Allmet Products

A couple of weeks ago we had a customer give us a sample of an Allmet stone coated steel shingle. They saw them at the Home Show and want them installed on their church. They had the contractor from the Home Show come to give an estimate. After he measured the roof and put the estimate together, they asked for a certificate of insurance and much to his woe, could not give them one because he 1099's his guys and does not carry WC. Since we had installed a flat roof on the church hall, they gave us a call.

I called Allmet to ask for some info on the stuff and one of their reps just happened to be in the area and dropped by with some brochures.

This is a relatively new product in this area so there are not many installations to check on to see how they hold up.

He did tell me that they have been in Canada and NZ for years so I am wondering if anyone has any experience with the Allmet or Gerard products and just how well they live up to their warranty?>>>

Hi Terry. We both install and distribute the Allmet product range. We've been doing for two years now, and are just completing a rather large and complicated job. As with any product, you need to have the training, and the tools. We've been certified by Allmet to be the local trainer for other contractors, and we've trained a few already.

The granulated surface kills your snips and brakes, so you need to have the shears and brakes sold by the manufacturer to install properly. Estimating the quantities takes some practice, so until you're comfortable with it, always order extra.

We have not had any warranty issues with any of our installations, and we have had good support from our rep and the production people.

Depending on the panel, you either strap with 2x2 (Continental, Timbershake), or lay it down directly on the decking (Granite Ridge). The strapped products are laid out top to bottom, while the Granite Ridge is bottom to top. You do have to take care not to step on the strapped products in the wrong place (it's steel, but it will still dent), and not to scruff the granules off the surface (this usually applies near the areas where you need to bend).

To date, all our customers have been very, very happy with the appearance and the end-result. I think we will need at least 5 years of installed experience before I know that the product (and our installations) are really solid, but we've not had any "red flags" to date.

Hope that helps.>>>