Faux Slate Mistaken For Real Slate
This is a home for sale that I was asked to inspect a while back. The roof was said to be a real slate roof which is a product we generally refer to our friends at Scottie Ballentyne Roofing, but a good customer requested an inspection of this property they were about to purchase. At first glance this looks like a real slate roof; however, looks can be deceiving.
What Are Faux Slate Roofs
Close up examination revealed that this was without a doubt a man-made product. The paint was actually peeling off in a few areas. Paint, by the way, made this an even odder as no roofs are painted for a long list of reasons I will save for another time. A few more twist to this one was that there were two very different classes of faux slates on the same property. The mansard roof (s
teep vertical walls) were cement fibered and the upper roof was a more common synthetic high-tech polymer.
Cement Fiber Shakes & Slates
The mansard roof was one of these products. This general class of products has failed and is no longer made. Great caution should be had when purchasing a home with this product on it. One possible saving grace is that this product was installed only on the mansard portion of the property. The steeper the pitch of the roof, the more forgiving things are. Even a flawed product like this possibly could be functional for some time. As a roofing profession, I just could not sign off on this at all. Proceed with caution.