Chapter 4

Roofs
 Course of study:

4.1 Roofs and their types

4.2 Timber roofs (single/double/multiple timber roofs)
4.3 Steel trusses and their components (angle and tubular truss)
4.4 Roof coverings
 Roof:
Roof are the uppermost protective covering
provided over the buildings with the view to keep
out rain, snow, sun and wind and to protect the
building from the adverse effect of these elements.
Roof consists of roof covering materials supported
on structural elements installed on the top of the
building.
Requirements of a well planned roof
• Structurally sound and strong
• Durable
• Efficient water-proofing and drainage provisions
• Heat insulation
• Sound insulation
 Functions of roof:
• To keep out rain, wind, snow and • For strength and stability of building
dust. • For durability and free from
• To prevent excessive heat loss in maintenance.
winter • For fire safety
• To keep the interior of the building • Provide resistance for the passage of
cool in summer sound
• Designed to accommodate all • Safety to occupants.
stresses encountered.
• Aesthetic beauty
• Designed to accept movement due
to the changes in the temperature
and moisture content.
 Types of roofs
• Pitched or sloped roof
• Flat or terraced roof
• Shelled roof
• Domed roof
 Pitched or sloped roof:
It has sloping top surface. These are suitable in those areas
where rainfall/snowfall is very heavy. Normally it has the slope
from 100 to 70o. The pitch of the roof is determined by the
types of covering and the basic form is governed by the load
and span. Pitched roof are basically of the following forms:

• Lean – to – roof. • Gambrel roof

• Gable roof • Mansard or curb roof
• Hip roof • Deck roof
 Lean – to – roof:
This is the simplest type of sloping roof, either for a room of
small span or for the verandah. It has slope on only one side.
Rafters lean against the wall.Cost effective, easy to construct.
 Gable roof:

It has slopes in two directions. The two slopes meet at the ridge. At the
end face vertical triangle is formed. Better drainage,Stylish and asthetic
look. More surface area- better ventilation.
 Hip roof:

This type of roof is formed by four sloping surfaces in four directions. At

the end faces, sloped triangles are formed.
 Gambrel roof:

• This roof, like gable roof slopes in two directions, but there is a break
in each slope. At the end vertical face is formed.
 Mansard roof:

Mansard roof, like a hip roof, slopes in four directions, but each slope
has a break. Thus sloping ends are obtained.
 Deck roof:

A deck roof has slopes in all four directions like a hip roof, but a deck or
plain surface is formed at the top.
 Flat roofs:
Flat roofs are considered suitable for buildings in plains or in
hot regions where rainfall is moderate and where snowfall is
no there. Flat roofs are equally applicable to buildings of any
shape and size. These roofs are either horizontal or practically
horizontal with slope less than 100, even a perfectly horizontal
roof has to have some slope at top so that rainwater is drained
off easily and rapidly.
 Advantages of flat roof:
• The roof can be used a terrace for playing , gardening, sleeping and celebrating
functions.(versatile)
• It’s construction and maintenance is easier.
• They have better insulating properties
• They require lesser area of roofing material then pitched roof
• They are more stable against high winds
• They do not require false ceiling, which is essential in pitched roofs
• Flat roofs are proved to be overall economical
• In multi-storied buildings, flat roof is the only choice since overhead water
tanks and other services are located on the terrace
• Energy efficient (less overhead space for air to stagnate)
 Disadvantages of flat roofs
• The span of flat roof is restricted, unless intermediate columns are introduced. Pitched
roof can be used over large spans without any intermediate columns
• The self weight of the flat roof is very high. Due to this, the size of beams, columns,
foundations and other structural members are heavy.
• They are unsuitable in places of heavy rainfall.
• They are highly unsuitable to hilly areas or other areas where there is heavy snowfall.
• They are vulnerable to heavy temperature variations, especially in tropics, due to which
cracks are developed on the surface. These cracks may lead to water penetration later,
if not repaired in time.
• It is difficult to locate and rectify leak in flat roof
• The speed of flat roof construction is much slower than the pitched roof.
• The initial cost of flat roof is more than the pitched roof.
• The flat roof exposes the entire building to the weather agencies, while the projecting
elements (eaves) of pitched roof provide some protection to the buildings
 Shelled roof:

