How to Choose the Right Roof in Sydney – A Comprehensive Guide

A wise man once said, “If you want to buy a car, ask the mechanic, not the salesman.”

Well, the same thing goes for roofs.

Over the years, we have inspected thousands of leaking roofs and have seen firsthand how each different type of roof performs, their strengths and shortcomings, and where and how they fail.

This guide is for homeowners looking to choose the best type of roof for performance, maintenance, and longevity.

This guide is more related to functionality than visual appeal, as visual appeal is subjective.

Let’s take a look at the most common types of roofs in Sydney.

1. Colorbond Steel

An increasingly popular type of roof is the Australian-made Colorbond Steel.

Like any roof, it has its pros and cons.

Based on our experience, Colorbond roofs are least likely to leak or prematurely fail—providing they are installed properly in the first place, of course.

Colorbond roofs are easier to maintain and look after and cannot be cracked easily by falling branches, unlike tiles.

Colorbond is much more versatile and can handle different pitches and shapes that other roofs either cannot or struggle with.

Colorbond comes in various profiles and looks depending on the purpose, pitch, and desired look.

Colorbond offers special coating finishes for coastal properties for added corrosion protection.

Colorbond is usually a safer option for solar panel installation, provided the solar installer uses brackets designed for the type of Colorbond roof.

Another thing to note is that Colorbond is usually a better option for replacing old tile roofs. The reason being is that a Colorbond roof is lighter than a tile roof and will help strengthen the frame and the building to a degree.

Colorbond will rust eventually, but some basic maintenance will help extend the life of the roof (see our article How to Maintain Colorbond Roofs).

People often say that Colorbond is louder with rain or hail. This may be true; however, we have had mixed reports on this, with some people stating they are actually quieter than the previous tile roof. This may be because Colorbond is installed with roof insulation, and owners often have additional ceiling insulation installed at the same time.

We have also had mixed feedback when it comes to thermal performance, with some owners claiming they are more efficient and some saying they are less. There may be many reasons why this varies from house to house, including insulation, ventilation, color choice, ceiling cavity space, etc.

With a Colorbond roof, if efficiency has been reduced, there are always things that can be done to increase it again, such as additional ventilation or insulation.

There are a couple of other potential issues with Colorbond roofs that are not often talked about.

One is that water runs much faster on a Colorbond roof than on a tile roof. This can sometimes cause strain or overload in sections of guttering or if there is not enough drainage allowance. When changing to a Colorbond roof, the gutters and downpipes may need adjustment or additional allowances.

The other is the potential damage that can be caused by improperly installing solar panels, gutter guards, or other components on the roof. People who are not trained or experienced with this type of roofing can put brackets or fixings in the wrong places. Unlike a tile roof, where this sort of damage often requires replacing just the damaged tiles, a Colorbond roof can be ruined partially or entirely by poorly placed fixings.

See our article How to Ruin Your Colorbond Roof for more information and tips to ensure this doesn’t happen on your roof.

Pros and Cons:

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
✓ Long-lasting—can last for up to 70 years	✗ Requires more precise installation methods to make the roof last problem-free
✓ Easy to maintain	✗ Will eventually rust
✓ Less likely to develop problems when installed well	✗ May not be allowed for heritage-listed properties
✓ Handles low pitch and different shapes and angles	✗ Can be ruined by additional installations not done correctly
✓ Preferred option for tile roof replacements	✗ May require gutter or drainage upgrades
✓ Better for solar panel installation

Questionable:

• Potentially noisier
• May or may not be less efficient depending on the roof and other components

 2. Terracotta Tiles

Terracotta tiles are a classic Sydney look, having been introduced over 150 years ago.

They have natural thermal qualities that help keep the home cool in the heat.

Terracotta roofs are usually fairly reliable when not too old, compared to other types of tile roofs.

One of their better qualities is the interlocking and overlapping design. This helps keep the tiles in place around valleys and other angles.

They may be gentler than Colorbond on guttering systems as water will tend to run slower.

Terracotta roofs tend to perform better on steeper roofs with a 25-degree pitch and on roofs with simpler shapes. They can struggle or be problematic with a lower pitch and too many changes in roof angle.

They can be problematic in heavy leafy areas where valleys and other obstructions collect leaf debris more than on some other types of roofs. For this reason, they will require more frequent cleaning and maintenance.

Terracotta tiles should not be recommended under trees with large falling branches as even new tiles can crack fairly easily when struck by a branch.

A sort of plus side to this is that when tiles break, they will usually only require replacement of the cracked tiles and can be fixed simply.

We often see silicone “repaired” tiles left on the roof. A siliconed tile should only be considered a temporary repair, not a permanent repair. These will crack again eventually under sunlight.

Over time Terracotta tiles will slowly erode and start to crumble. This is referred to as “fretting.” The part of the tile that will begin to fret is the underlap or headlap, which is not visible when looking from the outside. This means that when these roofs get old, they can start to leak throughout the house without appearing to have any cracked tiles or other obvious issues.

Some terracotta tile manufacturers claim that close proximity to the ocean and salt in the air does not affect or reduce the life of terracotta tiles. Based on our experience inspecting roofs, terracotta roofs close to the ocean are more likely to fret.

