Is Metal the Right Roof for Your Allentown Home?
Metal shows up on Allentown roofs more often than people expect — porch roofs, bay window caps, standing seam on a rear addition, and the occasional whole house. It suits steep, complex geometry well, sheds snow rather than holding it, and lasts far longer than asphalt when it is detailed correctly. Detailed incorrectly, it is the least forgiving material on the market, because metal moves with temperature and every fastener and seam has to allow for it.
This is metal roofing as our Allentown, PA office does it — the same crew, the same number, the same written estimate before anything starts.
Two systems cover almost everything we install here. Standing seam hides its fasteners under raised, mechanically seamed or snap-locked ribs, with concealed clips that let the panel slide as it heats and cools; it is what belongs on a visible main slope or a long south-facing run. Exposed-fastener panel is a legitimate choice on a garage, a barn-style outbuilding, or a low-visibility rear roof, where the washers are accessible enough to be checked and replaced. On an Allentown rowhome we most often install metal on the porch roof and the bay caps, where a steep, small, awkward plane never worked well in shingle.
Metal fails at the details, not in the field. A panel twenty feet long grows and shrinks measurably between a January night and an August afternoon, so panels fastened rigidly at both ends will oil-can, elongate their holes, and eventually leak at every screw. Sidewall and headwall transitions need a flashing that allows that movement while still shedding water. Valleys need generous width and hemmed edges, because water leaving a steep metal plane arrives with speed. Penetrations get a proper curb or a boot rated for the panel profile. And snow retention matters over a doorway or a walkway, since metal releases a slab all at once.
Metal is not the answer everywhere, and you should hear that from the person selling it. On a straightforward gable with a decade of life left in the shingles, the money is better spent elsewhere, and we will say so during the free consultation rather than after. Metal earns its keep on steep, snow-shedding, hard-to-reach planes, on long uninterrupted runs, and for owners who intend to stay in the house. It is also quieter than its reputation once it sits over solid decking and underlayment. We will scope both options side by side and let you compare them on substance.
Why Allentown roofs are different
South Mountain rises right off the South Side, and the slopes facing it get the full swing of a valley climate: hard sun on the south-facing planes through summer, sharp overnight drops in winter. That daily expansion and contraction is what punishes a metal roof installed without room to move. Homes stepping up toward Center Valley and the higher ground above Emmaus also hold snow longer than the flats along the Lehigh River, which is exactly where snow retention above an entry stops being optional.
- All Pro Roof Stone Atlas
- Address: 429 S West St, Allentown, PA 18102
- Phone: (484) 806-0911
- Hours: Open 24 hours, seven days a week
- Licensed & insured in Pennsylvania — #PA052821
- Serving: Allentown and Lehigh County
- Identifies as women-owned
Other roofing work we do in Allentown
Roof Repair in Allentown · Roof Replacement in Allentown · Roof Installation in Allentown · Gutter Installation & Guards in Allentown · Storm Damage Roof Repair in Allentown
Metal Roofing in nearby markets
Metal Roofing in Exton · Metal Roofing in Lancaster · Metal Roofing in Media · Metal Roofing in Carlisle
Read the full metal roofing service page for the technical detail that applies everywhere we work, or see everything we cover across Lehigh County.
Towns our Allentown office covers
Metal Roofing in Allentown
What Allentown customers say5.0★ from 16 Google reviews
“The team provided dependable roofing work with attention to quality and customer needs. The completed project looks excellent.”
“Our roof replacement was completed professionally, and the crew treated our property with respect throughout the job.”
“A great choice for anyone needing experienced roofing help. The crew was knowledgeable and focused on delivering quality work.”
Metal Roofing in Allentown — common questions
Is a metal roof loud in heavy rain?
Not the way people imagine. The reputation comes from panel fastened straight to open framing on barns and sheds, with nothing underneath to absorb sound. Over solid decking, underlayment and an insulated attic, a residential metal roof registers close to shingle, and most owners stop noticing within a week. What you will hear occasionally is snow releasing, which is sudden, loud, and worth planning for above an entry.
Can metal go over my existing shingles?
Sometimes it can, but we rarely recommend it on older Allentown homes. Covering the old surface hides the deck, and the deck is the part most likely to have suffered under decades of ice at the eaves. It also traps the old shingles' irregularity under a panel that shows every wave. If the deck is genuinely sound and the structure allows it, a proper substrate can make it work. We will look before answering.
Does a metal roof help with ice damming in the Lehigh Valley?
It helps, but it does not cure the cause. A smooth metal surface sheds snow before a deep pack can build, which reduces the melt-and-refreeze cycle that forms a dam at the cold eave. The underlying problem is heat escaping into the attic, and that is fixed with air sealing, insulation, and balanced ventilation. We install ice-and-water membrane at the eaves under metal for the same reason we do under shingle.
Will metal work on a rowhome with a party wall and a flat rear section?
Often, yes, but as a hybrid. Standing seam suits the steep front plane and the porch roof; the flat rear section behind it wants a membrane, since panel on a near-level surface relies on seams doing work they were not designed for. The transition between the two, and the termination against the party wall, are the details that decide whether the assembly lasts. We design that junction first.
How does metal compare with architectural shingle on cost and lifespan?
Metal costs more up front and lasts considerably longer, so the comparison depends on how long you plan to own the house. Architectural shingle is the sensible choice for most simple roofs and for owners with a shorter horizon. Metal makes sense on steep or hard-to-reach planes where a second tear-off would be painful, and on homes where snow shedding matters. We will lay out both scopes and let the numbers speak.
Metal Roofing in Allentown? Call (484) 806-0911.
Free, no-obligation estimates. Licensed & insured in PA, NJ, MD & DE.