This type of roof has thin section. It may be constructed in curved

surface such as parabola, hyperbola or segment of curve.
 Domed roof:
This is the curved roof having the roof area more than the semicircle.
Therefore dome has largest roof area compared to all types of roof. This
can be constructed by the use of R.C.C. or arch technology. Care must
be taken in construction as it requires high skill.
Various elements of roof:
Various elements of roof:
 Various elements of roof:

• Span: It is the clear distance between the supports of an arch, beam

or roof truss.
• Rise: It is the vertical distance between the top of the ridge and the
wall plate.
• Pitch: It is the inclination of the sides of a roof to the horizontal
planes. It is expressed either in terms of degrees (angle) or as a ratio
of rise to span.
• Ridge: It is defined as the apex line of the sloping roof. It is thus the
apex of the angle formed by the termination of the inclined surfaces
at the top of a slope.
 Various elements of roof:

• Eaves: The lower edge of the inclined roof surface is called eaves.
From the lower edge (eaves), the rain water from the roof surface
drop down.
• Hip: It is the ridge formed by the intersection of two sloping surface,
where the exterior angle is greater than 1800.
• Valley: It is a reverse of a hip. It is formed by the intersection of the
roof surfaces, making an external angle less than 1800.
• Hipped end: It is the sloped triangular surface formed at the end of a
roof.
 Various elements of roof:
• Verge: The edge of a gable, running between the eaves and ridge, is known as
a verge.
• Ridge piece, ridge beam or ridge support: It is the horizontal wooden
member, in the form of a beam or board, which is provided at the apex o a
roof truss. It supports the common rafters fixed to it.
• Common rafters or spars: These are the inclined wooden members running
from the ridge to the eaves. They are beveled against the ridge beam at the
head, and are fixed to purlins at the intermediate point. They support the
battens or boarding to support the roof coverings. Depending upon the roof
covering materials, the rafters are spaced 30 to 45 cm c/c
• Purlins: These are the horizontal wooden or steel members, used to support
common rafters of a roof when span is large. Purlins are supported on truss or
wall.
 Various elements of roof:
• Hip rafters: These are the sloping rafters which form the hip of a sloped roof.
They run diagonally from the ridge to the corners o the walls to support roof
covering. They receive the ends of the purlins and ends of jack rafters.
• Valley rafters: These are the sloping rafters which run diagonally from the
ridges to eaves for supporting the valley gutters. They receive the ends of the
purlins and ends of jack rafters on both sides.
• Jack rafters: These are the rafters shorter in length, which run from hip or
valley to the eaves.
• Eaves board or fascia board: It is the wooden plank or board fixed to the feet
of the common rafters at the eaves. It is usually 25 mm thick and 25 mm wide.
The ends of lower most roof covering materials rest upon it. The eaves gutters,
if any, can also be secured against it.
 Various elements of roof:
• Barge board: It is a timber board used to hold the common rafter forming
verge.
• Wall plates: These are long wooden members, which are provided on the top
of stone or brick wall, for the purpose of fixing the feet of the common rafters.
These are embedded from sides and bottom in masonry of the walls, almost at
the centre of their thickness. Wall plates actually connect the walls to the roof.
• Post plate: This is similar to a wall plate expect that they run continuous
parallel to the face of wall, over the tops of the posts, and support rafters at
their feet.
• Battens: These are thin strips of wood, called scantlings, which are nailed to
the rafters for lying roof materials above.
 Various elements of roof:
• Boardings: They act similar to battens and are nailed to common
rafter to support the roof materials.
• Template: This is a square or rectangular block of stone or concrete
placed under a beam or truss, to spread the load over a larger area of
the wall.
• Cleats: These are short sections of wood or steal (angle iron), which
are fixed on the principal rafters of trusses to support the purlins.
• Truss: A roof truss is a frame work, usually of triangles, designed to
support the roof covering or ceiling over rooms.
Timber roof: types
3. Triple membered or framed or
1. Single roof trussed roof
i. Lean – to – roof i. King – post roof truss
ii. Couple roof ii. Queen – post roof truss
iii. Couple closed roof iii. Combination of king – truss
iv. Collar beam roof or and queen – post trusses
collar tie roof iv. Mansard roof truss
v. Collar and scissors v. Truncated roof truss
roof vi. Bel – fast or latticed roof
truss
vii. Composite roof truss
2. Double of purlin roofs viii.Steel sloping roof truss
 Single roof:
• It consists of rafters which are secured at the ridge (to ridge beam)
and wall plate. These are used when span is less so that no
intermediate support is required for the rafters. It is used when span
is limited to 5 m. single roofs are of 5 types.
• Lean – to – roof
• Couple roof
• Couple closed roof
• Collar beam roof or collar tie roof
• Collar and scissors roof
 Lean – to – roof:

• This is the simplest type of

sloping roof in which rafters
slope to one side only. This type
of roof is suitable for maximum
span of 2.5 m. These are
provided for sheds, out –houses
attached to main building,
verandahs etc.
 Couple roof:

This type of roof is formed

by couple or pair of rafters
which slopes to both the
sides of the ridge of the
roof. The couple roof is
used when the span is
limited to 3.6m.
 Couple closed roof:
• A couple closed roof is similar to the couple roof except that
the ends of the couple of common rafters is connected by
horizontal members called tie-beams to prevent the rafters
from spreading and thrusting out of the wall. The tie beam
may be wooden member or steel rod. It is economically
suitable for span up to 4.2 m. For increased span or for
greater loads, the rafters have tendency to sag in the middle.
It can be checked by providing a central vertical rod, called
king rod or king bolt which connects the ridge piece and the
tie beam.
Couple closed roof:
 Collar beam roof:
When the span increases or when the load is more the rafters of the
couple closed roof have the tendency to bend. This is avoided by raising
the tie beam and fixing it at one third to one half of the vertical height
from wall plate to the ridge. This raised beam is known as the collar
beam(collar tie). This is suitable for spans up to 5m.
 Collar and scissors roof:

• It is similar to the collar roof, expect that two collar beam, crossing
each other to have an appearance of scissors is provided.
 Double or purlin roof:
• These roofs have two basic elements: rafters and purlins. The purlins
give intermediate support to the rafters and are supported on end
walls. The intermediate supports so provided in the forms of purlins
reduce the size of the rafters to the economical range. Such a roof is
known as rafters and purlin roof. Such roofs are used when span
exceeds 5m.
Tripled membered or framed or
trussed roofs:
• When the span of the roof exceeds 5m and when there are no inside
walls to support the purlins, framed structures, known as trusses are
provided at suitable interval along the length of the room. The roof
consists of three elements: rafters (to support the roofing materials),
purlins (to provide intermediate support to rafters) and trusses (to
provide supports to the end of the purlins). Various types of trusses
are:
 King post truss:
• A king post truss consists of: lower tie beam, two inclined principle rafters, two
struts and a king post. The principle rafters support the purlins. The principal
rafters support the purlins. The purlins support the closely spaced common
rafters which have the same slope as the principal rafters. The common rafters
support the roof covering as usual. This truss is suitable for spans varying from
5 to 8 meters.
 Queen post truss:
• A queen post truss differs from a king – post truss in having two vertical posts
rather than one. The vertical posts are known as queen – posts. The tops of
which are connected by a horizontal piece known as straining beam. The queen
– post are the tension members. A straining sill is introduced on the tie beam
between the queen posts to counteract the thrust from inclined struts which
are in compressions. Queen- post trusses are suitable for spans from 8 to 12 m.
 Combination of king – post and
queen – post trusses:
• For greater spans the queen post truss can be strengthened by one
more upright member called princess post to each side. It is suitable up
to 18m spans.
 Mansard roof truss:
• This roof truss is named after its designer Francois Mansard. It is a
combination of king post and queen post trusses. It is a two storey
truss with upper portion consisting of king – post truss and lower
portion of queen – post truss. The entire truss has two pitches, upper
pitch 300 to 400 and lower pitch 600 to 700.
 Truncated truss:
