Synthetic solutions in the eye of every storm

By Dani Sheehan. 

Join roofing experts as they talk about how synthetic slate and shake roofing products not only survive, but can thrive, in today’s climate extremes. 

Tornadoes sweep the Midwest. Wildfires cloud the Pacific Northwest and Canada in smoke. Hurricanes devastate the Southern states. No matter where you live throughout the country, you’ve probably witnessed increasing severe weather events. Weather has always been a hot topic for the roofing industry, but as extreme conditions become the norm, we look for better solutions to keep homeowners and their belongings safe. In the most recent Read, Listen, Watch® webinar sponsored by DaVinci Roofscapes, Heidi J. Ellsworth joins a panel of industry experts to discuss the benefits of synthetic slate and shake roofing products. See how these products thrive in severe weather and take away some upsell strategies for your next sale. 

Texas, particularly in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, is known as one of the hail capitals of the world, but they also see extreme heat throughout the summer months. Todd Knight, of Dynasty Roofing in Texas, talks about the issue of thermal shock he sees in roofing products: “We'll go from extreme heat and then we'll still have the rains coming in and the roofs will be dried out or suffering with the thermal shock. And when the rains come in, this is when the splitting and the cracking begins in the roofing systems.” 

The project shown to the left featured an old jumbo wood shingle that was falling apart, but the customer wanted to preserve the look of the wood to match the style of the home. Todd’s company offered a synthetic shake shingle from DaVinci that provided the authentic look they wanted. He adds, “This customer was particularly inquisitive about keeping thermal values in their house as low as possible. We were able to show them that this DaVinci product would maintain that form. And they were thrilled. We had 108° summers around here, and their house was as cool as it’s ever been.”

Synthetic shingles work especially well in places like Snowmass Village, Colorado, as well. Many of the older homes in those communities also had cedar shake roofs for the mountain aesthetic. Thomas Ice, of Storm King Roofing, shares, “Very few communities will allow [cedar shake shingles] due to the wildfire hazard. So, a Class A fire rated synthetic shake is the way most of these customers go to preserve that look in the wood shake.” 

Insurance companies like synthetic shingles across the country – for the fire resistance in Colorado, and the impact resistance in Florida. Cody Bates of Florida Specialty Roofing shows a beautiful project featuring a synthetic slate shingle. The old roof had aging concrete tiles, and in a golf course community, had at one point over 500 broken tiles from golf balls. The insurance company was urging them to replace the roof, but they had stringent HOA requirements. Cody explains, “We worked with the homeowner as well as the HOA, receiving approval for the Province Slate, but allowed the customer peace of mind knowing that it’s an impact resistant Class 4. So, when they hear those golf balls bouncing off the roof, they don’t have to worry about broken tiles causing major impacts into the interior from weather.” 

Read the transcript, Listen to the podcast episode or Watch the webinar to learn more about the benefits of synthetic roofing and how to deal with insurance adjusters to get the job.