LindaDellar

We have a very old house and the roof leaks very badly. We are wanting to replace the roof completely. At the moment it has a tiled roof - the tiles are very old and very heavy. We are thinking about changing to a corrugated iron roof. Which is better - tile or corrugated iron roofing?

oldognewtrick

Linda, welcome to House Repair Talk, either choice would be a good one depending on the craftsmanship of installation. As a roofing contractor, the biggest reason for failure of a roofing system is improper installation. Using the proper underlayments, flashings, ventilation and following the installation specifications go a long way in maximizing life span of a roof system. Talk to a local installer and see what they suggest and what is available locally. Check references and don't pay the bill in full till the job is finished to your satisfaction.

Cork-Guy

What is the climate like where you're at in South Africa? The solution might come down to the actual climate and how each roofing product will affect both the life span and energy efficiency.

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LindaDellar

Thank you both for your advice. Because it is such an old house, each individual tile is extremely heavy. If we had extremely bad weather and the roof ended up coming down it would definately kill us all instantly. Because our climate is changing so radically I was thinking that the corrugated iron would be the more sensible choice but at the same time I do not want it to become unsightly and take away from the whole appeal of the house. It seems such a waste not to use the existing tiles but if we are going to the trouble of getting it fixed maybe it would be worthwhile to do the most viable and sensible thing.

Our summer days are on average about 35 degrees and winters are cold but at the worst we have a bad frost. Does corrugated iron also withstand extremes in the weather?

oldognewtrick

Linda, we are presently working on a house that has flat clay tiles that we removed, had framers re deck the roof surface with new wood decking and modify some structure. We were able to salvage most of the tile. We are now re-installing the tile and maintaining the look of the old house. It is a Southern Antebellum style house. With care you might be able to re-use a lot of the roofing materials. Then if you need more you can add some metal roofing to add accents in certain areas. We do this all the time. We were lucky in that we were able to order new tile to match the old.

Post some pics, we like pics.