can’t support it. These are very heavy shingles so your roof must be able to withstand the weight, much like the Tile shingles as well.
