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Roof Ideas For Your New House
Maryland | Annapolis | Silver Spring

If you are looking for roof ideas as you design and build your new house in Maryland, Silver Spring, Gambrills, and/or Annapolis, keep reading to learn about the various styles and materials that are available to you.

As you design your new home, one of the most important considerations is investing in a roof that will both protect and please you for many years to come.

That means looking carefully at your options for style, material, and cost. Once you have decided on these variables, you will need a contractor who can deliver what you need.

Cunningham Contracting, Inc. offers free consultations, so call us at today at (410) 721-8757 or click fill out this form to receive a free estimate.

How Should My New Roof Look?

With all of the available options, the question here is “How can my new roof look?”

You could probably take a thirty-minute drive around your neighborhood or surrounding areas and return with at least ten different ideas about roof designs.

So what are these designs called and which one is best for your new house?

Here are some of the most popular styles:

• A gable roof is that simple, triangle style you have seen in storybooks. It is made when two flat slopes are joined at a ridge. A French-style gable has the “top” of the triangle flattened off, creating a trapezoid-shaped top. A cross-gabled roof usually leaves the triangle in shape and attaches to another, perpendicular gable roof, which creates a shape that we see everywhere, from country inns to suburban sub-division homes.
  
  
• A gambrel roof is what you would see on a typical colonial-style house. This double-sloped roof has a fairly flat gradient on the upper portion and then drops to a steep slope for the lower portion.
  
  
• A hip roof slopes downward on all sides at an even angle. This may be the most commonly seen roof idea, as it can be combined with the other roof styles to personalize a new house. It is a relatively simple and affordable design, which can be played with to an extent, though it will always maintain a rectangular shape, creating an eave around the house. Ask your roofing contractor to show you some examples of combinations they have worked on. You can also click here to see our portfolio.
  
  
• The mansard roof style (also double-sloped) has experienced a resurgence in the past 50 years, first being used for its economic and practical characteristics by fast food chains like McDonald’s. Because it was durable and relatively inexpensive, a number of variations developed, and it is widely used in residential homes all across America.
  
  
• A flat roof can be aesthetically pleasing because it is unique-looking, with a slope of less than 10 degrees. And although it is inexpensive to install on a new house, it requires a coating and regular overall maintenance. It is less difficult to maintain than other roofs because it is physically easier for a person to inspect it, but that inspection must be done repeatedly and often to avoid costly repairs and replacement.

What Is The Best Material For My New Roof?

Depending on the style you choose, you will have many different materials to choose from. Many new roof design ideas can be personalized by the texture, color, and layout of the shingles.

Asphalt Shingles

Asphalt three-tab shingles are the most commonly used because they are affordable and sturdy—usually lasting between 20 and 30 years. Home-owners are increasingly using “architectural asphalt” shingles, which are more expensive, but they are thicker and more reliable, lasting for about 30 years.

Wood Shingles and Shakes

Wood shingles are almost always made of cedar—red, yellow, and white—and they eventually fade to a lovely gray that causes the house to compliment its natural environment. Wood shingles are increasing in price lately because of wood costs, and they require some maintenance, such as regular washing to remove and prevent mildew. A recent development is the “pressure treated” wood shingle, which increases its durability in rough weather. A shake is a wood shingle that has been split rather than sawed.

Metal Shingles

Metal shingles resist rain, wind, fire, and mildew. They are becoming increasingly popular as more styles and materials are being put to use. Availability will vary by contractor. Ask us about our selection of metal shingles so that you can decide if they are appropriate for your roof ideas.

Cementations Synthetic Shingles

These shingles are very popular in the western United States because of the strict fire codes in that region. They are resistant and long-lasting, and they require almost no maintenance.

Tiles

While asphalt and wood shingles are limited in their aesthetic variability due to their inability to range very much in color, tiles—ceramic, metal, concrete, and clay—can come in many different colors, and we often see them on the lovely homes of the Mediterranean and Spanish regions.

Put Some Personality Into the Roof Over Your Head

Call Cunningham Contractors, Inc., at (410) 721-8757, to tell us your ideas for installing the roof of your new house. Or you may just click here to fill out a quick contact form. We'll love to help you out!

We will help you understand the possibilities, let you know which materials will be best for the design you choose, and help you make the decisions that best fit your budget.

To read what some of our other pleased customers have had to say about Cunningham Contracting, Inc., click here.

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