Steel versus tile roofs – which should I choose?

Building a new home or undertaking a major renovation? You’ve got a number of choices and decisions to make and one of these is choosing your roofing materials – namely choosing between steel or a tile roof.  We might be slightly biased here at McHugh Steel, but we have good reason to be since we know better than anyone the unique benefits of working with steel. Read on to discover why working with steel with your roof will save you both time and money.

Hail Resistant – Hail can wreak havoc on tile roofs whereas Colorbond roofing is manufactured to withstand harsh weather and hail will not penetrate or cause cracks in steel roofs., while large hail can cause damage it will be cosmetic (dents) rather than functional. Insurance companies also recognise this. Lower Installation Costs - Terracotta and concrete tiles require more roofing beams and support battens adding to their costs and length of the installation. Sections of metal roofing are lighter, quicker and easier to transport and install, and also to replace if needed. Design Flexibility - Steel offers greater design flexibility with curved, convex and concave designs made possible. For some sections of the roof, this can provide a real architectural point of difference and a feature of the property. Different designs of curved metal roofs can be seen here. Less Chance of Leaks - Steel roofing is now supplied in continuous lengths, preventing any area where a leak could develop.  They also stand up to torrential weather in a far superior manner to tile roofs. Also during heavy rain, tiles are more likely to absorb water which is then transferred to the timber roof battens which over time can rot. Wet weather also brings as well moss and lichen speaking of moss and lichen. This brings us to our next point… Less Maintenance – Forget pressure cleaning to reduce mould, moss and grime with steel roofs which will need to be considered to keep your tile roof looking great. Many tile roofs can also fade under intense sunlight. As we mentioned roof tiles also can become chipped, cracked or leaking meaning more maintenance on your roof when compared with steel. Suits all homes – Steel roofs, and the variety of colours available to customers means that they are suited to heritage as well as modern houses. Curved designs work well in contemporary designs, whereas a classic metal roof will always suit a heritage home. The light colours available in steel roofing allows homeowners to choose good thermal energy efficiency with Colorbond steel products coming with reflective properties helping to keep energy costs down. So there you have you it. There are many significant benefits of steel roofs when compared with traditional tiles. With our roll-formed steel manufactured here in Bundaberg, we are the local steel specialists across the Central Queensland region. Call us today at McHugh Steel on (07) 4153 6588