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Metal Roofing: Useful Information Guide

By Roof Online Staff • Last updated March 24, 2023

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Fiberglass panels like this one are often used as skylights in metal roofing construction.
A ribbed, translucent fiberglass panel integrated as a skylight on a metal panel roof.
Metal panel wall serving as a rooftop screen wall.
Metal panel wall serving as a rooftop screen wall.

1. Book Recommendation: Manual of Low-Slope Roof Systems: Fourth Edition by C.W. Griffin & Richard Fricklas

2. General: See this informative, in-depth general article about various roof systems at the Whole Building Design Guide site, which is maintained by the National Institute of Building Sciences.

3. General: The Canadian Sheet Steel Building Institute’s website is an excellent source of all kinds of information, with many fact sheets and other resources available.

4. General: This article, “Cool Metal Roofing“, provides a decent overview of metal roofing in general, with emphasis on energy savings. It’s on the Whole Building Design Guide site.

5. General: “RICOWI Best Practices Guides for Roofing – Low Slope Metal” is available on the website of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. (“RICOWI” stands for the Roofing Industry Committee on Weather Issues).

6. General: “RICOWI Best Practices Guides for Roofing – Steep Slope Metal” is also available on the website of the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety. 

7. Building Codes: “R905.10 Metal Roof Panels” from the 2021 International Residential Code and “1507.4 Metal Roof Panels” from the 2021 International Building Code. Both available on the UpCodes website.

8. Chemical Compatibility of various metals: see “Dissimilar Metal Corrosion” by D. Matthew Stuart, a four-page presentation with charts for quick reference. Found on the website of PDH Online.

9. Inspection of metal panel roof systems: ROOFER: Inventory Procedures and Inspection Manual for Metal Panel Roofing is a detailed and valuable resource put together by the US Army Corps of Engineers’ Engineer Research and Development Center. Available for download at the Defense Technical Information Center website.

10. Safety: See this material safety data sheet for health and safety information about aluminum at the Petersen Aluminum website. This is only an example and other products and brands may be different.

11. Safety: See this material safety data sheet for health and safety information about sheet steel at the Petersen Aluminum website. This is only an example and other products and brands may be different.

12. Technical: “Metal Roof Installation Manual” is probably the best, most thorough introduction to metal roofing you can find on the internet. Produced by the Metal Construction Association in 2014, it is available to MCA members as a free download from their Online Education Resources page, but it’s also on the ATAS International website.

13. Technical: “Technical Instructions – Structural Considerations for Metal Roofing“, prepared by the US Army Corps of Engineers; produced in 1998. From the document: “This document prescribes the criteria and procedures for designing metal roofs for buildings”.

14. Technical: “Testing and Specifying Metal Roofs in High Wind Areas” is a great source of information if you want to learn about wind and metal roofing. It’s a short course/long article originally published in 2021 and it’s available on BNP Media’s Continuing Education Center.