Wood Shakes and Shingles

Typically shakes are made of either cedar, spruce or treated pine. The hand-split shakes have a rough, textured look on the front and are usually smooth on the back.
Wood shingles are sawn by machine, and are smooth on both sides.

Cedar is the best performing wood for making shakes. But, treated pine shakes also do well. When first installed, shakes are a brown or reddish color, but will weather and fade in the first year to a gray color. Wood shakes can last up to 30 years, through out that time, they may shrink, warp or splinter which is inherent in any wood. We do install wood shingles and shakes, but, the cost on the installation is typically 50% higher than a 50 year Laminate.

Slate / Stone Shingles

Slate (stone) shingles are highly durable, expected service life is from 45 to 75 years when installed properly. Some manufacturers make claims of 100+ years.

Slate roofs are about 3 times heavier per square foot than asphalt. Slate is a bit more difficult to work with and less forgiving than asphalt shingles because they break easily.

A slate roof can create a very rich, colorful, hand-crafted look that greatly adds to the overall appearance of a house. While it has it's advantages, it is definately a high end roof product. Materials alone are approximately 400% more expensive than the materials AND installation of a 50 year high quality asphalt shingle.

Tile Roof Covering

Roof Tile can be made in a vast variety of styles, sizes, and colors made out of several different ingredients. Clay, Concrete, and new to the market is Rubber.

Clay and concrete tiles have similar physical properties and installation methods. Concrete is typically cheaper to manufacture than clay and it can be made anywhere. Clay tiles must be made near a clay quarry, so additional freight cost can be an issue, and add to the cost of the roof A well constructed clay or concrete tile roof should last more than 50 years. This is also an expensive type of roof installation as the materials are more expensive and require a strong frame to support the heavy load of the tiles, which may require additional structure work.

Metal Roofing

Metal roofing materials come in wide variety of styles;
Standing Seam, Steel or Aluminum Shake Shingles, Metal Tile, Grandular Coated Steel Shingles, Copper in Standing Seam or Shingles.

Metal materials range from, steel, aluminum, tin, and copper. Without a doubt, metal roofing can provide you with a long lasting roof if properly installed, of course a poor installation of any product will result in leaks and other damage.

Metal is less expensive than tile or slate, quite a bit more than a high quality 50 year asphalt shingle.
In the past, the colored aluminum shingles have peeled, faded and oxydized after a short period of time. Some manufacturers claim to have solved this problem recently.

Hail is a problem for Metal shingles. While it will not typically cause the shingles to leak, it will dent, affecting the visual quality. Granulated coating on metal shingles have been introduced claiming to resist hail.
Lifespan on a metal roof can be from 30 to 50 years if properly installed. Copper roofs have been documented to last 100 years (note, copper is much more expensive than and aluminum installation).

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