Metal roofs get a bad rap for being noisy, but honestly, with decent insulation and underlayment, it’s not like living inside a drum. I’ve worked on a few where you barely notice rain unless it’s a real downpour. Patching holes is trickier than shingles, though—definitely not a “just wing it” kind of job. As for composite shingles, they’re hit or miss. Some brands hold up, some curl just like yours. Those synthetic underlayments are a game changer, though. Way better than the old felt—lighter, tougher, and they don’t turn to mush if they get wet during install.
I’ve been debating this exact thing since moving in last year. My place has old asphalt shingles, and after the last windstorm, I found a couple in the yard. Not confidence-inspiring. I keep hearing metal is noisy, but like you said,
That’s reassuring. My main concern is hail—we get some nasty storms here. Anyone have issues with dents or insurance on metal? Also, those synthetic underlayments sound interesting. Are they really that much better than felt in humid climates?“with decent insulation and underlayment, it’s not like living inside a drum.”
My main concern is hail—we get some nasty storms here. Anyone have issues with dents or insurance on metal?
Yeah, hail’s a legit worry with metal. I’ve seen some roofs get pretty dimpled after a big storm, especially the thinner gauge stuff. Insurance can be weird about it—sometimes they’ll cover “functional damage” but not cosmetic dents, which is kind of a pain if you care about looks. As for synthetic underlayment, I’m in the humid South and switched to it last year—way less slippery than felt when wet, and it hasn’t wrinkled or gone mushy like old-school felt did on my last place. Not perfect, but I’d never go back to felt in this climate.
Metal’s great for longevity, but I’ve seen plenty of folks get frustrated with the cosmetic hail dents. Some don’t care, others hate it. Anyone here actually had luck with a class 4 shingle standing up to big hail? I hear mixed things, honestly.
I’ve seen class 4 shingles hold up decently in moderate hail, but when we got that baseball-sized stuff last spring, even those took a beating. They didn’t puncture, but there was still some granule loss and a few cracks. Metal’s definitely tougher, but yeah, the dents can be an eyesore if you’re picky about looks. For what it’s worth, I’ve noticed impact-resistant shingles seem to perform better on steeper slopes—less direct hit, maybe?
