Concerned About Hail Damaging Your Residential Metal Roof?

There are plenty of benefits to choosing a residential metal roof. The big question that comes up has to do with extreme weather. Hail can be destructive, and many homeowners are concerned that choosing a metal roof will be a bad idea due to hail storms causing damage. Will you need to worry every time there is hail in the forecast?

What is the Danger of Hail?

Hail can damage all roofing types. Shingles, tiles, and shakes can all be damaged by hail. When hail damages a roof, it usually isn’t the hail itself, but rather the water seeping in through the cracks that hail may have created. Once water has entered the roof, there are plenty of serious potentials for damage, including mold, mildew, and rot.

Metal Roofs Can Stand Up to Hail

Even when the weather is extreme, a metal roof will usually take damage in the form of dents. A metal roof is much less likely to puncture, crack, break, or tear. In fact, insurance companies often favor homes with metal roofs, as they are less likely to sustain serious damage compared to other roof materials.

What Affects the Damage to Your Residential Metal Roof?

The biggest determination about how much damage your roof may take is based on the strength of the storm. Most storms will only produce hail that is less than two inches in diameter. Metal roofs are tested to withstand hail of this size. If your region regularly gets more extreme hail, you’ll want to talk to your local roofing contractor about a metal roof with ribs or striations to deflect hail. Although the chance of structural damage is low, homeowners still don’t want their residential metal roofs to dent.

Slope and Support of Your Residential Roof

Most hail damage will occur when the surface is flat, which is why cars are so susceptible. On a metal roof, if there is a slope, so the damage will be less. The steeper the slope, the less force hail will exert and the less likely the metal roof is to dent. Similarly, if your residential roof has a study support that limits how much the metal can flex, the less likely it is to dent. If the roof is supported by an open structure, the metal will have some give to the hail and will dent more easily. The thickness of the metal, the structure, and the finish will all determine how much damage hail can do to your roof.

Hail Damage Can Be Repaired

If you’ve been through an extreme storm and there is damage to your roof, start by calling your insurance company. Metal roofs are less likely to have structural damage, which is what insurance will typically cover, but some insurance policies will cover cosmetic damage as well. Your second call should be to a local metal roofing contractor to discuss repairs.

Hail storms can be damaging, but when it comes to roofing, residential metal roofs often outperform other roofing materials in these storms. Homeowners don’t need to spend time before every storm worrying about hail damage to their metal roofs and can be happy that their home will be safe and protected from the elements. Contact All-Nu Construction for more information about a new roof or roof inspection today!