FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Q: What sets Custom-Bilt Metals apart from other metal roofing manufacturers?

    A: Custom-Bilt Metals is one of the most progressive and customer-focused metal roofing manufacturers in the industry. Our history is filled with innovations and groundbreaking firsts.
  • We were the first company to offer Cool Roof products
  • All of our products feature the Cool Roof Reflective Paint System at no extra cost
  • Our product mix is more comprehensive than other metal roofing manufacturers
  • We do both in-plant and job-site manufacturing
  • We were one of the first companies to pioneer and offer installation training

Q: What are the selling points for customers who are reluctant to spend the extra money on a cool metal roof, as compared to other high-end roofs like concrete tile or wood shakes?

    A: There are numerous points to be made:
  • Metal roofs are more than five times lighter than tile
  • Compared to tile, metal roofs are much easier to walk on
  • Compared with high-end wood, metal roofs offer increased roof-life expectancy and fire resistance
  • Nearly 30 colors comprise the Cool Roof palette options, compared to more limited tile and shake color choices
  • With its darker, earth-tone colors, roof tile is less cool than metal; tile relies heavily on ventilation to reduce heat gain
  • Monetary incentives in the form of rebates are increasingly being offered by local utility services for their customers who replace their aging roofs with cool roofs. These rebates can run into the hundreds of dollars.

Q: What should we tell homeowners when they ask us how much money they’ll save in energy bills by installing a Custom-Bilt Metals roof?

A: Most homeowners see an approximately 20 percent drop in their energy bills after installing a Cool Roof from Custom-Bilt Metals. The U.S. EPA corroborates this figure, which can translate to upwards of $450 in annual energy saving. That’s because buildings with cool roofs use up to 40 percent less energy for cooling than buildings with darker roofs, according to research from the Heat Island Group.

Custom-Bilt Metals has partnered with PPG Industries to offer the Kynar 500® Paint System with ULTRA-Cool® coatings. Covered with these heat-reflective coatings, our Titan Cool Roof colors meet the Energy Star criteria for cool roofs—another element that results in lower energy bills for the homeowner.

Q: What is Cool Roof technology and how does it save energy?

A: It all starts with our reflective paint system, a premium, resin-based, two-coat product that is highly reflective and durable. Our Cool Roof paints reflect up to 70 percent of the sun’s energy that would normally penetrate the roof into the attic. By reflecting this heat, the paint helps to keep the attic cooler, as well as the rest of the home, which helps to reduce the total cost of cooling. In addition, Cool Metal Roofing by Custom-Bilt Metals has been proven to cool faster at night than conventional roofing materials by emitting heat at a fast rate, thus requiring less cooling of the home or building when not occupied.

Q: Do Custom-Bilt Cool Roof products provide energy credits toward LEED certification and other programs?

A: Yes. A cool metal roof will contribute to points in credits where recycled content, recyclability, energy optimization, and water collection properties are included in a whole-building, weighted-average approach. For example, a cool, prepainted metal roof can qualify for one point in Credit 7.2 of the LEED Sustainable Sites category if it covers at least 75 percent of the roof surface area and meets certain criteria for Solar Reflectance Index (SRI) values.

Q: Our market is in a semi-arid climate. What are the selling points for including rain gutters on the homes we build?

A: Even semi-arid climates get rain, and when it comes, rooftop runoff needs to be controlled and redirected. Soil erosion is a factor, especially where unmanaged runoff falls along a drip edge beneath a home’s eaves. Controlling and redirecting this runoff also introduces the possibility of harvesting water in rain-gathering vessels for irrigation purposes—a big selling point for areas with low rainfall levels.

Finally, seamless rain gutters enhance curb appeal by preventing roof runoff from splashing mud onto a home’s foundation. At the same time, they add a finished look to every home, demonstrating to potential future customers that your projects carry an extra measure of quality, where no detail is missed.

Q: How can you help our business add gutter installation to our projects?

A: In some areas (Southern California, Nevada, Arizona), builders do not include gutter as a normal part of residential construction. Marketing to these builders would help them understand the advantage of including gutters on their houses: It would help to distinguish their houses from their competition in both function and appearance.

Q: What kind of support can we expect from Custom-Bilt after we’re up and running installing metal roofs and gutters?

    A: We stick with our customers after they sign on the dotted line, delivering follow-up features that include:
  • Marketing materials to help you get the word out and draw customers to your door
  • Customer leads to keep your revenue stream flowing year-round
  • Continued training to keep you and your team on top of installation techniques and best practices in the industry
  • Technical support, to help you minimize callbacks and other problems that occur because of improper installation