What You Need to Know about Metal Roofing & Condensation
June 11, 2019 | Filed under: Buying a New Roof,Newsletter Articles,Research
Many homes across the US have recently been damaged or destroyed by heavy and sometimes violent rains and floods. No matter where you live, your home requires protection from and the prevention of condensation. So, what does metal roofing have to do with condensation? Here’s an explanation.
A properly installed metal roof, with a properly prepared attic, can prevent condensation.
Metal Roofing: Good Installation and Ventilation Means No Condensation
When installed on standard residential construction consisting of typical attic insulation, proper and well-functioning ventilation, and roof decking, metal roofs do not pose a condensation risk.
However, not all homes have these things and, on occasion, contractors will even install metal roofs on homes without roof decking. In these situations, condensation can become a significant issue.
3 Ways to Avoid Condensation
There are three primary ways in which condensation is avoided in attics and, ideally, you want all three. While sometimes a home can function with just two of these things, it will not perform well with fewer than two unless perhaps it is located in an extremely dry climate. Those three things are:
- Insulation on top of the ceilings, including sealing against any air leaks from the living space into the attic.
- Ventilation per building code, which means both intake and exhaust vents.
- A vapor barrier, such a continuous sheet of polyethylene behind the ceiling drywall.
Not taking these things into consideration when a metal roof is installed will pose risks. Condensation is a critical enough of an issue that we recommend reading this full, detailed discussion. For situations where there is a desperate need for additional breathability of an attic, a quality highly breathable underlayment like VENT3 can be helpful.
If this is your year for a new roof, we want to do all we can to help you make a wise decision that you will not later regret. We will always give you our best advice, even when it doesn’t involve our products!
For your toughest questions, please feel free to email our company president and in-house expert on metal roofing and ventilation, Todd Miller, at todd@asktoddmiller.com.
p.s. This post is one in a series being developed on Critical Things Most Contractor’s Don’t Know About Metal Roof. You can read more here.
