Although asphalt shingles are currently the biggest player in the residential roofing sector, with about 80% of homes using them, that doesn't mean they're the best. Often homeowners just use them because they're the cheapest. In fact, you as a homeowner have the responsibility to decide for yourself which type of roof is best for you, your home, and your family. Metal roofing has several advantages over the asphalt shingle type of roofing, and you may decide that next time you get your roof replaced metal is the material you'll replace it with. Here are three different reasons why metal is a superior roofing material to asphalt shingling. 

1. Price

Although metal roofing actually costs more than asphalt up front, it can last much longer. It can last anywhere from twice as long as asphalt (if you choose the cheapest form or metal) to a century or more (if you choose one of the expensive varieties). This means that if you use metal roofing, you'll save costs on materials, material disposal, labor costs, and so on. It's a great investment if you're planning to spend the rest of your life in your house. In fact, an expensive metal roof such as copper can be a legacy that you hand down to your children.

2. Energy savings

The savings you'll get from a metal roof don't stop at the savings that fewer replacements will bring you. In fact, a metal roof is naturally reflective, meaning that it'll help you deflect the heat of the sun in summer, unlike a shingle roof which absorbs nearly all of the sun's light and heat. And it's easy to transform a metal roof into the ultimate "cool roof" by painting it a light color or using a "cool roof" coating on it. Cool roof coatings help your roof deflect not only the sun's light rays but also its thermal rays. Although suitable for most types of roof, this coating is ironically not suitable for asphalt shingling because of the composite nature of the shingles, which are covered in tiny glass particles. (This is also the reason why you're not supposed to paint asphalt shingle roofs).

3. Environmental benefits

There are several environmental benefits to using a metal roof. First of all, you'll be using fewer non-renewable resources, because you won't have to replace your roof so often (and when you do, you can just recycle it). Secondly, your cooler roof will mean you won't need to run your AC unit as often, which will not only bring down your energy bill but also save energy, reducing your ecological footprint. And a cool roof can also help alleviate the "urban heat island" impact on your local ecosystems. Of course, the smaller your town is, the more difference you can make on its heat levels with your one roof.

These three benefits are just a few of the ways metal roofing is superior to asphalt shingles. So whether you're planning on replacing your roof soon or several years in the future, remember to do the research on metal roofing and decide if it's the right material for you. Contact a local outlet, such as JD Metals, for further assistance.