ROOF STRUCTURES & COVERINGS
Lecturer: Dr Joseph Kangwa
1 Dr
Joseph
Kangwa
The Definition of a Roof
A final level (layer) of a building which
protects the dwelling and its occupants from
all vagaries of weather.
Framework of either timber, steel or concrete
on which a covering of thatch, corrugated iron
or asbestos, asphalt, tiles etc is placed.
A protective covering that covers or forms part
of a roof.
Final covering that prevents ingress of
weather into the interior of a building.
The Classification of Roofs
A Flat Roof: This is a roof whose pitch (slope/slant) lies
between 0 & 10 degrees.
A Pitched Roof: a roof whose pitch is over 10 degrees.
Any roof over 70 degrees is classified as a Wall.
DEFINITION OF ROOFS (continued)
SLOPED or FLAT – roofs cannot be truly flat.
flats roofs are laid with a slight slope or gradient to dissipate unwanted
loading easily.
roofs are often designed to have sufficient slope to drain/run off snow and
rain.
the angle of pitch is governed by the type of finish/covering to be applied.
Basic Functional Requirements
Roofs should: Primarily exclude weather. This implies that
any roof should:
Keep out the rain, wind, snow and dust.
Prevent the excessive heat loss in winter.
Keep the interior of a building cool in summer.
Accommodate, via design, all stresses imposed on it.
Provide adequate airtightness.
Provide resistance to the weather.
Allow for movement due to changes in temperature and
moisture content.
Provide the necessary lateral restraint and stability to
adjacent walls.
Additional Functional Requirements
In addition to strength and stability, Roofs should also:
Provide adequate security.
Provide adequate thermal and sound insulation,
Admit or control solar radiation and daylight,
Provide adequate fire safety,
Be durable, maintenance free and easy to clean,
Comply with the relevant Approved Documents of the
Building Regulations,
Comply with relevant Health & Safety and CDM
Regulations.
Dimensional stability: over time, a roof
must be robust, strong & resilient.
Over a period of time when the ridge and purlins are misaligned
due to loss of strength, many other roof members will also weaken.
As the roof is the most exposed part of a building, the continued
exposure to gustily winds with reduced restraint to any form of lateral
loading may lead to loss of tiles as evidenced by the irregular roof line
here.
Summary of Functional Requirements
Primary (Weather Shield) Secondary (Robustness)
Weather resistance
Durability
Rain
Snow Drainage
Wind Sound
Sun Maintenance
Dirt/Dust
User functionality
Thermal resistance
Daylight
Heat loss
Ventilation
Heat gain
Aesthetics
Security
Natural light
Fire resistance
Ventilation
Reduce condensation
and finally, a function that is often overlooked
is that of Aesthetics: the visual appearance or
beauty of a home is defined by its roof.
Roof Shapes, Types &
Terminology
Traditional Classification Close
of Roofs
Couple
Roof
Lean-To Roof
Type 1a: Lean-To Roof
Flashing at junction between roof ridge
and abutment wall
Gutter
RWP Verge
Badge board
Fascia board
Type 1b: Monopitch Roof: has an
independent single pitch or slope.
Half Round Ridge Tiles
Gutter
RWP Verge
Badge board
Fascia board
Double Lean-To
Roof
Gutter bearer
Traditional Classification of Roofs: Couple roof
100X 50mm rafters
@ 400C/C
Lean-To Roof
Each pair or couple of rafters is pitched against each other & supported at
the upper ends at the ridge. Couple roof is not suitable for buildings of
larger spans as ridge support lends a building to spread at the feet.
Response of Couple Roof rafters to
structural loading
Common rafters as
loadbearing members
tend to stress the walls
on which they bear
causing them to thrust
out. This is prevented by
Roof tends to designing in collars, tie
spread and overturn beams, or ceiling joists
the walls as restraint ties.
Closed Couple Roof
100 X 50mm 32 mm thick
collar or ceiling ridge board
joists at ceiling
level, not only
ties rafter at
foot restrains Half lap-collars or ties
walls from dovetailed at junction with
spreading out 4.8m maximum rafters and wall plate. The
ties or collars prevent
rafters from spreading
outwards.
