With all the snow the UK has been experiencing over the past few weeks, and set to continue into February, one question many people have been asking is what type of roof is best for such conditions. Is fiberglass roofing the best option and how does it compare to other roofing materials?
Fiberglass roofing has been the number one choice in the UK for some time and its popularity has grown significantly as it provides a wide range of benefits compared to traditional roofing methods and materials such as slate, roofing of lead, tiles and felt roofing. One of the key advantages of fiberglass roofing is the fact that it is completely waterproof, allowing water to drain easily. It’s also incredibly strong, very affordable and easy to maintain, and often lasts longer than other roofs.
UK weather is well known for being highly variable, ranging from heatwaves to hurricanes, from snowdrifts to floods. Therefore, it is important to be fully aware of the best types of roofing materials that can be used for things like door canopies, shed roofs, garages, extensions, and carports. Snow has been more apparent in the last few years than it has been in the last two decades, and whether you blame global warming, climate change, sunspots, or other factors, the truth is that we are facing snow problems right now and it seems have to deal with this type of problem every winter for the foreseeable future. So how do fiberglass roofing compare to other materials given the heavy snow and ice we’ve had lately?
The problem is that the snow and bitterly cold conditions we’ve had this winter present several challenges, not all of which will be immediately obvious. Light, fluttering snowflakes fluttering down may not seem like much of a threat to any type of roof, but when those flakes pile up and start to compact, even a few inches can quickly weigh as much as a car over the area of a roof. roof only.
So the first challenge facing any type of roof is being able to withstand the pressure and weight of all that snow. This is made easier in cases where the roof is at an angle or sloped, allowing much of the initial snow fall to slide off. In fact, sloped roofs that are smooth allow snow to fall before the weight becomes too much for the roof to support. Many roofs are quite rough or have gaps, cracks, or seams that allow snow to grab onto and stick to the roof much more easily.
Both shingles and slate provide joints, cracks, seams, and edges that can allow snow to pile up higher, and felt roofs offer a very rough surface, increasing the amount of grip offered to snow. . Fiberglass roofs are usually completely smooth and without seams or seams, allowing snow to slide off much more easily and quickly, minimizing the risk of snow becoming too heavy for the roof to support .
The next problem is, of course, when the snow starts to melt. This can result in a large amount of water forming, and in some cases, melting can begin to occur beneath the snow, meaning it can pool and accumulate significantly before it is apparent that it is melting. It is important that as soon as possible this melt water can drain off.
In some cases, this may not be as easy as it should be. The felt roof will almost certainly tend to stretch under the weight of the snow, and this stretching can result in the formation of a concave indentation that allows water to pool and pool. Puddles on flat roofs are almost certainly due to this problem. The water continues to add weight to the roof and continues to stretch the material. However, the fiberglass roof cannot stretch or distort, allowing water to run off quickly.
If you are looking for a replacement roof or a new roof and are not sure which material to choose, then fiberglass roofing offers one of the safest options when it comes to extreme weather conditions such as snow.