🐈 Trav on a hot tin roof

I’ll admit that I thought about it for a few minutes before making a smart decision.

• While inspecting a property yesterday afternoon when it was 109 outside, I opted to NOT get on the roof and do that part of my inspection early Saturday morning.

Why it matters: I used my laser thermometer to see how hot the shingles were —>

• 180 degrees!!! 🥵🥵🥵

🥊 Reality check: It only takes a temperature of 150 degrees for 5 seconds to cause a 3rd degree burn.

🧮 By the numbers: I decided to use this opportunity to answer a question my clients often have:

• Does the color of your shingles make a difference on your roof temperature?

🌡️ I tested 3 roofs for this very unscientific survey.

👉 The black shingle was the hottest at 180 degrees.

👉 The weathered wood shingle was only 2 degrees cooler at 178 degrees.

• Weathered wood is the most common shingle color and is the lightest color that’s not a specialty “cool color.”

👉 The champagne metallic standing seam metal roof was 152 degrees.

• Side note: A few months after we installed this roof, this client made a point of contacting me to let me know his electricity bills seemed much lower after getting his metal roof.

✅ For your Smart Homeowner list

• Shingle material—not shingle color—makes the biggest difference.
• Proper attic ventilation can reduce the temperature by 20 degrees or more.
• Radiant barrier can do the same.

Best,

Travis