I have to reroof my home this summer. I’ve pretty much decided to use aluminum shingles for many reasons. Most of the manufacturers that I’ve found online only sell to their autorized installers. I do my own work though. Reinke Shakes and Aluminum Lock Roofing Co (Aluma-Lock) do sell to anyone, including do-it-yourselfers. Does anyone have any experience with these two types/brands.
I like the Reinke Shakes for the shape ( sharply corrugated) and for not pretending to look like wood shakes.
I like the Aluma-Lock for the locking edges, but don’t particularly like the fake wood shingle embossing on them. They are a little cheaper also.
The Reinke Shakes are installed with the felt overlapping each course, and the Aluma-lock goes over the roof after felting the whole thing. Is either installation method less prone to leak with age?
Please don’t try to convince me of how wonderful asphalt is. I used to live in a home with standing seam metal roofing where it snowed 20 feet a year. It was obvious to me how much better it was than asphalt.
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I used to install a lot of the Alcoa shakes. Don't kid yourself. In a heavy snow zone like that, they will will compress down, deform, and not fit tight in the water chanels as well. They will fail to look good after several winters and if you want to be keeping the water out, use a 12/12 pitch and doubled 30# paper underlayment.
The reasons for limiting to prefered instalers trianed to the product is partkly to do with electrolitic reactions. use only the right nails and flashings for the product.
Another thing - the caulk provided for these put me down. It had strong benzene and other petro chem stuff. Apparantly, when it says provide plenty of ventilation, a breezy roof is not ventilated enough
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I don't live where it snows much anymore. No real snow loading problem now.Are you saying the aluminum shingles are so much worse than standing seam? I know the standing seam stuff was really common where I used to live. High Sierras, Mammoth Mountain area in California.Are the Alcoa shakes that you installed hollow undeneath or have little support, causing the deflection? I have the Reinke samples, and they are sturdy, I can jump on them without damage. The Aluma-lock ones lay flat on the underlayment, so there isn't really anything to crush, at least if the sheathing is solid.Anyway here are my reasons for trying to go the aluminum route.Radiant heat reflectionDoesn't contaminate the runoff water. In the future I would like to collect and use the runoff.Longevity, most asphalt looks beat about half way through it's rated life.Environmental, very little resources go into landfill with metal. I tore out a bunch of bad aluminum storm windows from our house, and the local scrap center paid me $35 to give them the waste. I ripped out some walls, and I had to pay $300 for the dumpster and landfill space.
The Alcoa ones were definitely soft to walk on. Youhad to step carefully in one certain spot
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"The Reinke Shakes are installed with the felt overlapping each course..."
I don't know the first thing about aluminum shingle roofs, but that detail seems to indicate that the manufacturer expects water to get past the shingles and so wants the felt detailed to bring the water back on top.
Kind of like vinyl siding. I would be wary.
But that doesn't mean it isn't a great product (because I don't know the first thing...)
Rich Beckman
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