Your home is the anchor of everything that should be appealing both inside and outside. It’s easy to think that interior design and backyard improvements will make your home more comfortable, the outside exterior of your home is equally important to maintain.
What’s the One Thing That Makes Your Home Look Unique?
We don’t all live in that magical cookie-cutter neighborhood along the lines of Tim Burton’s Edward Scissorhands. Yet the American oasis called the suburbs does tend to follow the same pattern and model design when it comes to most prebuilt houses. The only difference you’re likely to see is when homeowners decide to expand and add a “pop top” to their home; this is when a second floor is added, so your home grows with you and your family.
We like to keep our lawns trimmed and hedges looking neat, but there are aspects of your home that are ongoing concerns. The paint outside can fade and crack, our windows can get old and need replacing, and our roofs will need repairing or replacing. This is where some important decisions need to take place to make our homes look more attractive.
Yet the one thing that most people forget about is how your roof appearance makes all the difference.
Vanity is one thing, but a good roof has to include aspects that combine artistic values with practicality. It’s a visual reminder that a good roof tells others how you like to live and provides equal protection from the elements that surround you and your family. But the bigger question is how to make your rook effective at both of these aesthetics?
1. Architectural Symmetry
The whole goal of a good roof starts with a look that clearly defines your home apart from others. It doesn’t need to stick out like a sore thumb, so careful symmetry will help you blend in and appear to fit in with other styles around your neighborhood. The last thing you want is to piss off neighbors with a roof that is considered offensive.
2. Blending Elements
All houses have style and every home is unique to how it’s designed. The same concept works for your roof since you want to choose a roof that suits your home’s design. Matching colors and textures that will compliment your home, and shows-off that beauty to everyone who lives around you.
3. Mixed Layers
Depending on what upgrades you’ve added over the years, it can also benefit from mixed materials. This often works best if you have multi-layered spots and sectional roofs. Use these layers like the limbs of a Christmas tree that can feature ornamental aspects that bring out decorative highlights of your roof.
4. Choosing the Right Style
It’s always a good idea to know what style your home is categorized as. Are you looking to create more of a traditional or modern style? There are many modern computer programs that roofing companies offer to show you how your home can look with these different styles. This helps a lot when choosing to upgrade an aging roof.
5. Adding Function
Although many homeowners are looking to add style to their home, many more are actively searching for ways to improve the efficiency of their home too. Adding skylights, dormer windows, and even solar panels are some of the practical ideas that can add further value to your home. One of the newest aspects of roofing is the added benefits of conserving energy.
What can a New Roof do for My Home?
New and upgraded materials help keep heat from escaping your home. The same also applies to preventing heat from beating down on your home likewise. This is where improved materials such as asphalt, metal, and ceramic shingles offer excellent insulating abilities. There are diverse weather conditions that many parts of the country don’t often share, so choosing a roof that holds up to extreme elements is equally important.
You’ll want to select a roof that is better suited to wet and snowy weather that keeps out the cold and holds in your home’s warmth. You want to choose a roof covering that offers slate tiles if you experience a lot of rain and stormy weather. If there’s a lot of snow, a metal roof would be preferred. You might want to find a compromise if this weather is mixed between the seasons.
No matter what you believe about the look of a slate roof, its natural aesthetics are what capture people’s attention. — John Russo of North Shore Real Estate
When it comes to drier climates that get more sun and heat, these roofs need to reflect harsh sunlight away, keeping your home cooler inside.
This is where terra cotta shingles and tiles come in handy. White roods are also becoming quite popular since lighter colors reflect the heat away rather than gathering or collecting heat. This can happen if you have darker asphalt shingles that absorb heat, turning your home into a pressure cooker. This is a major factor here in Phoenix, Arizona; they don’t call us the Valley of the Sun for nothing. Many of the homes here are constructed with tile shingles instead of traditional asphalt shingles. Not only do they look better than asphalt shingles but they are better at dissipating heat.
I always tell homeowners that while they will pay more upfront for ceramic based roof’s, they will earn added benefit over the next 10 years that will help makeup for the additional money they spend on tile instead of going with asphalt. — Juan Leon Lopez of Estrella Roofing
Because the world is becoming more and more eco-diverse with green energy thoughts, the newest trend is geared toward solar energy. Solar panels are a good way to save on energy bills and feel good about reducing your carbon footprint. The real attraction here is one that most of us didn’t know we could benefit from. There is a huge tax credit that’s been extended. Thanks to the Energy Policy Act of 2005, it’s been updated and upgraded over the years, and currently allows 26% of the number of solar roofs to be deducted from your taxes! But many people don’t like the look of cumbersome solar panels n their roof. This is where technology and creativity have given birth to solar panel shingles! The latest addition to creating a look that combines function and still appears attractive is now being offered from a generous variety of solar roof shingles. There are even rounded terra cotta-like shingles that can collect light from the sun as it moves overhead.
Plan Ahead to Improve Your Roof
Many people think that replacing a roof is expensive, yet there are always benefits that follow. Lower energy costs from air conditioning and heating are a direct improvement with a roof replacement. Not to mention the added bonus of solar power if you live in a region where you can exploit all of that free sunlight! You can also consult your homeowner’s insurance that can assist with roof replacement since this adds value to your home. If you ever decide to sell your home, this improvement cost is passed onto you since the asking price can boost the overall price. Many buyers want to find a home that has built-in energy savings. Yet aside from that, planning ahead to improve your roof will obviously be part of your roofing improvement project. This will give you plenty of research options before you make a big change to improving your home’s exterior.