A typical Closed Couple roof
You can just about
see the foot of the
rafters and the ties Courtesy of Oakmasters
A typical Closed Couple roof
Rafters
Purlins
Wall plate/
beams
Courtesy of Oakmasters
Traditional Classification of Roofs….continued: Collar Roof
100 X 50mm Ridge board
collar joists or
tie placed at R = Rise
height from the
ceiling/wall 1/3R
plate position.
Half lap-collars or ties
dovetailed at junction with
The closer the tie or rafters. The ties or collars
collar is to the ceiling 5.5m maximum prevent rafters from
level the more restraint spreading outwards.
it provides towards
tendency for the walls
to spread out.
Traditional Classification of Roofs: Double Roof
Ridge board
Purlin
100mm X 50mm Hunger
Hunger fixed to
collar @ 1600c/c
Half Round Ridge Tiles
Type 2: Gable End Roof
Ridge ventilators Verge
Roof light
Verge
Fascia
board
Eaves
Barge
Gutter
board
Rain water pipes -
Gabled end
rwp
Type 3: Double Hipped End
Roof
Hips
Hips
23 B
Gaule
Dormer window
Valley with pitch roof
Double-hipped end and gable end
Hip
combined with a
Apex or ridge
Gabled end roof
Apex or ridge
Roof light Hipped end
Verge
Barge
board
Gabled end Rain water
Fascia
pipes -rwp
board
Type 4: MANSARD OR GAMBREL
ROOF
Roof Apex or Ridge
Hipped end Ventilators
(External)
Valley
Verge or
overhang
Rain Water Pipes Gutter
a v e s o r
(RWP) E
v e r h ang
o
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Joseph
Kangwa
Variations of
Gambrel or
Mansard
Roofs
The double
pitch
provides
Gable adequate
end wall space for a
room in a
roof
General Roof Terminology
In order to understand the functions of roofs, it is important to have a
good knowledge of the generic terminology:
Ridge: the spine of a roof; a pitching plate to which the Rafters
are nailed through the Ridge board. The pinnacle of a roof; the
terminations of the inclined surfaces at the top of the slope
The Depth of a Ridge board is determined by the pitch of a roof:
the steeper the pitch the deeper will the slot that is cut to
accommodate the Ridge board.
Spar or Common Rafters: These are the main loadbearing
members. They span between the apex or ridge and a wall plate at
eaves level. The head of a spar is the upper end and the foot is
the lower end.
External leaf
General Roof Terminology
Span: This is taken to be the clear span - horizontal distance - between
the internal faces of the walls supporting the roof.
Rise: The vertical height measured from the lowest to the highest point
of a roof truss.
Pitch: – this refers to the ratio of the rise to the span.The slope or
inclination to the horizontal expressed either as
Pitch = Rise
Span
The most efficient roof pitch lies between 50 to 60 degrees, but this is
dictated by the type of roof covering to be used.
General Roof Terminology
Rise
Run
Span
Pitch = Rise
Span
Traditional Trusses:
King Post Truss
Ridge
Purlin
Rafter
King Post
Struts
Wall Tie
plate beam Courtesy of Oakmasters
Other Traditional Trusses:
Queen
Post
Truss
Roof Coverings
Covering refers to the external material laid or fixed on a
roof to protect the building. Typical coverings include:
Slates,
Plain tiles,
Pantiles (burnt slabs of clay, shaped to a flat S in cross section)
Asphalt,
Lead,
Copper,
Corrugated or plain aluminium profiled sheets,
Stone,
Shingles (slabs of cedar or oak),
Patent glazing and
Thatch.
Ridge: the spine of a roof; a pitching plate to
which the Rafters are nailed through the Ridge
board.
The Depth of a Ridge board is determined by the pitch of a roof: the
steeper the pitch the deeper the Ridge Board
Common Jack
Rafters Rafters
Fascia
board
Badge
board
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Joseph
Kangwa
General Terminology…continued
Common Rafters are often notched at point of contact with the wall plate to give
extra leverage and also to allow them to be nailed to wall plates.
Common Rafters: These are the main
loadbearing members. They span between
the apex or ridge and a wall plate at eaves
level.
Valley
Jack Common board
rafters rafters
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Joseph
Kangwa
The Depth of a Ridge board is determined by the
pitch of roof: the steeper the pitch the deeper will the
slot that is cut to accommodate the Ridge board
Terminology (continued)
Wall Plate: provides the bearing and fixing mechanisms for the various parts of
a roof.
