Midland Metal Roofing: Standing Seam, R-Panel & Stone-Coated Steel Roof Installation

Standing seam panels run in one piece from the eave to the ridge. They lock together at a raised rib, and hidden clips hold them to the deck, so no screw goes through the face of the panel. Floating clips let each panel slide as it heats and cools, which matters on a roof that sees 90°F on about 115 days a year. Fixed clips cost less but pin the panel in place.

• Installed cost: $9 to $16 per sq ft (HomeGuide); $8 to $14 per sq ft, or $16,000 to $28,000 for a 2,000 sq ft roof (Modernize)
• Lowest slope allowed: 1/4:12 under the 2018 IRC, so it also works on nearly flat porch and patio roofs
• Paint: Kynar 500 (PVDF) finishes contain at least 70% PVDF resin and hold their color longer than SMP

R-panel is the ribbed steel sheet you see on shops, barns and plenty of ranch houses around Midland. PBR is the same profile with a longer overlap at the side lap. Both are screwed straight through the panel into purlins or decking. The material is cheap and goes up fast, which is why it's the budget metal roof. The trade-off is upkeep. Each screw is a hole sealed only by a rubber washer.

• Installed cost: $5 to $12 per sq ft for exposed-fastener sheet (HomeGuide), or $500 to $1,200 per 100 sq ft square
• Gauge: 29 gauge suits sheds; for a house in hail country, ask for 26 or 24
• Slope: lapped panels need 3:12, or 1/2:12 with lap sealant (2018 IRC R905.10.2)

Stone-coated steel panels are pressed to look like tile, shake or shingle. A layer of stone granules bonded to the steel hides the metal. It suits homeowners who want metal without the look of metal.

• Installed cost: $700 to $1,300 per square; materials alone run $350 to $600 per square (HomeGuide)
• Good fit for: HOA streets where ribbed panels might not pass review

Metal shingles are small interlocking steel or aluminum pieces pressed in a slate, shake or shingle pattern. On a steep gable they look like a traditional roof, but they can't go on a shallow one. The 2018 IRC doesn't allow them below a 3:12 slope.

• Installed cost: $6 to $14 per sq ft, $9,000 to $35,000 per job (HomeGuide); HomeAdvisor's range is $7 to $22

Corrugated is the classic wave-profile sheet, often in bare Galvalume. That's steel coated with an aluminum-zinc alloy, which is what gives it the bright silver finish. The 2018 IRC sets AZ50 as the minimum coating weight. AZ55 carries a bit more alloy and lasts longer in the elements.

• Installed cost: Galvalume corrugated $500 to $1,000 per square (HomeGuide); corrugated sheets $3.50 to $15 per sq ft (HomeAdvisor)
• Where it fits: barns, porches, outbuildings and farmhouse-style homes

A full replacement strips the old roof down to the deck. That lets the roofer swap soft plywood, lay new synthetic underlayment and start with a clean, flat surface. On a 1950s or 1960s Midland house, the deck is where the surprises are.

• Tear-off: $1 to $3 per sq ft (HomeGuide)
• Deck repair: $2 to $5 per sq ft where boards are rotten
• Underlayment: $0.10 to $0.90 per sq ft for synthetic

Skipping the tear-off saves labor and disposal. The 2018 IRC allows a metal re-cover installed to the panel maker's instructions, and standing-seam systems that carry their loads straight to the structure are named as an option. It isn't allowed over two or more existing layers, or over a roof that is wet or rotting. The downside is that you lose the chance to inspect the deck.

From 2016 to 2025, NOAA logged 140 hail reports in Midland County. Sixty-three of them were 1.75 inches or larger. Class 4, the top UL 2218 rating, means the roof covering survived a 2-inch steel ball dropped from 20 feet. A metal roof can dent in a big storm and still keep water out, so ask whether a panel's warranty covers cosmetic dents. See the hail section below for the insurance side.

Leaks on a metal roof usually trace back to a screw, a seam or the flashing around a vent, chimney or skylight. HomeGuide notes that heat cycling loosens fasteners over time. Fixing a leak usually means tightening or upsizing fasteners, resealing laps and replacing pipe boots. SFS says replacement screws should be one size wider so they bite fresh steel.

• Typical repair: $300 to $1,500 (HomeGuide); HomeAdvisor's average is $1,918
• Screw replacement: $150 to $1,000
• Leak repair: $200 to $1,000

When an older panel roof is chalky or lightly rusted but the steel is still sound, a restoration can buy years without a tear-off. The roofer cleans the panels, treats the rust, seals the screws and seams, then rolls on an elastomeric or silicone coating. A white coat also turns the roof into a cool roof. The Cool Roof Rating Council says reflective roofs cut air-conditioning use at peak hours, and Midland's July highs average 95.8°F.

Aluminum doesn't rust. Under the code it has to be at least 0.024 inch thick for panels. Copper weathers from bright penny to brown and then green, and it usually goes on porch roofs, bay windows and dormers rather than a whole house.

• Aluminum: $700 to $1,700 per square installed (HomeGuide)
• Copper: $1,300 to $3,000 per square installed (HomeGuide); $15 to $30 per sq ft (Fixr)