Over the past several years we have seen a boom in metal roofing being utilized on both residential and commercial buildings. This is partly due to the pricing coming down and partly due to more owners understanding the array of amazing benefits offered by metal roofing systems. When installed by professionals, metal roofing is long-lasting, easy to maintain, affordable, and even lightning and fire resistant. Despite its numerous advantages, there are some potential issues that can arise with a metal roof. One being that in the summer months your roof can heat up significantly, especially if it is a darker colour.
But the good news is that there are some solutions you can explore to reduce heat from a metal roof. Below, we discuss 5 easy solutions for lowering heat from a metal roof.
1. Insulation
The first easy solution for lowering heat from a metal roof is insulation. With proper insulation, you will be able to reduce both heat and condensation that usually happen during the summer. If you have already installed a metal roof, you can consider foam batting or spray foam insulation.
2. Choose a lighter paint colour
Since unpainted metal roofs reflect light naturally, they can trap heat inside a building. So, if you want to reduce heat from a metal roof, you should choose a painted metal roof. However, selecting a lighter roof colour will help with reflecting the sun’s rays. A darker colour will absorb the heat from the sun and increase the heat from your roof.
3. Addition of vents
Heat rises, so if you do not have an adequate number of vents located in your home or building, the heat will become trapped and cause the temperature to rise. This trapped heat does not just make it uncomfortable, but will also lower the energy efficiency of your building, causing your energy costs to increase. Adding additional ventilation to your home or commercial building will help reduce the heat that accumulates from your metal roof. Wind-powered turbine vents also help cool down your roof by forcing air to pass over and through your roofing system.
4. Planting trees
When trees are planted around your home, they provide shade against sun rays. As a result of this, the amount of heat reaching your home and your metal roof is reduced significantly. Depending on your location and your landscape, taller growing trees such as maple and oak trees are great for providing shade. However, you should make sure that the trees are not planted too close to your home as the roots can cause damage to your foundation. It is a good practice to plant trees at least 8 – 10 feet away from your home.
5. Install solar panels
Installing solar panels on the roof of your home or commercial building will not only help reduce your energy bills and help the environment, but will also provide shade to your roofing system, ultimately reducing the amount of heat absorbed by your roofing.