Terracotta roofs require types of cement to close off and seal gaps around the ridges and edges of the roof. This cement requires maintenance and re-application every 10-15 years, which can add to maintenance costs.

Terracotta roofs can often handle solar panels well, provided they are not too old or soft and the pitch is not too low.

Pros and Cons:

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
✓ Long-lasting—lasting 50 years or more	✗ Easy to crack under falling branches and hail
✓ Naturally thermal	✗ Prone to blocking with leaves and debris
✓ Good interlocking design holding tiles in place	✗ Do not handle complex shapes or too many obstructions well
✓ Performs well on simple roof shapes with average or above pitch	✗ The lower the pitch, the more problematic
✓ Cracked tiles are easy to replace	✗ Maintenance is more frequent and generally more costly than Colorbond
	✗ Heavy and not ideal for replacing an old roof

3. Concrete Tiles

 

Concrete tiles are popular in Sydney as they are a bit more economical and come in various pre-painted colours.

They are promoted by some manufacturers as durable, and unlike other types of tile roofs that get softer or break down, concrete tiles get harder over time.

This may be true; however, what this also means is that they get stiffer and less flexible.

In this way, concrete tiles are more prone to damage and cracking than other types of tiles.

Out of all the roofs we inspect, more leaking concrete tile roofs are found than any other type of roof. This alone should tell you something about how they hold up compared to other types of roofs.

Concrete tile roofs do not handle pressure well—specifically, people walking on them.

People installing solar panels, cleaning gutters, or walking on the roof for any reason puts pressure on the tiles and can cause detectable or undetectable cracks.

There are a couple of ways older concrete tiles commonly crack.

The first is that they are prone to cracking on the underlapping part of the tile, also called a lap, side lap, or watercourse. This can be particularly difficult because by inspecting the tiles from the outside, there won’t appear to be any cracks or issues. Only by lifting tiles one by one will you be able to locate the cracked underlap. Often, the person who has cracked a lap will not even know unless they hear a small cracking sound or until the roof starts to leak.

The second way they crack is from the pressure of people walking on them. The pressure can cause small hairline cracks that develop over time into large leaking cracks.

Concrete tiles get hot in the sun and expand. They then shrink again when cold. It is this thermal expansion that causes small hairline cracks to eventually develop into large cracks.

For this reason, we do not recommend old concrete tile roofs be repainted.

Roof restoration is popular with these roofs when they get old. This is promoted by restoration companies to extend the life span of the roof and re-seal (waterproof) the tiles.

To the contrary, based on our experience, roof restoration reduces the lifespan of the roof.

Restoring a roof consists of a full pressure wash, followed by two coats of paint. This means that every tile on the roof will be walked on at least three times and have heavy machinery dragged over it.

Restoration companies can cause a lot of damage without even knowing it. Damage that will only show up some years down the line.

Or even worse, as we have sometimes seen, restorers knowingly crack tiles and, unbeknown to the homeowner, use paint, silicone, or cement to glue them together. When the paint or cement finally cracks, these leaks can show up like spot fires.

Another misconception with restorations: repainting tiles does little, if anything, to reseal or waterproof them. Concrete tiles, coated or not, will not leak without cracks.

The best thing you can do for a concrete tile roof is to stay off it. A concrete tile roof could last a very long time if no one ever touched it. Unfortunately, this is probably not possible. They will require maintenance like all other types of roofs.

Concrete tiles, like terracotta, can be easily cracked by falling branches or hail.

Concrete tiles will usually perform worse with solar panels as they can be easily cracked by the position of solar mounting brackets, and solar installers often have to grind off part of the top of the tile, which can cause potential leak spots.

Concrete tiles perform worse than terracotta under lower pitches (25 degrees or under) as the top part of the tile, also known as the headlap, is flat and does not have a raised barrier preventing wind-driven water from blowing upwards.

Pros and Cons:

✅ Pros	❌ Cons
✓ Last 50 years or more	✗ Crack easily
✓ Perform well when left alone	✗ Potential to cause damage not well understood by most, including roof restorers
✓ Not prone to deterioration by being near the ocean	✗ Leaks can be hard to locate on old deteriorating roofs
✓ May be more economical initially	✗ Prone to blocking with leaves and debris
	✗ Do not handle complex shapes or too many obstructions well
	✗ The lower the pitch, the more problematic
	✗ Often do not perform well with solar panel installation
	✗ Maintenance is more frequent and generally more costly than Colorbond or other types of tiles
	✗ Heavy and not ideal for replacing an old roof
	✗ May perform well, but only when left alone. Since this is generally not possible, this is also listed as a con.

 

4. Specialty Roofs

Specialty roofs such as slate, copper, aluminium, and zinc, to name the more common ones, can outperform all roof types listed above.

However, their price and availability are massively different from the above and therefore are not comparable. People who want or need these roofs will usually know it and will not be in the market for the type of roofs we have listed above.

5. Uncommon Types of Roofs
 

There are some other uncommon types of roofs that are comparable in price and availability to the above. However, we would generally not recommend them.

Roofs such as types of metal or aluminium tiles (known as Decramastic tiles) are impossible to repair and damage easily. We do not recommend using these.

Cedar shingles look great when new but are expensive, do not last as long, and require a lot of upkeep to make them last as long as possible.

We recommend using commonly used types of roofs unless there is a specific reason for an uncommon roof.

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