Can You Paint Roof Shingles? What to Know (and When Not To)

If your shingled roof is old, leaking, or needs a style update, painting the shingles may seem like a good idea. Paint revives and protects other exterior parts of the home, so can you paint shingles, too?

Generally, you should not paint shingles. In a couple of limited applications, you may want to paint your shingles. The downsides far outweigh the few benefits of painting shingles and can lead to serious roof damage.

Types of Roofs That Can Be Painted

Painting roof shingles, or field-coating, is the application of a liquid coating to roofing shingles. Perceived benefits include energy savings, fixing roof leaks, and refreshing the roof’s appearance.

Yet only a flat roof or a low-slope roof with the following sheet (not shingle) roofing materials can be successfully painted:

• Asphalt
• Bitumen
• Granulated cap sheet
• Modified bitumen

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When to Paint Shingles

If you decide to paint shingles, only paint shingles on non-essential, uninhabited open-air structures like gazebos, picnic covers, or wood or storage sheds.

If you decide to paint inhabited structures like your primary residence, do so if the shingles and sheathing are in their last stages before replacement. 

Problems With Painting Roof Shingles

Roofing shingles are designed to lay loosely on the roof sheathing. Painting the shingles prevents the shingles from moving and it seals in moisture. 

Paint Shrinkage

When the roofing paint shrinks, it may draw in the shingles and cause the shingles to curl and cup. This is irreversible.

Loss of Shingle Granules

Paint loosens and removes granules from the shingles. Roofing granules are tiny mineral bits that are factory-applied to the shingles to give them color and to protect them from damaging sun rays.

Traps Moisture

Paint traps moisture under the shingles and sheathing. Paint and other coatings seal down the shingles as vapor retarders. This allows moisture to accumulate under the shingles and wood sheathing, causing the plywood sheathing to rot.

Prevent Warranty Claims

Painting the shingles may not invalidate the shingles’ limited warranty. However, damages that result from painting the shingles, like curling, cracking, and blistering, become the sole responsibility of the owner to fix. So, the damages that result from painting the shingles are outside of the limited warranty’s limitations.

May Not Be Permitted

Your local building codes or insurer may not allow a painted roof. It may alter the roof’s ability to withstand fire or present safety hazards when walked on.

Reapplication and Maintenance

Painted roof shingles require more maintenance and touchups than shingles that are left as-is. 

How to Paint Your Shingles

If you do decide to paint your roof shingles, first consult a roofing contractor. It may be less expensive and less troublesome to replace the roof using shingles of the desired color than to paint the existing shingles.

1. Inspect the roof: Inspect the roof and consult with a roofing professional.
2. Repair the roof: Clean the roof, then repair or replace shingles.
3. Test adhesion: Test the roof coating’s adhesion on an out-of-the-way section.
4. Prime the roof: Apply a substrate coating or primer to the roof.
5. Coat the roof: Coat the roof twice with a roller, sprayer, or brush.

Types of Paint to Use

Though painting shingles is not recommended, if you decide to paint your roof shingles, never use exterior or interior acrylic-latex paint. Instead, use the coatings used for low- or no-slope roofing systems: acrylic, silicone, or polyurethane roof coatings and primers.

• Acrylic: Acrylic roof coatings are best for mostly solid roofs.
• Silicone: Works well on roofs with adhesion problems.
• Polyurethane: This is a good option for a hard finish since it is highly resistant to abrasion and impact.

Pros and Cons