Hi All,
New to the forum, thanks in advance for any guidance.

I recently bought my first home and am getting the roof redone. I don’t have construction experience and its 12/12 so I figure not the best place to learn but want to know more about how to make sure its done right and we don’t make any major goofs in our decision-making.

The house was built in 1985, has T&G cathedral ceiling, and the roof does not extend beyond the house (scandinavian style?). There is roof insulation but not sure how much. The roof is around 4500 sq ft and currently has old cedar shake over skip sheathing. We live east of the mountains in washington state, so have temperature extremes from -10F to 110F, and get moderate snow in the winter. It is a high fire risk zone so we are inclined towards a standing seam metal roof.

Questions coming up for me include:

1 -Optimizing insulation – I understand metal can be installed over the skip sheathing, which would make the cost about equal to a comp roof since we will save on sheeting the whole thing with the current high OSB prices. Is there any major benefit insulation wise to sheeting the roof? Can we add insulation without sheeting it? 

2 – We get a lot of sun so are considering adding solar panels down the road, from my understanding that is not difficult with standing seam roofs. Anything else to consider regarding this?

3 – The roof currently holds snow in the winter, which I would think helps with insulation, and prevents large piles of snow around the house, which is preferable with the quirky – no roof overhang – design. Would snow breaks on the metal roof have the same effect to hold the snow?

Thanks very much for any guidance.