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
25 Dr
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
34 Dr
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

36 Dr
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

44 Dr
Joseph
Kangwa
Common rafter and
valley details

45 Dr
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

47 Dr
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
54 Dr
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

61 Dr
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

64 Dr
Joseph

connector plates Kangwa

Longitudinal ceiling binders
65 Dr

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.