Which roof is best? Colorbond v. Tile

Ok. Am officially confused. Am looking at Knockdown rebuild & have suddenly noticed the qty of new homes that have colorbond. I grew up in a tiled roof home & always assumed colorbond was cheap and noisy and hot and not long lasting...

Surely I was wrong - otherwise why are there so many new homes with it now? So I am asking - what is really better? Am looking for the solution which provides the best insulation (for both noise and heat etc), longest lasting, low maintenance etc. for every thing I find as a pro con, I can find a contradicting article

Please help!!!

Colourbond is the way to go, tiles hold the heat all through the night.

Colourbond can also be noisy during heavy rainstorms or hail, however you won't break colourbond like you can break tiles.

Tiles also never completely seal.

Rain and hail noise on colourbond can be overcome by adding insulation in the roofspace, and some even having insulation batts immediately under the colourbond and on the roof trusses.


What am I having on my new home? Colourbond in Surfmist colour.

Me too ! getting Surfmist also !
I love the sound of rain on a colourbond roof !

I am also looking @ a KDR.
We have offered colourbond for free as an upgrade and debating +'es and -'es.
It is normally a $7K option. here in sydney.
Anybody choosing colourbond give some reasons, My builder includes sarking underneath.
Only concerns is weight of solar panels if I add them later vs concrete tiles would have more support.

It is cheaper and easier to install solar panels on colourbond than it is tiled.

Also solar panels on a tiled roof needs to be done properly lest you get water leaks courtesy of a poor installer.

I've built new with both colorbond and tiles. If I was to build for a 3rd time I would go colorbond.

I've written more on the differences at this link: http://www.anewhouse.com.au/2012/02/whats-on-the-roof/

Me too! The sound of rain on the roof is the number 1 selling point.

well, maybe not the number 1, maybe the one I enjoy the most anyway, the main selling point is that the roof will cool down almost as soon as the sun goes down. I'm sick of living in old houses with poor insulation that get hotter at night when the sun goes down and the double brick and tiled roof release all the heat theive captured during the day.

I've also heard too many stories of people having broken tiles and leaks, especially after a huge hailstorm, which isn't likely to
happen with Colourbond, the worst you'd get is a bit of a dent in it.

Basically I think Colourbond is far superior to tiles. In general I think they look better too, however a really nice high end tile can look absolutely fantastic, but when there was no difference in price the colourbond was a no brainer compared to the ugly category 1 tiles on offer.

We've got a Classic Cream roof, Surfmist is just too bright for our liking.

Read that one, but I think you might like to add to it Zincalume is not allowed in many estate convenants, such as the one I'm in. Also zincalume goes 'off', i.e. it dulls right down over several years and becomes significantly hotter than light coloured, colourbond roofs.

A older zincalume roof that has dulled down is actually extremely hot. On my old house there was a small section that missed out on being painted, as it was at the painting stage covered by a solar panels, which was later moved leaving the unpainted section exposed to the sun. On some days you could not leave your hand on it lest it got burnt, however less than a metre away was painted in the colourbond colour of Thredbo White, where you could sit down on it to have a picnic lunch as it was still cool.


Since all reports that colourbond is the same price as zincalume, you're better off getting colourbond.

Sadly some builders have got contractual arrangements to build all their houses with tiled roofs, they charge significantly more for a colourbond roof, when it should really be cheaper to go with a 'tin' roof.

Well you certainly would not have wanted to get it in Thredbo White then... makes Surfmist look like Classic Cream.

There is a relatively new colorbond color called
coolmax-whitehaven,which they claim has a
9% higher solar reflectance than surfmist.

I see a lot of people with Colourbond "monument" roofs.
People obviously want a dark coloured roof. In our estate I'd say maybe only 1 in 10 houses has colourbond and only 1 in 20 has a light coloured roof. I wonder how much energy is saved on cooling in summer. Colourbond vs Tile, light vs dark, etc.

I dont think it makes much difference personally. I have a monument roof with sarking, and on a warm day I could still go into the roof. For the last three years by elec bills have between 200-$250 per quarter and I run a 15kwatt refridferaged aircond.

The key to keep your house call is to keep direct sun off the walls and windows.

Forgot to mention I have a 1 kwatt solar power system.

With all those excellent comments, l think either either!! We went with what we liked the look off best, because both are pretty much equally as good as each other! Tiles look more classic in my opinion, where colour bond looks more modern! "being a female ! It's all about the look!

Hmmm so many good points. I think I may need to do some more research into the various insulation options, but at the end of the day I'll probably go for which ever suits the facade we choose. This forum has educated me quite a bit about colorbond & has definitely made it a contender

That would be interesting information, I like the darker tones/colours but if the savings are significant I could be convinced to compromise.

Someone in a thread on here somewhere did quite a bit of research into light vs dark colours on a roof with loads of supporting evidence and the truth of the matter was that it makes bugger all difference in terms of heat gain.

As for tiles versus colorbond and heat gain, colorbond transmits heat faster but doesn't retain heat and loses heat faster than tiles. So in summer heat may build up faster than a tiled roof but will cool down faster in the evening as it doesn't retain heat. In winter the heat retention of tiles can be a plus.

Which is better? Really it depends on what you like the look of most. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. A leak in a colorbond roof can be harder to trace and repair than a tiled. Cement tiles will break more easily than than terracotta ones. A colorbond roof is more resilient to hail but can just as easily be damaged in windy storms. You may find rain noise annoying on a colorbond roof, however conversely it may be a sound you enjoy. A tiled roof may require more maintenance.

I'd use either depending on how it looked with my house.

Bluesuede, I think maybe it was this thread:

viewtopic.php?f=20&t=65485

I was worried about the colour of my colorbond roof, and yes the summary is only very minor difference.

honestly I don't think there is much difference...

in theory metal conducts more..
if a tile breaks it's far easier to replace, try replacing a single sheet of colourbond, in theory if you get a dent in the colourbond it won't necessarily create a hole but that dent will NEVER come out, I've found that when walking around on colourbond it's VERY easy to dent and then it's that replacement pita.

I've noticed that plenty of old Colourbond installs have the paint eventually turn into a powder and fade, never seen that with tiles (but then I've never looked that closely)

colorbond all the way.. i've just spent a fortune hiring someone over to fix all the broken tiles on my roof... and my house is just 6yrs old... roof tiles get hairline cracks due to house movement, sun, etc.. if u dont fix it -> rain/water gets in -> bigger issue down the line.

And one more....If security is important go for colorbond. Tiled roofs are easily entered by burglars by just lifting off a few tiles and getting into your roof. Colorbond should slow them down some. I went with colorbond Jasper with a good knauff blanket and insulation in the roof. It's cool and quiet. I would never go tiles again. Just my 2c.