rharkins
Member
We have a lot of vaulted ceilings, and the insulation that was installed wasn't that great. Our air conditioning bills were terrible, and you could feel the heat radiating from the ceilings in the summer. The portion of the house with an attic has a powered gable fan on a thermostat, and the fan ran from mid-morning to dark any time the outside temperature was over 70.
A hail storm got our roof, so the insurance company was picking up the tab for a new roof. They would pay for the normal 30 year architectural shingles. I did a bit of research and found the GAF-Elk Prestique 40 year shingles in Cool Colors. We put on the weathered wood color, which is very light, but still has some character in it. The roofers mentioned that the shingles were very heavy and tough, much more so than the 30 year. Unfortunately, these shingles were $1,500 more than the standard 30 year. In fact, they were more expensive than the standard 40 year shingles without 'Cool Colors'.
The results have been amazing. The attic fan hardly ran at all in August and September, and there is no feeling of heat radiating from the vaulted ceilings, even on the hottest days. I don't have a good comparison of electric bills yet, because this year was unusually cool.
We do have the lightest roof in the neighborhood, but it doesn't seem out of place. These shingles have copper in them to discourage the growth of dark algae stains. I think the guarantee on that was 20 years. Algae stains are very common here in Missouri.
Plus, we get the $1,500 back on taxes. Watch out, though. You only get 30% of the materials as a tax credit; not including installation.
A hail storm got our roof, so the insurance company was picking up the tab for a new roof. They would pay for the normal 30 year architectural shingles. I did a bit of research and found the GAF-Elk Prestique 40 year shingles in Cool Colors. We put on the weathered wood color, which is very light, but still has some character in it. The roofers mentioned that the shingles were very heavy and tough, much more so than the 30 year. Unfortunately, these shingles were $1,500 more than the standard 30 year. In fact, they were more expensive than the standard 40 year shingles without 'Cool Colors'.
The results have been amazing. The attic fan hardly ran at all in August and September, and there is no feeling of heat radiating from the vaulted ceilings, even on the hottest days. I don't have a good comparison of electric bills yet, because this year was unusually cool.
We do have the lightest roof in the neighborhood, but it doesn't seem out of place. These shingles have copper in them to discourage the growth of dark algae stains. I think the guarantee on that was 20 years. Algae stains are very common here in Missouri.
Plus, we get the $1,500 back on taxes. Watch out, though. You only get 30% of the materials as a tax credit; not including installation.