Roof installations tend to be complex and expensive projects. If you want your roof installation to go smoothly, you need a roofing square calculator. Contractors turn to these calculators to understand the expenses involved and provide accurate estimates to their clients.
Apart from helping contractors and their clients understand the expenses, roofing calculators offer the following benefits:
- Pitch calculation
- Area calculation
- Understanding material and shingle requirements
- Understanding roof types
Costs of Various Roof Types
The roofing you need depends on the roof type you have. For instance, most buildings and homes across the United States have clapboard or shingle roofs. These roofs have several advantages to offer, such as:
- Ease of installation
- Durability
- Low maintenance
On average, shingle roofs tend to last up to 20 – 30 years. These roofs feature three layers, which feature the underlayment at the very bottom, shingles in the middle, and synthetic rubber or roll roofing at the top.
Tile roofs are increasing in popularity even though they are not as popular as their shingle counterparts. These roofs offer more durability than shingle variants and most tile roofs can last 50 years. However, for tile support, an extra framework is necessary. This makes tile roofs expensive. They also require shingling every two decades.
Metal roofs are also becoming popular owing to their long lifespan (around 30 – 50 years). Reputed metal roofing companies such as Spokane’s Advance Roofing provide warranties on their products. Ease of installation and low maintenance are among the other prominent benefits of metal roofs.
Slate roofs are among the most uncommon roof types owing to their high installation and maintenance costs. Additionally, they require framing for providing support to slate tiles. Other uncommon roof types include wood shingles, concrete tiles, and rubber roofs.
Estimating Costs Using Roofing Calculators
Prior to using a roofing calculator, you should figure out your budget for your new roof installation. Start by taking the measurements of your roof. This would allow you to understand the number of materials and shingles necessary. For instance, for a roof measuring around 500 square feet, you would need around 1,000 shingle bundles (2 bundles for every square foot).
How much you would need to spend on the shingle bundles depends on your preferred shingle type. Asphalt shingle bundles are among the least expensive. However, if you are not afraid to splash the cash, you could opt for solar or copper shingles.
When using a roofing calculator, you need to keep an eye out for the following aspects:
- Roof type: Most roofing calculators are inclusive of drop-down lists or menus that give you the option of selecting your preferred roof type. This option typically features slate, metal, tile, and shingle roofs. So, take your pick and also mention whether you would want extra-long shingles or standard variants.
- Roof dimensions: On the basis of your measurements, you should enter your roof’s dimensions. These dimensions are inclusive of your roof’s pitch, width, and length. Roof pitch refers to slope and its expression is generally in percentages.
Once you are done entering these details, sit back and let the calculator take care of the rest. Whatever result the calculator shows you are an estimate inclusive of installation and material costs.
How are Roofing Calculators Beneficial?
If you are wondering what benefits roofing calculators have to offer, go through the following pointers:
- Roofing calculators are beneficial for understanding average costs. Once you know the average installation and material costs, you can compare the offerings of different companies. Ultimately, this should help you to pick a company on the basis of your budget.
- The calculators offer precision and accuracy. As long as you enter all required details correctly, the estimates provided by the calculators should be precise.
- You don’t need to be an expert to use a roofing calculator. All you need to do is enter a few details, and the calculator will take care of the rest for you. In terms of calculation simplicity, roofing calculators are unparalleled.
So, if you are on the lookout for a new roof installation, use a roofing calculator. It can go a long way towards helping you understand how much you would have to spend on installing a new roof along with the materials necessary for a successful installation.
