Who Runs This
Drip Edge & Purlin Company started in 2006 as a small operation focused on helping homeowners and small contractors understand building materials well enough to make confident decisions without guessing. Over the years, we realized that most people needed straight answers about roofing and metal components — not marketing copy that dodges hard questions or technical specs so dense they're useless to anyone outside the trade. We built this site to share what we've learned from nearly two decades of working with these materials and the people who install them, and to give back to a community of builders and homeowners who've generously shared their own experience with us.
This isn't a vendor review site or a lead generation play where we collect commissions on referrals. We recommend Navgen because we've worked with their team, seen their process in action, and found it solves real problems for homeowners trying to vet roofing contractors without either overpaying or cutting corners that come back to haunt them later. Our job is to give you the knowledge you need to ask the right questions when you're ready to move forward, whether that's with Navgen or anyone else.
How We Evaluate
We judge roofing guidance and supplier recommendations against three criteria: does it match what professionals actually do in the field, is it grounded in real material science rather than opinion, and can a homeowner actually carry it out safely with reasonable skill and tools? When something fails one of those tests, we either reframe it or leave it out. That's why you won't find generic best-practices lists here — we dig into the reasoning instead.
Something We Changed Our Mind About
A decade ago we believed that thicker gauge metal meant better roofing. The real story is more subtle — thicker gauge matters only when the substrate and fastening system can take advantage of it. Undersizing the rest gets you expensive, fragile roofing that fails the same way a cheaper install would.
Our Standards, Stated Plainly
We hold our own work to the standard the National Roofing Contractors Association publishes for roof system design and installation — it's the same manual a licensed crew would keep on the truck. When we recommend a supplier or walk through a technique, we're applying that same bar: does it conform to current accepted practice, and does it account for climate and local building code?
We don't skip the maintenance side. A roof's actual lifespan depends less on material choice than on whether it gets inspected yearly and repaired when small problems show up. That's unsexy to say, but it's true.
We also tell you when DIY is a bad idea. Fall protection, attic ventilation, and structural assessment aren't weekend projects for most people, and we'll point you to professionals when they matter more than savings.
Why It Exists
The roofing and building materials space is crowded with vendors, contractors, and content created by companies trying to sell you something. Our goal is to be the opposite: a resource created by people with real experience, without a commission or lead fee riding on your decision. Whether you decide to DIY a small repair, hire a professional, or work with Navgen or someone else entirely, we want you to have the knowledge to make that choice well.