As wall plates are fixed directly along the perimeter wall, they act as horizontal
beams to distribute the roof load from the roof evenly along the walls.
They are often embedded in cement mortar or fixed to walls by means of
galvanised strap irons.
Wall plate as a horizontal
loadbearing member
Corner halving Joint detail where
two wall plates meet along the
A wallwalls
plate is a
beam in itself; it
distributes the
roof’s load evenly
along the internal
leaf of the
perimeter wall.
Internal leaf: load
bearing skin
External leaf: simply a protective cladding or facing
Eaves details Galvanised steel gang
including wall plate nail plate connectors
Wall plate
imbedded in Fascia
mortar board
Tie beam Eaves
Eaves
Tie Rafter ventilator
Galvanised single sided
Eaves details steel gang nail plate
including wall plate connectors
Tie beam
Fascia
Common board
Rafter
Eaves
Eaves
ventilator
Wall Plate: provide the bearing and fixing
mechanisms for the various parts of a roof.
Roof Terminology…continued
Jack Rafters: - Fulfil the same functions as Common Rafters but
span from Ridge to Valley Rafters or from Hip Rafter to Wall Plate.
Hip Rafters: - Just like a Ridge, they form a spine of an external
angle for the Hip section of a roof and therefore have to span from a
Ridge to the Wall plate.
Valley Rafters: A hip rafter except it forms an internal angle.
Purlins- Act as beams reducing the span of rafters and any torsion related
stresses in the main Rafters.
Struts – Compression members which transfer the load of a purlin
to a suitable load bearing support within the roof frame
An assembly of Valley Rafters
Valley boards
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Joseph
Kangwa
Common rafter and
valley details
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Joseph
Kangwa
Dormer window
Valley with pitch roof
Double-hipped end and gable end
Hip
combined with a
Apex or ridge
Gabled end roof
Apex or ridge
Roof light Hipped end
Verge
Barge
board
Gabled end Rain water
Fascia
pipes -rwp
board
Jack Rafters: Jack Rafters: - Fulfil the
same functions as Common Rafters but span
from Ridge to Valley Rafters or from Hip
Rafter to Wall Plate.
Valley
Jack Common board
rafters rafters
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Joseph
Kangwa
Jack Rafter (span from
Hip Rafter
hip to valley rafter)
Timber plate connectors between
tie beam and common rafter
Eaves
ventilator
Choice of Form
Appearance/Aesthetics impact on choice of shape, colour and
type of covering
Inside
Out
Cost considerations
Initial
In-use
Performance
Support covering etc.
The most appropriate form of roof structure for a particular building will
depend on:
•Type of building – whether domestic, commercial, industrial or church
building;
•Spans to be covered;
•Nature and magnitude of loads that may be imposed on it, e.g. air
conditioning units, water cisterns, etc;
• Lighting requirements and accommodation for services;
•Possibility of future alterations;
•Speed of construction;
•Economy or budgetary constraints; and
•Aesthetical considerations.
Heat gain & Heat loss
Roft Insulation pads installed between Rafters to create a warm roof:
When very warm air rises, it will find air near the top also slightly
warm enough. This is then circulated around as warm air & not as
cold air. A warm corridor that is created helps to eliminate incidences
53 Dr
Joseph
Kangwa
of condensation/interstitial condensation within the roof void.
Framework for a Dormer window
Trimming Rafter
Head
trimmer
Cheek post
Mineral wool
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Joseph
Kangwa
Studs insulation
Three important areas where restraint
must be provided
Between trusses,
On Gable ends
Along load bearing walls
Diagonal braces nailed to rafters
to offer stability to trussed rafters
Longitudinal ties at ridge and
midspan slope nailed to rafters
Cavity soak filling to gable end
Lateral Restraint to Trussed
Rafters
Reasons why lateral support to
trusses is provided
To provide strength and stability to
the roof so it can retain its shape
and aesthetic appeal.
To give rigidity to other elements
which receive support from the roof.
To provide a stable frame in order to
protect the roof coverings.
To provide dimensional coordination
for the entire building.
Lateral Restraint to Trussed
Rafters
Reasons why lateral support to trusses is provided
To minimise lateral movements in order to make roof
coverings more water tight & efficient.
To provide a consistent frame to protect other finishes e.g.
ceiling finishes.
To tie the roof structure to the walls which in turn transmit all
the loading to the foundation.
