How to choose your roof colour

Choosing a colour for your roof painting or roof restoration project is a decision you want to make with knowledge and confidence. You will be adding value to your home and looking at it for the next 10+ years.

Choosing your roof colour at a glance

Roof colours appear much lighter on your roof than in your colour chart
Get a sample from your paint store.
Choose colours of the same undertone, warm or cool.
Follow The Golden Rule – 60-30-10
Contrast is essential
Consider any other changes you will be making to your home’s exterior

The key points in when choosing a colour for your roof in detail

Are you painting more than your roof?

Think of the next five years in your home. Do you plan to change the colour of your exterior walls, guttering, fascia, garage, or front door? These must be kept in mind while making the decision on choosing your roof colour. You do not want to match the existing colour palette if you will be changing it sooner than later.

If you plan to change the colour of other parts of your home’s exterior, go to Bunnings and get colour swatches of your future colours to ensure they work well together. You are better off to have your Roof clash with the existing colours for a short time, rather than it clash once you’ve invested in changing the other colours of your homes exterior.

Your home’s exterior consists of:

Roof
Exterior walls
Trims, gutters, fascia
Accent, doors, poles, features.
Here we will cover the key points in detail to consider to achieve a cohesive look on your homes exterior.

The long term vision

Your homes exterior consists of:

- Roof
- Exterior walls
- Trims, gutters, fascia
- Accent, doors, poles, features.

Fixed Elements

Always consider the elements in your home that cannot be changed easily. The colours need to tie seamlessly into these.

These elements may consist of:

Brick work
Stone work
Fencing
Driveway

The Golden Rule

The Golden Rule that interior designers use to keep a homes colour pallet balanced is the 60-30-10 rule.

60% being your primary colour. Generally, this would be the exterior wall of your home.

30% being the secondary colour, your Roof.

10% being your accent, your trims, shutters, doors, garage.

The Three Colour Limit

The rule of some is choosing three colours on your homes exterior that all work well together, while using The Golden Rule. This prevents the home exterior from appearing disjointed or looking too busy and gives a professional finish. You will be choosing your primary colour, your secondary colour, and your accent colour.

Nature Always Gets It Right

When in doubt, go neutral. Neutral colours are timeless and will need to be changed less frequently in comparison to bold, bright colours like orange or bright blue. We have all driven past a house that was painted in a bright colour. Although it certainly catches your attention. This choice will age very quickly.

Contrast Is Essential

You need to have a strong contrast between the main body and the trim and accents to make your home’s features pop. If you keep too close to the same colour, it will look underwhelming, and you will not be able to put your finger on why it looks flat.

Colour Undertones

This is something a common mistake. All colours have undertones, either warm or cool. When choosing colours, do not mix these undertones.

The best way to clearly see the undertone of a colour you are considering is by holding a true white piece of paper behind that colour. Colours can look different depending on what they are next to, which is why it is important to obtain colour swatches before making a final decision. If you are in doubt about the colour’s undertone, be sure to ask your Roofer or the assistant at your local paint shop.

Keep it in the family

Keeping the colour selections for all of your home’s exterior in the same undertone will ensure the colours work well together, looking more like sisters rather than distant cousins.

Only Changing The Roof Colour?

The same rules still apply. Make sure you are choosing a colour for your Roof in the same undertone as your exterior walls and follow The Golden Rule.

Roof colour inspiration

To help visualise colours, have a look at the homes with similar exterior wall colour and the colour of their roof. What appeals to you and what does not?

Pulling existing colours

Much like when we dress ourselves, when we paint our homes. It is great to pull existing colours together. If you have a Basalt Garage Door, you could tie this together with your front door and Roof, having lighter walls.

Popular Roof Colours

There was a time when charcoal ruled 99% of roof restoration and roof painting projects. This has begun to shift from the Hampton style movement. We are now seeing a lot more lighter roofs than ever before.

Trending Colour Schemes

If you are looking for inspiration, these Dulux colour schemes work well together. If you already have one of the existing colours in the schemes below, you may want to consider the other two. Generally, you will find two colours of a similar tone with a very light accent colour.

Colour scheme One

Colorbond Monument – Linseed – Natural White

Colour Scheme Two

Surfmist – Casper White Quarter – Hammer Grey

Colour Scheme Three

Colourbond Basalt – Silkwort – Lexicon Half

Colour Scheme Four

Colourbond Ironstone – Grey Pail – Lexicon

Colours look different on your roof

Colours will look darker inside on a colour chart compared to on your roof in a large mass under direct light. For example, Colourbond Surf Mist appears to be almost beige on a colour chart indoors. Went on a roof, Colourbond Surf Mist appears white. Colours will look much lighter on your roof than they appear – you must keep this in mind.

Samples Are Essential

Once you have narrowed down your roof colour decision, go to your local paint shop and ask for colour samples. If you are planning on changing other parts of your home’s exterior, get those colour samples too. Let the samples dry completely and then view them under direct light. Remember, your roof is angled, so angle the sample as it would sit in the sun if possible. If you have spare roof tiles, you could paint the sample on the roof tile. Although it is not a roof membrane, you will not be able to use this tile in the future, as it will lift and peel underneath the new paint.

In Conclusion, When Choosing Your Roof Colour

In conclusion, choosing the colour of your roof is a big decision. Don’t leave it until the last minute to choose. Take your time and go through each of these key points to get a clear idea of what will work with your home. Be sure to get samples and remember the Golden Rule, undertones and contrast.

If you need guidance when choosing the colour of your roof, our team is here to help. Feel free to reach out for a complimentary discussion of what colours would best suit your home. Click here or call our team on 1300 166 209

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Phone 1300 166 209

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