Why Metal Makes Sense Here
Most West Michigan homes wear asphalt shingles, and for good reason. They're proven and they're the best value for most houses. But asphalt has a lifespan, and in our climate it's 15 to 20 years of real service before things start wearing out. Snow load, freeze-thaw, ice dams, and summer heat all take their share.
Metal doesn't age the same way. Standing-seam panels shed snow instead of holding it, concealed fasteners give water nowhere to get in, and the material doesn't dry out and crack. It's a bigger investment up front, three to five times the cost of asphalt, and it becomes the last roof you buy for the house. Forty to seventy years with very little maintenance.
If you're replacing an aging roof and you plan to be in the house long enough to see the return, metal is worth a serious look. This page is about doing metal right for a Michigan climate. Our full roof replacement page covers every system.
Standing Seam vs. Exposed Fastener
"Metal roof" covers two very different things, and the difference is the whole conversation.
Exposed-fastener panel is ribbed steel screwed straight through the panel into the deck, with a rubber gasket under every screw head. Ag-panel, R-panel, pole-barn metal. It's the budget metal option, and there's nothing wrong with it on an outbuilding. But every screw is a penetration, and there are thousands of them. Every gasket has a life. The panel expands and contracts around a fixed screw, so the hole elongates over time. And on the products we install, exposed-fastener panels typically come in thinner gauge with a standard SMP paint finish, not the premium Kynar coating. It's a 20-to-30-year roof that needs its fasteners checked. It is not a fifty-year roof.
Standing seam is panels that lock to each other at a raised vertical seam, attached to the deck with concealed clips or a concealed nail flange, so there are no exposed fasteners on the roof surface. The panel floats on its clips and expands and contracts freely through Michigan's temperature swings without working anything loose. On the products we install, standing seam comes in heavier 24-gauge steel with a Kynar 500 PVDF finish, the top-tier coating, and carries a lifetime paint warranty. That's the fifty-year roof.
On a house, we almost always recommend standing seam. Exposed fastener is still penetrations, and penetrations are where roofs fail. If your budget only reaches exposed fastener, we'll install it right and tell you what the maintenance looks like. But if you're spending metal money on a house, spend it on the metal that lasts.
Metal Roofing Systems We Install
We install panels from Metal Sales and Central States, two manufacturers with real track records in the Midwest, and we match the system to your home, your look, and your budget.
Snap-Lock Standing Seam
Our most-installed metal system. Panels snap together at the seam without mechanical crimping. Central States' Horizon-Loc and Central Snap, and Metal Sales' equivalent profiles, in 24-gauge Galvalume steel with a Kynar 500 finish. UL 2218 Class 4 impact rated, which is the highest hail rating and can earn an insurance discount, and Class A fire. Concealed clips or concealed nail flange, no exposed fasteners on the surface, and a lifetime paint warranty. Rated for slopes down to 3:12. Our most-requested metal system for Ada, Forest Hills, and lakeshore custom homes.
Mechanically Seamed Standing Seam
For low-slope sections under 3:12 and for the most demanding applications, panels are crimped together with a seaming tool for a double-locked seam. More labor, tighter seal. We spec it where the roof calls for it.
Metal Shingles and Shakes
Stamped steel or aluminum panels that mimic slate, cedar shake, or dimensional shingles while carrying a metal roof's lifespan. For homeowners who want the look of a traditional Grand Rapids neighborhood roof with far better durability.
Exposed-Fastener Panel
Ribbed steel panels for pole barns, outbuildings, sheds, and simple gable roofs across rural Kent and Ottawa counties. Central States' Panel-Loc Plus and Metal Sales' equivalents. We install it right, and we tell you up front that the gaskets need to be checked over the years.
The Part Nobody Designs For
Here's what happens every winter in West Michigan. A homeowner puts a beautiful standing-seam roof on the house. Come January, a foot of snow sits on it, the sun comes out, and the whole sheet lets go at once. It slides off the roof and takes the gutters with it. Every year. On roofs that were designed by architects and stamped by engineers, because nobody on the design side had stood in a driveway in February watching it happen.
Metal sheds snow. That's a feature. It's also a load. A sheet of wet snow sliding off a steep metal roof weighs hundreds of pounds and it hits whatever's below: gutters, a porch roof, a walkway, a car, a person. The fix is snow retention, snow guards or snow rail, placed where the roof needs it, based on the pitch, the panel length, the exposure, and what's underneath. On a standing-seam roof, retention clamps to the seam. You never screw through the panel. And it has to be sized right, because too little rips off with the snow and too much holds snow that should shed.
