DIY Network

Roofing: Selection of Materials From "Be Your Own Contractor" episode DBYC-104

In this episode of DIY's Be Your Own Contractor, we head for the roof. We hear from do-it-yourselfers about their experiences in the installation of the roofs for their houses. Varieties of roofing materials, contracting strategies, installation and safety issues are all discussed as well as installation of gutters and downspouts.

In this first segment, roof selection and types of materials are covered.

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	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E
	Figure F
	Figure G

Roof Selection

The job of roofing comes with a lot of decisions. The first and most obvious one is what type of roof you want. There are a surprising number of options.

• For Jody Siegler of Los Angeles, CA, the roof was a very specific design decision that greatly impacted the overall look of her home. The style she chose was a standing-seam metal roof (figure A). Her intention was to create a feel reminiscent of a tropical or island setting (figure B). She stresses the importance of preliminary research, planning and of making your roofing decision early then sticking with that decision.

• Jody's 6500-square-foot home required the purchase of around 10,000 square feet of roofing material. Budget considerations often play a major role in roof selection, as the cost of different materials varies widely.

• Betty King and John Spracklen went through a lot of decision-making when selecting the roof for their Olmstead, KY home (figure C). They wanted a Victorian look, so the roof they selected was one of composite shingle.

• Aesthetics was important in the decision process for all of our do-it-yourself contractors. Fred Samuels chose a tin roof for his rustic home in Rockwood, TN (figure D) because it was available in a variety of colors (he chose green), and it lasts practically forever.

• Michael Buchtel of Williamsburg, VA chose architectural shingles for their particular look, and a specific color was chosen to complement the rest of the house (figure E).

• Skip Weahunt of Fair Oaks, CA had difficulty with the roof material that was his first choice. His original design called for concrete tile. He later found, however, that this type of tile roof is prone to leaves getting caught in the roof valleys, which may ultimately result in leaks. Installing a roof like these in an area with a lot of trees necessitates considerable roof maintenance to avoid problems. Skip ultimately went with a thicker asphalt shingle roof (figure F) that is known to be more "leaf friendly" and less expensive than tile.

• Andy Beasley of Hillsdale, CO wanted to use lightweight cement tiles that gave the look of a slate roof, but found the material to be too expensive. Instead, he went with an architectural grade fiberglass/asphalt shingle (figure G).
  

In the segment that follows, the contractors talk about who actually did the work of roofing their homes.