Standing seam metal roofs are characterized by their durability, watertight design, ease of installation and simple maintenance. This type of roof is also an excellent option if you plan to use solar panels, since racking systems can be clamped directly with no need for penetrating mounts.
Here we will discuss the typical costs you can expect when installing a standing seam metal roof, while providing an overview of their advantages and disadvantages. We will also review the benefits of using cool roof products approved by ENERGY STAR and the Cool Roof Rating Council (CRRC).
How Much Does a Standing Seam Metal Roof Cost?
According to the industry data gathered by RoofingCalc.com, you can expect to pay between $12.50 and $21.50 per square foot when installing a standing seam metal roof. Like in any roofing installation, you can expect higher costs per square foot as the complexity of your roof design increases.
The following table summarizes the price range you can expect for several roof sizes, based on the typical costs per square foot:
Roof Area (Square Feet) | Standing Seam Metal Roof Price |
1,000 sq. ft. | $12,500 – $21,500 |
1,500 sq. ft. | $18,750 – $32,250 |
2,000 sq. ft. | $25,000 – $43,000 |
2,500 sq. ft. | $31,250 – $53,750 |
3,000 sq. ft. | $37,500 – $64,500 |
When installing a standing seam metal roof, the typical cost of materials ranges from $5.50 to $7.50 per square foot. However, you can get prices as low as $4.00 – $5.50 per sq.ft. when purchasing midium or large orders from the right supplier.
- Make sure your roof uses at least G-90 26-gauge (minimum acceptable thickness for residential steel panels) or 24-gauge (better) galvanized steel finished with Kynar 500 paint. Thinner G-60 (29-gauge) galvanized steel is not adequate for residential roofing applications.
- Galvalume steel offers superior durability if you’re willing to assume a slightly higher upfront cost of materials. Unlike G-90 galvanized steel, which is only coated with zinc, Galvalume steel uses a zinc-aluminum coating combo.
- Aluminum and zinc are even better options for standing seam, but the materials will cost more.
The cost of a professional installation typically ranges from $7.50 to $15.00 per square foot, which typically includes a lifetime workmanship warranty.
If you plan to install solar panels along with a new standing seam metal roof, consider that their average price is about $2.86 per watt (according to EnergySage). This means a 5-kW home solar system will add around $14,300 to your project budget, while a larger 8-kW system will have a price of around $22,880.
Based on the above figures, the combined price of a 2,000 sq.ft. standing seam metal roof with a 5-kW home solar system will be in the range of $39,300 – $57,300.
Pros and Cons
Home design decisions come with tradeoffs, and this also applies for roofing materials. The following table summarizes the main benefits of standing seam metal roofs, and their limitations:
Benefits | Disadvantages |
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Overall, standing seam metal roofs are an excellent option and they only have one major disadvantage: a higher price.
The Importance of Having an Energy Efficient Metal Roof
You can save on home energy bills by using technologies such as LED lighting and ENERGY STAR Certified HVAC equipment. However, even the most efficient air conditioners and heat pumps will waste energy if you don’t have a suitable building envelope. Your roof can account for over 40% of heat transfers between your home interior and the outdoor environment:
- High heat gain during summer makes you spend more on air conditioning.
- High heat loss during winter makes you spend more on space heating.
The Green Building Alliance has found that 90% of US roofs are not energy efficient, increasing heating and cooling costs for their owners. Dark materials should be avoided since they absorb more heat into your home during summer.
The extra heat gained through the roof can increase the load on your air conditioning system, and electricity prices increased by over 15% last year.
Even if your roof has proper insulation, a dark color will reduce its effectiveness due to the heat-absorbing effect. Energy efficiency is also an important design consideration before installing a standing seam metal roof.
The Cool Roof Rating Council (CRRC) provides design guidelines for energy efficient roofs:
- Cool roofs use colors that reflect as much sunlight as possible, to prevent overheating.
- Since some heat gain is unavoidable even with reflective colors, cool roofs must also be designed to dissipate heat effectively.
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has studied the performance of cool roofs. They found that, on a summer afternoon, a clean white roof reflecting 80% of sunlight is around 50°F cooler than a gray roof reflecting only 20%.
Constant exposure to high temperature can damage roofing materials, leading to costly repairs or even the need for an early replacement. Since cool roofs absorb less heat compared with traditional roofs, they also tend to last longer.
According to the CRRC, a cool roof can reduce your air conditioning costs by 7-15%, while extending the service life of your cooling equipment. You can increase the amount of sunlight that gets reflected off your roof by using lighter, solar-reflective colors.