Snow retention is one piece. The overhang matters. The gutter hanger spacing matters. Whether there's a walkway or an entry under that slope matters. Every one of those is a design decision that has to be made by someone who has actually watched a Michigan winter do this to a metal roof. That's not most architects, and it's not most roofers either. It's the difference between a metal roof that's the last roof you buy and one that costs you a gutter every spring.
We design snow retention into every metal roof we install. It's built into the price. If we're looking at a metal roof somebody else put on and the gutters are gone, that's a fixable problem, and we fix it.
Metal Roof Cost in West Michigan
Here's the part nobody explains. A metal roof typically starts around $12 per square foot installed and can easily exceed $25 or even $30 per square foot depending on the house and a lot of other variables. That's three to five times the price of asphalt on the same roof. Homeowners assume that's the material. It's mostly not.
The panels are the easy part. On a metal roof, the work is at every edge and every interruption. The eave. The rake edge. Every valley. Every hip. The ridge. Every pipe, every chimney, every skylight, every vent. Each one of those is a custom-bent, custom-fit metal detail that has to be measured, formed, and installed to shed water and to move with the panel through fifty years of expansion and contraction. On a shingle roof, a valley is a piece of metal and a row of shingles. On a metal roof, it's a fabrication.
That accessory work is where the time goes. A metal roof moves five to ten times slower than an asphalt roof on the exact same house, and it takes much more planning. It also takes a crew that knows how to do it, because a crew that's great with shingles can still get the expansion, the flashing, or the seam detail wrong, and those mistakes show up as leaks a few winters later that nobody can find. Metal is a specialty. We treat it like one.
We won't put a table of per-square-foot prices on this page, because on metal the range is too wide to be useful. Roof size, pitch, how many edges and penetrations, standing seam versus exposed fastener, gauge, finish, snow retention, and what we find under the old roof all move the number. Get us out for a free inspection and you'll have a firm, written price that covers everything.
How We Install Your Metal Roof
- Step 1
On-Site Assessment and Design
We inspect the roof, the attic, and the ventilation, measure every plane, and count every edge and penetration. We confirm whether standing seam, metal shingle, or exposed fastener is right for the house and budget. And we design the snow retention: where it goes, how much, based on pitch, panel length, exposure, and what's below.
- Step 2
Full Tear-Off and Deck Prep
Old roofing comes off down to the deck. We replace rotted sheathing, then install high-temperature underlayment rated for under-metal use and expanded ice and water shield at every eave, valley, and penetration.
- Step 3
Panels and Accessories
Panels are measured, cut, and set. Clips or nail flanges are placed to the manufacturer's spacing so the panel can move. Then the part that takes the time: every eave, rake, valley, hip, ridge, and penetration gets its custom-formed metal detail, fabricated to shed water and move with the roof.
- Step 4
Snow Retention, Ventilation, Flashing
Snow guards or rail clamped to the seams where the design calls for it. Ridge ventilation sized to the attic. Custom flashing at walls, chimneys, and skylights.
- Step 5
Cleanup and Warranty
Magnetic sweep for stray metal and fasteners, full debris haul-off, permit close-out. You get the manufacturer's finish and panel warranty and our workmanship warranty, in writing.
What a Stellar Metal Roof Includes
No surprise add-ons once the crew arrives. Tear-off, underlayment, flashing, snow retention, and the permit are all in your written price.
- Complete tear-off of old roofing to the deck
- Replacement of rotted or damaged sheathing
- High-temperature synthetic underlayment rated for metal
- Expanded ice and water shield at eaves, valleys, and penetrations
- 24-gauge Kynar 500 standing seam panels, or the system you choose, from Metal Sales or Central States
- Concealed clip or nail-flange fastening on standing seam
- Custom-formed eave, rake, valley, hip, and ridge trim in matching finish
- Custom-bent flashing at walls, chimneys, and skylights
- Snow retention designed for your roof and clamped to the seams
- Attic ventilation sized to the house
- Full magnetic sweep, cleanup, and disposal
- Local building permit and final inspection
- Manufacturer finish and panel warranty plus our workmanship warranty
Why Choose Stellar Roofing Company for Metal?
