Choosing a roof
Standing seam or exposed fastener: the difference that matters
Both are metal roofs, but they are put together in very different ways. Here is how they differ and where each one fits.
How each one is fastened
On a standing seam roof, the panels lock together at raised seams and the fasteners sit underneath, hidden from the weather. Nothing that holds the roof down is exposed to rain, sun, or ice.
On an exposed-fastener roof, screws go straight through the face of the panel and are sealed with a rubber washer. It is a simpler system and it costs less to install.
Where the difference shows up
Rubber washers are the part that ages. Sun, heat, and years of the panel expanding and contracting can loosen or flatten them, and a screw that no longer seals is a place water can enter. Those screws can be tightened or replaced, which is ordinary maintenance rather than a fault.
Because a standing seam roof keeps its fasteners out of the weather and lets the panels move at the seams, there is far less of that maintenance to keep up with. It is also the cleaner-looking roof from the road — long unbroken lines instead of rows of screw heads.
Picking between them
Standing seam is usually the choice for a house you plan to keep, a roof that is highly visible, or a building where you would rather not think about the roof again for a long time.
Exposed fastener still makes good sense on barns, shops, outbuildings, and projects where the budget matters more than the detail. We install both, and we will tell you honestly which one we would put on the building if it were ours.
Keep reading.
Local advice
What Southern Indiana weather asks of a roof
Repairs & replacement