A Victorian in Cabbagetown and a converted building in Liberty Village have almost nothing in common except that both are difficult to roof well. Narrow lots, tight access, neighbours a metre away, and in the older neighbourhoods a roofline nobody wants changed. Highland has been working in Toronto since 2004, and most of the job is the detailing rather than the panel.
Half of a Toronto roof is access: laneways too tight for a truck, no driveway, and a street that cannot be closed. Working out how material gets up and waste comes down is part of the quote, not something to sort out on the day.
The housing stock is genuinely old. Victorian roofs have steep pitches, dormers, turrets and valleys that were cut by hand, and a metal profile that suits a bungalow will look wrong on all of it. That is a conversation about profile and colour before it is one about price.
Toronto
Toronto's heritage conservation districts
Toronto has around three dozen heritage conservation districts, including several in Cabbagetown, two in Harbord Village and one along Queen Street West. If your house is in one, a change of roofing material is something to take to the City's heritage planning staff before it goes on the roof.
It is a conversation worth having early. A low-relief profile in a quiet colour can look as though it has always been there, and it is far easier to agree that before the order is placed than after.
Toronto
Steep fronts and flat backs
A lot of Toronto houses have a steep main roof at the front and a low-slope addition or porch roof at the back. Every metal profile has a minimum pitch, and below it the panel is the wrong product. The quote should say exactly which parts of the roof the metal covers, and what happens to the rest.
01
Roofing homes in Toronto
Many houses in the Annex, Leslieville and the east end are semi-detached or row houses, where the roof meets the neighbour's at the party wall.
Most of the decision is the profile rather than the colour. A deep tile like Banff suits older roofs with steep pitches and plenty of visible surface; Standing Seam is flatter and cleaner and sits better on a long modern run. Banff is available in black only; Standing Seam offers eight finishes.
Eight finishes
Black 9005 through Terra Cotta 8004, on every profile except Banff.
Snow
sheds rather than holds it, so there's less weight on the structure and less ice building at the eaves.
Summer heat
reflective coatings cut how much reaches the roof deck.
02
Commercial roofing
In Liberty Village and Queen West a lot of the commercial stock is converted industrial — big flat roofs on buildings that were never designed to be looked at from above.
On a commercial building the case for metal is mostly about what stops happening. Flat and low-slope roofs need attention on a cycle, and that cycle costs money whether or not anything has actually gone wrong — inspections, recoating, patching, and scaffolding booked every few springs. Metal takes most of it off the calendar.
Fasteners
Standing Seam fixes with concealed fasteners, so there are no exposed screws to work loose.
Finish
matched to the existing brick, cladding or curtain wall rather than fighting it.
Long runs
panels are rolled in Europe and cut to the building, so there are fewer joints.
03
New builds and custom homes
New building in the city is mostly infill — a new house on an old street, usually taller than the ones either side.
The useful time to involve a roofer is while it is still on paper. Pitch, valley detailing and how the panel meets the fascia are all cheaper to resolve at the drawing stage than on site. We would rather be in the conversation with your architect early than be handed a finished deck and asked to make it work.
Early involvement
we work with architects and builders through detailing, not just at installation.
Seven profiles
the roof can be part of the design rather than a constraint on it.
Lifespan
metal outlasts asphalt by a wide margin, which matters on a house you intend to keep.
04
Eavestroughs
On a narrow lot there is nowhere for water to go but the neighbour's property, which makes where the downspouts discharge a real decision rather than an afterthought.
Metal sheds water fast — that is the point of it — but it does mean more water reaches the eavestrough in less time than a shingle roof would send down. Undersized or leaking gutters are the usual reason water ends up sitting against a foundation, so we size the system to the roof rather than fitting it afterwards.
Coated steel
four protective layers, warranted 40 years by the system's manufacturer.
Sized to the roof
metal sheds water faster than shingle does, so the system is sized for the roof rather than matched to whatever was on the house before.
Coordinate the eavestrough finish with your chosen roof. Confirm the available materials and colours.
SEVEN PROFILES. UP TO EIGHT COLOURS.
Roofing in Toronto: questions
Can I put a metal roof on a house in a Toronto heritage district?
Possibly. Toronto has around three dozen heritage conservation districts, including Cabbagetown, Harbord Village and Queen Street West. Check with the City's heritage planning staff before changing the roofing material; Highland can help you choose a profile and colour to take to them.
My house has a low-slope section at the back. Can that be metal too?
It depends on the pitch. Each metal profile has a minimum slope it can be used on. Highland will measure the roof, and the quote will say which sections the metal covers.
Do you repair metal roofs in Toronto, including ones you didn't install?
Yes. Highland assesses and repairs metal roofs, re-seals and coats them, and does seasonal maintenance, including on roofs it did not install.
Roofing in Toronto?
Free, no-obligation quote.