I would bet all my riches that you are either a homeowner curious about this topic or someone with an intention to put this information to use. Did I guess correctly? If not I am going to close my fortune telling services down for good. Now if I said I'd bet a new open valley roof system would you know what that is? If not you clicked into the perfect place. I will not only educate you on open valley roof systems but closed valley roof systems as well. In this Homeowner Edition we will keep things very straight forward.

First of all what is a "valley"

A valley is any section of your roof where two roof slopes meet. If you have a home with an attached garage you most likely have a valley. The valley would be formed where two slopes meet like one from your home and one from your garage. There are 2 basic types of valleys and those are open and closed. Each one functions to keep water and ice from getting inside of your home. This is a big trouble making area on roofs that leaks can source from. Because of this when installing a valley roof system extra underlayment is added to the valley lining. Now do you prefer a closed or open valley? Let's dive a little deeper so you can answer that question with confidence.

What is a closed valley?

A closed valley roofing system is taking the valley on your home and covering it professionally with the same material that covers the rest of your roof. Literally you "close" the valley making it almost disappear. A closed valley will have your roof looking more seamless where 2 different slopes meet. Your shingles or shakes will meet each other across the valley which is referred to as a closed valley. This could be a favorite depending on the style you want to go with.

What is an open valley?

Now the other option is an open valley roofing system. In a nutshell you are taking the valley and instead of closing it you leave it open. What does that mean exactly? It means that instead of bringing the roofing materials from 2 slopes together over a valley you keep them separated a couple of inches. This means your valley is open. This does require additional work from the roofing team because it involves more materials. The extra material is a piece of metal that is bent in a "w" or "v" and it gets place on the valley. It's function is to also keep water from leaking inside your home. This creates an "open" valley which can be more appealing depending on what you looking for. The metal can be painted to compliment the color of the roofing material that was used.

Why open valley is better than closed valley

Honestly this title is controversial. It really is something that people can just go off of preference. Some in the industry favor one over the other for their own reasons or particular experiences. The question to be asked is how do you feel about these two systems? Which system would you prefer on your roof?