translucent roof sheeting

[T]

Hello Folks!

Anyone install translucent polycarbonate panels mixed with steel roofing (lexan maybe)? If so, I sure would like to see/hear about it. Especially the pro's/con's/do's/don'ts/if-I-ever-did-it-again etc... For example, I assume there maybe some variance in shrinking/expanding differences as well as sealing issues with the adjoining steel sheet?

I know there are some 'multi-walled' varieties that offer some insulation value, anyone perhaps work with these as roofing? I would be interested in again, how they mated with the steal sheeting if that's possible other than building a separate frame.

Also are there some preferred manufactures (SunSky?) that offer both steel and translucent systems that work 'together' (profiles match) which I guess is the crux of the questions I am posing here...

[Amanda_931]

John may have done this for his batch type water heater.

Over, IIRC, his patio or something.

I'm not a big fan of Lexan, or polycarbonate.  In my experience, for instance, Polycarbonate 5-gallon water bottles don't last very long--where I've had HDPE ones for a couple of years, mostly sitting outdoors.  High Density Poly Ethylene, I think.  They were free when I bought 3 gallons of water.  And apparently have fewer leaching concerns.  Not that that would stop most of us--even me, I expect--when it came to rain coming off the roof.

And, while this is true of almost all roofing at the big box stores, the Lexan stuff is always cracked and a mess there.  It does seem to be brittle.

So if you've got to use it as a skylight (I think the standard corrugated type comes in both steel and poly) buy it from the roofing supply people and not the big box guys.

[jraabe]

I have played with it but not in my own place. I have replaced all the 1985 plastic skylights (triple glazed!) with tempered glass.

No plastic will last like glass but some of the newer products will last longer in UV and sunlight than what I could get then. Consider such an installation to be a short term (15 year material) and you won't be disappointed. I do have some translucent (and cheap!) corrugated fiberglass roofing that has been up almost 30 years and still doing the job (but looking hazy).