Metal roofing is unforgiving of shortcuts. A crew that's great with shingles can still botch panel expansion, edge fabrication, or seam detail, and those mistakes turn into leaks a few winters later. Metal is a specialty and we treat it like one, with tradesmen who've done it and a siding brake on the truck to form the details on site.
Stellar Roofing Company is West Michigan owned, here since 2012. We've spent twenty years taking apart roofs that failed in this climate, metal included, and we install every metal roof for the winter it actually lives in.
- Standing seam recommended on houses, exposed fastener where it fits, and a plain explanation of the difference
- 24-gauge Kynar 500 panels from Metal Sales and Central States, Class 4 impact rated
- Snow retention designed in, not added after the gutters come off
- Every edge and penetration custom-formed to move with the panel
- Expanded ice and water shield and ventilation sized to the attic
- Manufacturer finish warranty and our workmanship warranty, in writing
Not sure whether your symptoms call for a metal roof or a targeted fix? Review common roof problems first, or call (616) 840-1927.
Explore Replacement & Costs
Metal Roof Replacement Questions
Is a metal roof worth it in West Michigan?
For homeowners staying in the house long enough to see the return, yes. Standing-seam metal sheds lake-effect snow, doesn't dry out and crack, and lasts 40 to 70 years versus 15 to 20 of real service for asphalt. The up-front cost is three to five times higher, but over its life a metal roof often costs less per year than replacing asphalt two or three times, and it adds strong resale value.
How much does a metal roof cost to install here?
Metal typically starts around $12 per square foot installed and can exceed $25 to $30 per square foot depending on the house. Most of that cost is the accessory work at every edge, valley, hip, ridge, and penetration, which takes five to ten times longer than shingles on the same roof. Standing seam is the premium tier, exposed fastener the budget tier. We confirm your number with a free on-site inspection and a written price.
Standing seam or exposed fastener?
On a house, standing seam. Exposed fastener is thousands of screws through the panel, each with a rubber gasket that ages, and it typically comes in thinner gauge with a standard paint finish. Standing seam has no exposed fasteners on the surface, floats on clips so it can move, and comes in 24-gauge with a Kynar 500 finish and a lifetime paint warranty. Exposed fastener is fine on a barn or a shed. If you're spending metal money on a house, spend it on standing seam.
Does a metal roof prevent ice dams?
It helps. Smooth panels shed snow, so there's less snow to melt and refreeze at the eaves. But ice dams start in the attic, from heat and moisture warming the roof deck, and a metal roof over a badly vented attic still ices at the eaves. We fix the attic on every metal job: ventilation, air sealing, and insulation, plus expanded ice and water shield. Metal plus a cold attic is one of the most effective ice dam defenses there is. Metal alone isn't.
Why do metal roofs rip gutters off?
Because snow slides off metal in sheets, and a sheet of wet snow weighs hundreds of pounds. If the roof wasn't designed with snow retention placed where it's needed, the snow takes the gutters with it every winter. We see it constantly, including on roofs designed by architects. Snow guards or rail, clamped to the seams and sized to the pitch and panel length, are part of every metal roof we install. If yours doesn't have them, that's a fixable problem.
Is a metal roof noisy when it rains?
Not the way people imagine. A metal roof installed over a solid deck with underlayment, the way we build them, is comparable to an asphalt roof for interior sound. The "tin roof in the rain" sound comes from metal over open framing, like a barn, not a decked house.
Can you install metal over my existing shingles?
We recommend a full tear-off. Going over old shingles hides deck rot, traps moisture, and can void manufacturer warranties. Tearing off lets us inspect and repair the deck, lay proper high-temperature underlayment and ice and water shield, and give you the full warranted life the metal is capable of.
How long does a metal roof replacement take?
Longer than asphalt. Most residential metal replacements take three to seven days or more, because every edge and penetration is a custom fabrication and the job moves five to ten times slower than shingles. Roof size, pitch, complexity, weather, and deck repairs all affect the timeline. We give you a realistic schedule with your written estimate.
What This Page Cites
- Central States Manufacturing, Horizon-Loc, Central Snap, and Panel-Loc Plus product specifications and CentralGuard warranty. centralstatesco.com
- Metal Sales Manufacturing Corporation, standing seam and exposed fastener panel systems. metalsales.us.com
- UL 2218, Standard for Impact Resistance of Prepared Roof Covering Materials, Class 4 rating
- Snow retention manufacturer guidance for standing seam: clamp-on or adhesive attachment only, no panel penetration