Did you know? The CRRC also approves some darker colors that use special pigments to reflect a high percentage of solar radiation.
Used at large scale, cool roofs have the potential to make urban environments more comfortable, reducing the “urban heat island effect”. Cities tend to be warmer than rural environments, since they have a large number of dark surfaces that are constantly absorbing solar radiation. This effect can be reduced with many cool roofs.
When used in multiple homes and buildings, cool roofs can also benefit the local power grid, by reducing the electricity consumption peaks associated with air conditioning.
The CRRC Rated Roof Products directory is a useful resource, covering over 3,100 roofing products. The categories covered include asphalt shingles, coatings, metals, polymers, composites, slates, tiles, and wood. You can also filter roofing products by color, solar reflectance, thermal emittance, manufacturer, and roof pitch.
Depending on where you live, financial incentives may be available for cool roofs and cool walls. The CRRC keeps an updated database of all US locations where these benefits are available, with general information:
- Agency in charge of the incentive program
- Program name
- Eligible market segments: Residential, multi-family, commercial, etc.
Did You Know? Cool roofs can also help you qualify for whole-building incentives that are based on energy performance, and low-interest loans for energy upgrades. Considering the energy efficiency benefits of cool roofs, some jurisdictions have even made them mandatory (the CRRC also has this list on their website).
Standing Seam Metal Roofs with ENERGY STAR Certification
We tend to associate the ENERGY STAR label with appliances that consume energy, but the certification is also available for building elements like windows and roofing products.
The overall energy performance of a home also depends on the building envelope, and products that improve your thermal envelope can be ENERGY STAR Certified.
The main performance requirements for ENERGY STAR roofing products are the following:
- Low-Slope Roofs: At least 0.65 initial solar reflectance, 0.50 after three years of use.
- Steep-Slope Roofs: At least 0.25 initial solar reflectance, 0.15 after three years of use.
According to estimates from the US Department of Energy, an ENERGY STAR roof can achieve lifetime energy savings of around $0.64 per square foot. This means you can expect to save around $1,280 over time if your roof area is 2,000 sq.ft.
Consider that energy savings from a metal roof can be coupled with the solar electricity benefits offered by solar panels and any energy efficient appliances in your home.
Benefits of Using Kynar 500 Paint on Metal Roofs
Kynar 500 is a resin-based metal coating developed by Arkema, first launched in 1965. Kynar 500 is a PVDF (polyvinylidene fluoride) resin that greatly improves the thermal performance and durability of metal surfaces. It has been used in billions of square feet of roofing. Kynar 500 coating provides multiple benefits when used on a standing seam metal roof:
- Protection against weather conditions, aging, and pollution.
- Up to 40% energy savings when used on cool metal roofs, according to a study by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
- Over 70% solar reflectance, keeping your roof and home interior at lower temperatures.
- Fading resistance, which means roof colors can be conserved for decades.
Kynar 500 has been used in residential, commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings. The coating is typically used on aluminum, galvanized steel, and aluminized steel.
Applications other than roofing include metal siding and wall paneling, windows, door frames, curtain walls and metallic construction elements in general.
Metal roofing panels with factory-applied Kynar 500 paint offer superior durability, and they typically come with a 30-year warranty period.
Cool metal roofs with Kynar 500 coating are an excellent option if you’re seeking LEED certification for a building project. You must achieve at least 40 points to qualify for LEED, and a cool roof can contribute directly or indirectly with up to 24 points.
Why Standing Seam Metal Roofs are Ideal for Solar Panels
Installing a home solar system becomes much simpler if you have a standing seam metal roof. When working on traditional roofs, solar installers must remove individual shingles or tiles to install penetrating mounts.
The roof structure must be drilled directly, and this can affect your warranty. This means you may also deal with water leaks eventually, but you can minimize this risk by getting a professional solar installation.
- Standing seam metal roofs make solar installations much easier, since the racking system can be attached to the roof seams with clamps.
- Since there is no drilling involved, the roof warranty is not affected, and you don’t have to worry about sealing leaks.
The durability of metal roofs is also a major advantage when installing a solar energy system. High-quality solar modules come with a 25–30-year warranty, but it will be voided if you remove and reinstall the modules for a roof replacement.
Ideally, you should install solar panels on a roof that will last for decades – a standing seam metal roof with Kynar 500 coating and a 30-year warranty is an excellent option.
Pro Tip: Cool metal roofs and solar panel systems can both qualify for financial incentives. Make sure you claim all benefits available for both systems, and your overall project cost can be reduced drastically.