Roof Colour: Balancing Aesthetics And Functionality
All too often, homeowners don't give much thought to the colour of the roofing materials that end up sheltering them from the elements.
For many, the best colour is that which blends in well with the colour of external walls and other structures (e.g. chimneys) attached to the house. This is not necessarily true because there's more to the colour of roofing panels than aesthetics. The paragraphs below explain why.
Sunlight
The color of a metal roofing panel has a direct impact on the panel's ability to absorb/reflect light. This ability will have a direct impact on your average indoor temperatures.
Bright-coloured panels will reflect away much of the sun's light, while darker roofs absorb much of this light. If you live in a predominantly cold area, a darker roof will inject much-needed additional heat into your living spaces. Thus, your heater won't have to work as hard in order to maintain optimum indoor temperatures.
A bright-coloured roof helps to prevent heat-build up in your living spaces by reflecting away much of the sun's light. Such panels would be a better choice if you live in an area that's pre-dominantly hot.
Birds
As birds fly around, they often perch on residential roofs. Sometimes the roof serves as a resting point for a bird that's mid-way through a journey. Other times, birds choose to quench their thirst from residential guttering.
Bird droppings are acidic and they could have a corrosive effect on metal roofing panels. As such you want to keep the flying creatures away from your roof.
Birds are known to have an affinity for bright colours. This explains why the most colourful male birds get the most attention from female companions.
If the observations from this experiment are anything to go by, then you shouldn't fancy having red panels on your roof, seeing as the colour red is a bird magnet.
Height
Last but not least, the colour you end up settling for can have an 'illusionary' effect on how tall/short the roof will look. Dark-coloured roofs are known to have a more static outlook. The static appearance will give the illusion that your roof is shorter.
By virtue of the fact that they reflect light, brighter panels have a less static appearance. Thus, bright-coloured panels will give the illusion of a much taller roof.
From the discussion above, it's clear that there's more to roof colour than aesthetic appeal.