HAVE A HOME ON THE COAST? PROS SAY YOU MUST PAY ATTENTION TO 5 ESSENTIAL RULES IF YOU WANT YOUR ROOF TO LAST
- darcie750
- Dec 26, 2025
- 4 min read
Marine environments present homeowners with special challenges. Here’s how to protect your home with the best roofing options for a coastal home.
Key Points:
Homeowners living near coastlines need to pay attention to special maintenance and building considerations due to regional conditions, such as salty air, intense sun and high winds.
Especially when it comes to your roof, experts advise selecting materials and installation methods suitable for marine environments.
Quality metal roofing is a great choice for homes on the coast. With proper material selection, installation and maintenance, homeowners can enjoy their metal roof for many years to come.
Who doesn’t dream of living along an ocean shore? That’s why so many homeowners gravitate towards coastal living.
But owning a home near the coast isn’t always a breeze. There are special building and ongoing maintenance requirements when living in an area that gets a lot of salty ocean air, intense sun and high winds.
That’s especially true for roofs. Quality metal roofing is known for its exceptional performance and is a smart choice for marine environments, but attention to detail is a must. According to MRA experts, these five key factors when using metal roofs for marine and coastal applications are essential for long-lasting protection and performance:
#1: It’s all about location, location, location
Not all marine environments are created equal. Drier coastal environments with light rainfall and heavy breaking ocean surf that cause spray and salty air (such as in Southern California) are harder on roofs and exterior building materials. Areas that receive greater rainfall help regularly rinse off salt, assisting in protecting roofs.
Proximity also matters: The closer to the shoreline, the more building materials bear the brunt and corrosive effects of salty air. Paint and material suppliers typically define marine environments by distance from salt water, ranging from 1,000 feet to one mile. But not all suppliers use the same definitions, nor do they all require the same paint system. Roofing experts advise reviewing warranties carefully for specific product specifications, durations and maintenance requirements.
#2: Choose alloys with coastal advantages
Aluminum, anodized aluminum, stainless steel, zinc and copper are preferred for coastal environments due to their corrosion resistance. Architectural zinc products offer “self-healing,” low-maintenance, corrosion-resistant performance but can be expensive. Zinc coatings, i.e., galvanized or Galvalume coated steel, protect steel from corrosion, and typically offer more affordable protection.
High performance coatings, pretreatments, primers and finish coats that serve as a barrier also can help augment and maximize protection in coastal environments, but it’s important to pay close attention to manufacturers’ performance guidelines and recommendations.
A big “no-no” is using sub-quality or the wrong mix of metals for any part of the roofing system. Even if they are not visible, non-resistant and the wrong type of accessories, clips and fasteners for the can speed up the corrosion process and can lead to failure. Stainless components should never be in direct contact with aluminum, Galvalume, or galvanized metal panels and dissimilar metals can cause galvanic corrosion and greatly impact performance.
Roofing material manufacturers can provide guidance on the best choices for accessory materials to ensure all components of a metal roofing system are suitable for marine environments.
#3: Pay attention to installation details
All areas of a metal roof should have natural drainage and avoid causing salt water to dam. Roofing installers say that any roofing design that traps or holds salty moisture and prevent fresh water rinsing should definitely be avoided. Remember that a sloped roof is your friend in coastal environments: a low slope roof may allow salty water to sit for too long , making it subject to more severe corrosion conditions.
In coastal environments, even how materials are stored prior to installation and attached to the roof decking can greatly impact longevity and performance. Minimizing exposure, including any unprotected edge is critical. Concealed fasteners are recommended to help minimize exposure to corrosive environments. Some experts advise a “hemmed” installation, meaning exposed metal edges are folded and tucked underneath so they are not exposed to environmental elements.
Bottom line: the fewer discontinuities, cuts and penetrations, the better. It’s also why it’s important to look for roofing installers who are experienced and familiar with how to install a long-lasting roof with your regional conditions in mind.
#4: Plan for long term care
Metal roofs are super simple to clean and maintain. Often, it only takes a gentle rinse of water and maybe some mild soap to maintain a beautiful metal roof and help ensure its long life.
However, homeowners in coastal conditions may want to remind themselves to rinse their roofs a little more frequently, especially if they live in areas with little rainfall and saltier air. Consider washing or rinsing roof areas where overhangs prevent rainfall from washing away salt spray deposits to protect its long-term reliability. Once again, your manufacturer’s recommendations are your best guide to properly maintain and care for your metal roof.
#5: Salty air is just the start
Homeowners in coastal areas need to consider all potential conditions, not just salty air. Hurricane force winds often go hand in hand with shoreline living. Hail is sometimes a challenge and intense sun, high humidity, and heat are common in coastal climates ranging from Florida and California to Hawaii. Roof systems need to be designed to handle and perform under these intense and extreme climate conditions, making strong, quality metal roofs with high performance coatings and experienced installation practices a must.