Lateral Restraint
Lateral restraint at gable end, between trusses and along the load
bearing wall is essential as this allows the roof to gain structural
integrity, especially when having to restrain excessive wind loads.
Complementary restraints in the form of 30 mm X 50 mm galvanised
steel/anchor straps are effective.
LATERAL SUPPORT AT ROOF LEVEL
60 Dr
Joseph
Kangwa
Lateral Restraint along loadbearing wall
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Joseph
Kangwa
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed .Oxford ,Butterworth-Heinemann
Lateral Restraint On Gable ends
62 Dr
Joseph
Kangwa
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann
Galvanised steel straps providing lateral
restraint between trusses and nailed along
ceiling binders at 2m maximum
Bracing of Trussed Rafters
Longitudinal ceiling b
nailed across ceiling
Galvanised steel gang-nail
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Joseph
connector plates Kangwa
Longitudinal ceiling binders
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nailed across ceiling rafters
Joseph
Kangwa
Thermal Insulation to pitched
Roofs
Approved Document L: Building Regulations
demands that there should be a maximum U
value of
0.2 W/m2 K for roofs without a loft
0.16W/m2 K for roofs with a loft space.
0.25 W/m2 K for flat roofs with integral insulation.
Cold and Warm Roofs
Two methods are used to insulate pitched roofs:
Cold Roof: Most convenient economical.
Insulation is placed across the top of or between
the ceiling joists. With insulation at ceiling level
the roof is described as a cold roof.
Cold and Warm Roofs
Warm Roof: More expensive option as insulation
is fixed above, between, & below the rafters
of a pitched roof.
The area of a pitched roof is greater than the
horizontal surface at ceiling level, hence there is
greater area which has to be covered by
insulation.
Benefits are that the roof space will be warmed
by heat rising from the normal heating of the
building and all the cold air that may rise up is
quickly warmed through conversion process.
This process keeps the building/Loft space
pretty warm.
Ventilated pitched Roof within a room
Unventilated pitched Roof with a
room-Warm Roof
Unventilated pitched Roof with
a room- Cold Roof
Thermal insulation for a warm Roof
Roof covering - double lap tiles
Roof covering – double lap
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann
Verge detail: Tiles are embedded or
concreted)
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann
Interlocking single tiles fixed to 45 X
25mm battens
Roofing
felt
Roof covering – single lap
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann
Roof covering – single lap
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed. Oxford, Butterworth-Heinemann
Roof covering - slates
Source: Chudley, R. & Greeno, R (2006) Building Construction Handbook – Incorporating Current
Building & Construction Regulations. 6 th Ed. Oxford,Butterworth-Heinemann
Slates
Thin slabs of natural stone and has been used
as the traditional roofing material (600 X300,
5600 X 250 or 400 X 200mm.
Slates are nailed to 45 X25 softwood battens
using aluminium nails driven through predrilled
holes punched in head of each slate.
Head nailed slates
Battens are nailed over roofing felt & slates
nailed so that at each area of a roof there are
two slates.
Slates lap at 75 mm over the head of the slate
Centre nailed slates note this is due to increased pitch
of the roof
References
Brett, P. (2005) An illustrated Dictionary of Building: A Reference Guide for Practitioners &
Students. Oxford: Elsevier Butterworth-Heinemann.
Chudley, R and Greeno, R. (2006) Advanced Construction Technology, 4th Edition. Harlow:
Pearson Education Limited.
Everett , A. (1986) Mitchell’s Materials. Mitchell’s Building Series. London: The Mitchell’s
Publishing Company Limited.
McKay, W. B. (2005) McKay’s Building Construction, 2005 edition. Dorset: Donhead Publishing Ltd.
Stroud, F, J. (1963) Mitchell’s Advanced Building Construction. The Structure. 70th edition. London:
B.T. Batsford Ltd.
Stroud, F, J.; Harrington, R.; & Greeno, R. (2007) Mitchell’s Structure and Fabric – Part 2. 7th
Edition. Harlow: Pearson Education Limited.
Oakmasters (2008) Oak roof structure incorporating a king post truss. Internet. [Available] <
http://www.oakmasters.co.uk/gallery/photo?photo_id=983> Date Accessed:(6th Nov, 2008) .
Osbourn, D. and Greeno, R. (2007). Mitchell’s Introduction to Building, 4th Edition. Harlow: Pearson
Education Limited.
