Discover Cool Roofing with COLORBOND® steel

Pale roof colours have been a much-loved trend for years. They’re a timeless choice that can be used in many different architectural styles, so it’s easy to see why. But beyond aesthetics, there’s an increased interest, from renovators, builders, and designers alike, in understanding the benefits of pale roofs, such as their energy efficiency and the thermal comfort they offer.

This interest is driven by many factors, including energy efficiency requirements, rising energy costs, and of course, changing weather conditions, such as increasing temperatures. 

As roofing is such an important consideration for your home, we’re sitting down with the team at COLORBOND® steel to learn more about the benefits of cool roofing.

What is Cool Roofing?

A ‘cool roof’ is made from materials designed to have high solar reflectance and thermal emittance to help keep the roof surface temperature cooler in the sun. Ultimately, light-coloured roofs remain cooler than dark-coloured roofs. This is because light-coloured roofs reflect more visible sunlight and therefore, have lower Solar Absorptance (SA) than darker colours. 

Cool roofs help reduce the intensity of Urban Heat Islands, (which essentially refers to the extra heat that’s trapped in urban areas, making them significantly hotter than rural areas), as well as help maintain thermal comfort which can minimise energy demand in buildings. 

Coastal by COLORBOND® steel on Style Sourcebook.

Palm Springs by COLORBOND® steel on Style Sourcebook.

Did you know that during hot sunny weather, the surface temperature of a light-coloured roof can be up to 35°C cooler than a dark-coloured roof?

Now that you’re familiar with cool roofing, it’s time to dive into the benefits and the range of colours available to choose from for your next project. We sat down with BlueScope’s Design & Colour Consultant, Christine McCoy, to discover more. 

Thanks for chatting with us Christine, can you elaborate on the benefits of the COLORBOND^® steel paler toned roofing colours and their thermal performance?

Using cool roofing materials, such as paler toned COLORBOND^® steel colours in your next project has the potential to provide you with a range of benefits. These include helping to improve the homeowner’s thermal comfort and reduce energy consumption and demand due to reduced need for air conditioning, and enhanced solar panel performance. There are also environmental benefits, as reduced energy consumption helps lower greenhouse gas emissions and cooler roofs can also contribute to mitigating the effects of Urban Heat Islands*. 

Modern Country by COLORBOND® steel on Style Sourcebook.

Vintage Luxe by COLORBOND® steel on Style Sourcebook.

Can you tell us more about the COLORBOND^® steel colour palette and its thermal properties?

Inspired by nature and developed for our diverse and extreme environments, COLORBOND^® steel has always celebrated the colours, textures and light of Australia’s unique landscapes. 

What’s particularly exciting is that 21 of the 22 colours in a Classic finish (excluding Night Sky^®), as well as all six in a Matt finish, feature Thermatech^® solar reflectance technology. This technology enhances solar reflectance across the colour range, resulting in lower SA helping to keep your roof cooler. It’s particularly effective on darker colours, allowing homeowners to choose from a wider range of options without compromising on thermal performance. 

You can check the SA values in the colour chart below to make an informed choice about your roof colour.

Discover more about the COLORBOND^® steel range of colours, technologies, and SA values on the COLORBOND® steel website. Or begin building your dream exterior with our mood board tool, which features a range of COLORBOND^® steel products.

*Results will depend on roof colour, roof shape, level and location of insulation, type, location, shape and function of the building. 

COLORBOND® steel colour swatches and images shown in this brochure have been reproduced to represent actual product colours as accurately as possible. However, we recommend checking your chosen colour against an actual sample of the product before specifying, as varying light conditions and limitations of the printing process may affect colour tones.

COLORBOND®, Thermatech® and ® colour names are registered trade marks of BlueScope Steel Limited (ABN 16 000 011 058). TM colour names are trade marks of BlueScope Steel Limited. All rights reserved.