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Winds and Wildfires: Metal Roofing is the Logical Choice for California homes.Author: Tom Black Date: Jan 1 2008 12:00AM URL: www.metalroofing.com  Recently, long-term drought conditions and strong Santa Ana winds brought devastating wildfires to Southern California. Numerous large fires burned over 900,000 acres (360,000 hectares) across the region, forcing the evacuation of over 500,000 residents. According to the National Interagency Fire Center, as of early November, over 77,600 wildland fires had been reported across the United States with more than 9.2 million acres (3.68 million hectares) burned in 2007.As Californians begin to clean up from the latest wave of wildfires, residents are looking ahead and thinking about preventative measures that can be taken to ensure this level of devastation doesn’t happen again. Along with clearing brush and debris away from a home, installing a noncombustible metal roof is one of the most proactive steps that can be taken to reduce the chance of a house being destroyed by fire. Metal roofs will also reduce a fire’s ability to spread from rooftop to rooftop. In the event of an external fire near a home, fires are often spread by blowing embers or burning trees and limbs that may land against or on the home. In essence, the fire safety of a home is at the mercy of its exterior envelope of “skin” and how fire resistant that material is. Most metal roofing materials are acceptable as Class A fire-resistant roof coverings because they are noncombustible. These products are individually tested at Underwriters Laboratories and other facilities to verify their fire resistance. Various building codes and many local officials recognize the results of these tests. Many homeowners choose traditional asphalt shingle roofs without thinking about their environmental impact or their ability to withstand and hold up during wildfires. Many consumers are surprised to learn that their asphalt shingle roof is a petroleum product that is not only fuel to a fire but also needs to be replaced at least every 20 years. Highly combustible, asphalt shingle roofs increase our dependency on fossil fuels, and, according to the Washington, D.C.-based National Association of Homebuilders, asphalt shingles contribute 1.36 billion pounds (612 million kg) of waste to landfills every year.  A recent poll conducted by Harris Interactive, Rochester, N.Y., and sponsored by the American Iron and Steel Institute, Washington, D.C., found that when building a home in an at-risk area for wildfires, 87 percent of consumers would consider installing a steel or metal roof. The results indicate that steel, with its fire-retardant qualities, is becoming the new material of choice for residential roofing, particularly in the wildfire-prone Western states. The opportunity for metal roofing in these areas is huge.“I know the roof saved our home,” stated July Rochelle, a homeowner who was evacuated from her Rancho Bernardo, Calif., home hours after her metal roof had finished being installed. “Even one day later our home would be gone. As we were leaving the house we were stamping out burning embers on the way to the car. ”The pile of old roofing shingles left on her front lawn was completely burned as were a number of homes in her neighborhood. While many homeowners are faced with the daunting task of rebuilding, others must take the time to make their homes more fire resistant. Much attention has been given to “noncombustible” or “Class A” roofs, and the most-often mentioned materials are clay or concrete tiles. Both of these roofing products can be lifted in the high winds generated by wildfires. This lifting exposes the wood and framing underneath to embers, which can lead to major damage to the home. In addition, the threat of earthquakes in California mean that the heavy tile roof could come crashing down on a home. “Most metal roofing materials interlock, forming a protective barrier other roofing materials do not provide,” stated Bill Hippard, president of the Metal Roofing Alliance, a program of the Glenview, Ill.-based Metal Construction Association. “This interlocking makes the roof stronger and more resistant to high winds.” Many metal roof systems have a 120-mph wind rating and uplift resistance that exceeds new building code requirements.  In addition to protection from high winds and fire, metal roofing is the best environmental choice. Metal roofing is recognized as a sustainable building material as many metal roofs typically have a minimum of 25 percent recycled content. This level of recycled content allows metal roofing to be routinely included on listings for “green” and recycled-content products. Metal roofing is 100 percent recyclable where other roofing materials are routinely removed and disposed of by the ton in landfills.The secret to residential metal roofing’s energy savings is the variety of options in finishes. A basic unpainted metal roof will reflect much of the solar radiation that is usually absorbed in the attic and home with an asphalt roof. However, for homes in warmer climates, pre-painted or granular-coated metal roof systems not only reflect solar energy but also cool the home by re-emitting most of the solar radiation that is absorbed. Where annual cooling loads dominate, a highly reflective and highly emissive painted or granular-coated metal roof is optimal for reducing energy consumption and can actually re-emit up to 90 percent of the absorbed solar radiation. This is extremely important given the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency reports that $40 billion is spent annually in the United States to cool buildings, which accounts for one-sixth of all electricity generated in a year.  “In the last five years the construction industry has grown to recognize the benefits of cool metal roofing,” Hippard said. “Energy codes and standards now contain criteria for cool roofing, and the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED program includes a credit for cool roofing based on specific performance requirements.” Used as a guide toward environmental design, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Green Building Rating System, is a feature-oriented rating system where credits are earned for satisfying specified building criteria. LEED had been adopted nationwide by federal agencies, state and local governments, as well as private companies, and is the guideline for sustainable building. Noncombustible, energy-efficient, sustainable residential metal roofing is the eco-friendly choice when protecting your home against wildfires.  Tom Black is executive director of the Metal Roofing Alliance, a program of the Metal Construction Association, Glenview, Ill.
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