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IN DEPTH: Roofing

Color Options Stay Constant
Color options haven’t expanded much, but the sophistication of the looks has improved. “Colors typically stay to a fairly small palette in asphalt shingles,” says Headwaters Roofing’s Wierengo. “In metal roofing, the variety is much larger. Asphalt shingles often have six color options, basically natural colors of wood or slate, while metal has several times that many.”

Those choices are being considered more carefully, he adds. “The roof makes up one-third of the home’s face, and homeowners want everything to blend seamlessly to create a distinctive look. Roofing can tie everything together and enhance the curb appeal rather than just being a neutral top. The specific colors and designs vary by region and home style.”

Blended colors are becoming more popular, notes Ply Gem’s Dave DeRogatis. “Our product line is available in four color families that can be blended with two, three or four colors. We selected the most authentic, popular colors.” Customers can experiment with color combinations to find the best blend using the company’s Slate Selector tool at Ply Gem’s roofing website.

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“Color and blending are critical to creating a contemporary look for the entire exterior of the home,” says GAF’s Avitabile. “We see homeowners looking to ensure their roofing choice blends with the paint scheme, architectural design, even the landscaping. The roofing industry really has worked to make roofing a key part of the conversation in the exterior design of the home. Specific colors are at the top of the list, but color blends are growing in importance. Homeowners want complementary blends of color to make the roof color look more complex and variegated.”

Lighter Colors Popular
Blacks and earthtones still dominate, he adds. “We do see more growth in lighter colors, and that’s a trend that will probably continue. There are going to be more cool colors as well as lighter colors and blends. We do see more blues and greens in today’s asphalt shingle color blends, but lighter colors overall tend to be browns, grays and tans. They stay in the earthtone line but they’re lighter than they used to be.”

Lighter colors often are used to aid energy efficiency, but many homeowners were turned off by how light the roof color had to be to gain benefits. Today, however, as cool-roof technology has become more familiar to consumers, its use has been aided by the ability to gain benefits with darker colors. “There is a lot of technology that’s improving with cool-roof designs, such that they can now reflect heat even with darker colors,” says Headwaters Roofing’s Wierengo. “Contractors aren’t always aware of these advancements and that darker colors can achieve these goals and open up new options for them.”

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Metal Sales’ Davidson agrees. “With cool roofing, we used to promote lighter colors, which weren’t always complementary to homes’ styles. But today’s technology doesn’t require light colors to be able to reflect solar energy and emit heat. It’s more about the formulation of the coating than the actual color. Reflectivity of the coating is the key. As a result, product choices and color selection by customers has been expanded.”

EDCO offers a variety of colors that are Energy Star rated. “They help to keep the home cooler in the summer and help reduce energy costs,” says Newell.

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