Roof designs vary over time and for different types of buildings.
One of the design choices for a new home is the type of roof it will have. Your choice will likely depend on a number of factors, including your budget, the availability of contractors with special skills and your building priorities. However, before settling on having a conventional roof built, consider the alternatives. Changing your mind after construction begins is usually too late or too expensive to change your mind about the roof.
Shingles
The most common type of residential roof building involves overlapping shingles. Roofing shingles can be made of asphalt, wood, slate and imitation slate composites. The shingles are stacked over a series of weather-resistant layers. Individual shingles can be replaced as needed. Even with a conventional, shingled roof you can still choose between low-slope and steep-slope designs, which will affect how the roof sheds rain and snow.
Metal
Another major type of roof metal strips. Metal roofing consists of materials such as copper, aluminum and alloys. Metal roof building uses lightweight materials that put less strain on the home than shingles. Metal roofing is durable and won't burn in the event of a fire or lightning strike. Depending on the color and shape, metal roofing can also reflect sunlight to help keep a home cool in the summer.
Solar Roofing
Solar roof building involves placing photovoltaic panels on a home's roof to turn sunlight into electricity. While installing solar panels after a home is built is possible, doing so during initial construction will save money. Solar roof building includes wiring the panels into the home's electrical system and the utility grid. This allows some homeowners to sell unused electricity that their roofs generate back into the system. Solar roofing increases a home's value, reduces its energy use and might quality your home building for additional tax credits.
Green Roofing
Green roofing is another environmentally sustainable type of roof building. Instead of using the space on a roof to generate clean energy, it uses that same space to promote ecology and biodiversity. Green roofing can take the form of rooftop plantings that produce oxygen and give birds and insects places to next. It might also involve rain collection systems that preserve rain water, cutting down on the water demand from the roof itself and the home's landscaping.
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