Washington,DC, metal shingle roof: a single coat application

This project involved several variations of the usual applications for saving a embossed metal shingle roof:
1. A special tint to match adjoining asphalt shingles.
2. A single application to accommodate owner’s budget

The roof contained numerous coatings…what we call a “double cleaner”. The excessive grit removal left apparent breaks between horizontal lines of shingles.

The military couple returning to the States purchased this home in Arlington’s historic district. Their question to me was whether the roof could be saved.

The upper roof did not leak…but flaking, worn shingles detracted from the appearance of the corner home. The porch roof leaked. After numerous discussions, about budget and expectations, the owner settled on a single coating of the acrylic on both the upper and porch areas.

My crew chief Lester resolved the leaking in the porch area. A single coating now allows a five year window before protecting the primer with an additional coverage, thereby stretching the budget.

In this historic district, different house additions must have a different roof to document the structure’s past. In this case, the new back addition received asphalt shingles. We tinted the acrylic to match the asphalt shingles, thus tying the vintage roof to the new construction.

This roof exhibited more separation of the horizontal line compared to most embossed tin shingle roofs we work on. My crew chief added additional material and effort to smooth the lines. The problem was NOT leakage, just appearance concerns.

Just an aesthetic note: A photo below shows their new addition with their asphalt shingles and bright aluminum stack. The acrylic tint blends well with the shingles. If the giant stack starkness ever bothers the owners, the stack could be coated with the roofing material, muting the stack’s impact on the eye. During spring and summer, nearby trees tend to block the view of the stack.

“Thank you (and Lester!) so very much for your work on our roof. We are so pleased that you were able to rehabilitate it. We’ll be sure to pass along your company’s name to the county historic board so that they can refer homeowners to you. Thank you and sorry for the delay in payment while we we were in NC adopting. Sincerely, Jody & Brendan”