Redoing the roof of a home is a major and costly renovation. Homeowners will likely need to replace their roof at some point during the life of their home. Given the scope of the renovation, it is not a situation where homeowners want to find that they have chosen a roof color that they don’t want to live with for a few decades.
There is a wide range of roof colors and building materials. Much like looking at color swatches when deciding to paint a room, the completed roof can end up looking very different from how a few sample shingles looked.
This is because there are many features of a home that can impact how a completed roof blends with the overall look at the home. These factors include the style of the house, the color and materials of the siding, the height of the house, and even where the house is situated.
There are even important considerations when choosing a roof color that can impact the long-term cost of operating your home.
Below are some of the most important features of a home to consider when choosing the right roof color.
Color Contrast
Homes have better aesthetic harmony when there is a contrast between the color of the siding and the color of the roof. If the siding is light, dark color is best. Conversely, if the siding is dark, a light roof color is best.
The external appearance of the house comes together even better when the roof color matches or picks up the colors used on window shutters, doors, and other accent trim.
Examples of great roof-siding color combos include:
- Red siding with a dark brown or dark green roof
- White siding with gray, blue, or red roof
- Beige/tan siding with black, dark, green or dark blue roof
- Brown siding with blue, charcoal, or a contrasting shade of brown roof
Pattern Contrast
Much as with putting together the right outfit, the finished exterior of the home should not look too “busy”. If the home’s siding is patterned, for example, multicolored stone bricks, then the roof shingles should be a solid color.
Similarly, if the siding is a solid color, for example, stucco, then a solid colored roof will look boring.
Some shingle materials provide natural color variation, whereas others are naturally solid. For example asphalt shingles There are many roof shingles available that blend multiple colors. Some materials produce subtle variations in color, whereas other materials showcase a higher variety of contrasting colors.
The more color variation there is in the siding, the less there should be in the roof. By the same token, if the color of the siding is very uniform, it makes the house more pleasing to the eye if the roof provides high color variation.
Size of the House
The height of the house can make a big difference to the overall effect the roof creates. Dark colors are more eye-catching than lighter ones. This means that very dark shingles on a single-story house, such as a bungalow, can make the roof stand out unpleasantly.
On the other hand, since the roof can comprise up to 40% of a home’s visible exterior, a very light roof on a substantial, multistory house can make the house look washed out or bland.
The best shingle color choice is one that allows the roof to fit together with the size of the house in a way that looks blended and balanced.
Architectural Style
The style and period of the home can make a big difference in how certain color choices look.
Homeowners will find that grand 19th-century homes look most stylish when paired with black and dark brown roof materials. These attention-drawing dark colors look appropriate to the traditional majesty of this style.
On the other hand, natural clay tones, like rusty reds and oranges look great on the more modern, stucco-sided homes that are iconic of Florida and the Southwest.
Environment
The colors of the rest of the house are not the only factor to consider when choosing an attractive roof color. The colors that dominate in the surroundings can also make a big difference in how the roof color sets off the overall look of the house.
Blue roofs blend into the surroundings nicely when a home is situated near the water, making blue a great choice for beach houses. Homes nestled in spaces where greenery dominates, such as a cottage tucked away in the woods, look like part of the environment when a deep green roof is selected.
Climate
Aside from the aesthetic considerations of making the right roof choice, there are some practical considerations that can affect the cost of heating and cooling a home.
Dark roofs attract heat, while light roofs keep homes cool. A dark roof can make the attic of a home up to 40 degrees hotter than the temperature in an adjacent one with a lighter roof on a hot day.
Homeowners in a hot climate can significantly lower their AC costs by choosing the lightest roof color that works well with the aesthetic features of their home.
Protecting the Roof
Once renovators have chosen the right roof color and material and had their new roof installed, it’s not a renovation that people want to do again in a hurry. There are many options for protecting a roof so that it is resistant to wear and tear, giving homeowners the longest roof life possible.
Roofs and other exterior surfaces can be sealed with ceramic coatings in Jacksonville that extend the life of the roof.
Ceramic coatings in Jacksonville come in finishes that do not affect the appearance of your carefully selected roof color. There is also ceramic painting in Jacksonville, FL where the coating is tinted to preserve the color of the roof. This can provide an excellent alternative to refinishing.
Exterior ceramic coating in Jacksonville can also reduce energy costs by better insulating the roof. People who invest the time, thought and money into a new roof can ensure they get their money’s worth with roofing coating in Jacksonville.
