Oh, Hail! Impact Testing of Composite Roof Tiles

By DaVinci Roofscapes. 

Why homeowners trust and invest in Class A rated composite roof tiles.

Manmade composite roofing tiles are generally known for both their beauty and low maintenance features. But what about standing up to Mother Nature? When the winds blow and hail drops from the sky, how does composite roofing handle severe weather? 

It helps to start by understanding that the roof is a “system” on your home. For most roofs, there are six items that are installed to help protect your house and valuables. Those are the decking, self-adhering membrane, underlayment, drip-edge, flashing and nails. These are all installed before the roofing shingle itself. 

Benefits of Class A rated composite roofing 

Fortunately for homeowners, there are a number of industry tests that all roofing products must go through and be rated on. If you’re specifically considering a composite roof, this gives you a way to understand how a composite tile can stand up to hail. Just as when you were in school, there’s the ability to pass the test with flying colors, or limp along with average ratings. 

State Farm Insurance reports that Underwriters Laboratories (UL) and FM Approvals are two organizations generally used to rate the impact resistance of roofing materials. Either steel balls or ice balls — in different sizes — are launched from varying heights and speeds at composite roofing (see video). Those roofing tiles with the least impact damage earn the highest rating — a Class 4 impact rating. 

Here’s another reason we’re mentioning insurance companies. When you invest in composite roofing that has achieved Class 4 impact rating, like the slate and shake tiles made by DaVinci Roofscapes, you should talk with your insurance company. Many of them offer long-term discounts on homeowners insurance for homes with composite roofs. 

They offer year-after-year savings because they understand that Class 4 impact rated composite roofing will stand up to hail. That makes it unlikely they’ll have to repeatedly replace your roof in the future when Mother Nature calls on your area. 

What homeowners are saying  

It’s not unusual for strong hail storms to sweep through Texas several times a year. The Taylor family got tired of it. Tired of replacing their roof. Tired of the hassles. To stop the “hail headaches,” the homeowners installed a Class 4 rated DaVinci Single-Width Slate roof. 

“We decided to invest in a DaVinci roof because we liked their slate look that has lots of depth and character on each shingle,” says Larry Taylor. “The choice of colors was terrific, and we liked the low maintenance and fire resistance of the product. But most importantly, this roofing has been tested and warranted for impact. We don’t want to have to replace another roof again in our lifetime.” 

In Jefferson City, Missouri, baseball-sized hail demolished the cedar roof on Samuel Baker’s home. After the storm, Baker was in a quandary. He loved the look of his old cedar roof, but never wanted to worry about another hail storm again. That’s when his roofer suggested a top-of-the-line Select Shake roof. 

“I’d never heard of a synthetic roof until Black & White Roofing brought it to our attention,” says Baker. “We need a roof we can count on to handle future storms. However, we also want to keep the same cedar shake look that was original to our almost 70-year-old home. The durability and natural appearance of the Select Shake roof allows us to do that. 

“With the Aged Cedar tiles the roof will look new all the time. We feel this roof really modernizes the look of the house. Above all, the big bonus is that we can rest easy whenever future hail storms blow through our area!” 

Product specifics 

DaVinci Roofscapes makes both composite slate and shake roofing tiles, in a variety of styles and sizes. Every product line is tested and is UL2218 Class 4 impact rated, and also high wind resistant. This means that the roofing tiles can stand up extremely tough weather. 

As with all composite roofing from DaVinci, the tiles are impervious to freeze/thaw cycles, color fade resistant and Class A fire rated (with specified underlayments). They are also resistant to insects, fungus and algae growth. And, every imitation slate and shake tile from DaVinci is 100 percent recyclable and Made in the USA. 

Find a product comparison chart of DaVinci products to other types of roofing here And, to learn more about hail testing on all types of roofing materials, visit the hail research report from the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety®. 

Learn more about DaVinci Roofscapes. 

Have a question? AskARoofer.   

Find your local roofing contractor in the RoofersCoffeeShop® Contractor Directory.