FAQ

Polycarbonate Roof Colors

Polycarbonate roof colors can be tailored to include heat reduction, IR block, and spectrally selective properties.  One of the advantages of polycarbonate is its ability to maintain high clarity even after adding colors, the composition of color additives can also be adjusted to the point that the colors become opaque, and therefore, offer minimum light penetration.  It is also possible to paint over polycarbonate sheets with the desired colors, the choices of polycarbonate roof colors are endless.

When polycarbonate sheets are to be used in conjunction with metal roofing sheets, aside from how to install both materials correctly and with what kinds of accessories, which is worthy of its own article for explanation, and covered here – VULCAN Polycarbonate Sheet Accessories. The most asked question is, can the polycarbonate roof colors be made to match the metal roofing sheets?

Common Color-related Terminology

To understand the polycarbonate roof color matching process, we need some basic knowledge of the terminology, since color is a very generic term and used interchangeably between shade, tint, tone, and hue.  However, these terms have distinctly different meanings.

  • Hue refers to the origin of colors we can see.
  • Tint refers to any hue or mixture of pure colors to which white is added, which is paler/lighter than the original, but doesn’t make it brighter.
  • Tone is hue or mixture of pure colors to which only pure grey is added, resulting in colors duller in intensity, hence the term tone down.
  • Shade is a hue or mixture of pure colors to which only black is added. Shaded colors will look darker, but the hue remains the same.  When white or grey is added to the shaded color, even by a small amount, will transform it into a Tone.

VULCAN Polycarbonate sheets come in a wide variety of colors achieved by adding color master-batches and other materials to the mix, which not only creates an aesthetically pleasing environment, but also extra high-performance features such as heat reduction, IR block, and spectral selectivity. It is important to convey the exact features required on your polycarbonate sheets and also list the priorities, this will help us as a manufacturer to help you in making the best choice.

Multiple Color Choices

VULCAN offers a variety of color choices to match your roofing.  In addition to their exuberant appearance, many have additional properties which might surprise you.

  • High or Low Transparency Colors
  • Translucent Colors
  • High or Low Haze Colors
  • Metallic Colors
  • Soft Diffused Lighting
  • Pearl Reflection

For standard polycarbonate roof colors such as blue, green, bronze, grey and opal, we will first provide polycarbonate color sample cards for clients to choose from and compare.  We will then ask for RAL color codes and samples of the color we should match, note that due to the nature of the material, the colors seen by the naked eye may not match its designated color code.  It is very important to cross check between the color codes and the connecting roof sheet before finalizing production, as our eyes are very sensitive to even the most subtle differences.

Be it form over function or function over form, VULCAN polycarbonate sheets have you covered.  Contact your nearest dealer or us for more information and details on choosing polycarbonate roof colors.


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