A truncated truss is similar to mansard truss except that its top is
formed flat with a gentle slope to one side. This type of truss is used
when it is required to provide a room in the roof between the two
queen - post of the truss.
 Bel - fast roof truss(bow string
truss or latticed roof truss):
• This truss is in the form of a bow consisting of thin sections of timbers
with top chord curved. If the roof covering is light it can be used up to
30m span.
 Composite roof trusses:
• Roof trusses made of up two materials such as timber and steel are
known as composite roof trusses. In a composite truss the tension
members are made of steel while the compression members are
made of timber.
 Steel roof trusses:
• When the span exceeds 10m timber trusses becomes heavy and
uneconomical so steel trusses are used for larger spans. They are
commonly used these days since they are more economical, easy to
construct or fabricate, fire proof, more rigid and permanent. Steel
trusses are fabricated from rolled structural members such as
channels, angles, T –sections and plates.
 Advantages of steel trusses over
timber trusses:
• The sections comprising of a steel truss are readily available in the
required dimensions, resulting in minimum wastage of materials.
• Steel trusses are light in weight and can be fabricated in any shape
depending upon structural and architectural requirements.
• Steel trusses are stronger and more rigid in comparison to timber
trusses. The members are equally strong in tension as well as in
compressions.
• Steel trusses can be used over any span, while timber trusses are
suitable only up to 15 m span.
 Advantages of steel trusses over
timber trusses:
• Steel trusses are fire proof.
• They are termite proof
• They are most resistance to other environmental agencies and have
longer life
• The fabrication of steel trusses is easier and quicker, since the sections
can be machined and shaped in the workshop, and then transported to
the construction site for erection.
 Roof coverings:

• Roof covering is an essential component of roof, to be placed over the

roof frame work to protect it from rain, snow sun wind and other
atmospheric agencies. Section of roof materials depends upon type of
building, type of roof framework, initial cost, maintenance
requirements, fabrication facilities, appearance and special feature of
localities, durability, availability, and climate of the locality.
 Commonly used roof covering
materials:
• Thatch covering
• Wood shingles
• Tiles
• Asbestos cement sheets
• Galvanized corrugated iron sheets
• Slates
• Light weight roofing
 Thatch covering:
• This is the cheapest type of roof covering commonly used in villages.
It is very light but highly combustible and is unstable against high
winds. It absorbs moisture and is liable to decay. It consists of bundles
of reeds or straw. Thatch is the organic material available in nature.
Sometimes, the straw of rice and wheat are used in the roof but the
thatch is the special grass available in wild land. The framework to
support thatch consists of round bamboo rafter spaced about 30 cm
apart and tied with split bamboos laid at right angles to the rafters.
The slope of this roof is normally more than 400. The thickness of
thatch covering varies from 10 cm to 15 cm.
 Wood shingles:
• Shingles are thin slabs of wood used to cover roofs. The use of
shingles is restricted to hilly areas where local timber is easily
available at low cost. They are light in weight but are not resistant to
fire and termite. They are laid in a similar fashion as tiles and slates.
 Tiles:
• It is one of the oldest but still preferred in residential buildings and
country houses. Tiles are manufactured from clay and concrete to a wide
range of design and colours and in various shapes and patterns. The
various types of the tiles are:
• Plain or flat tiles
• Curved or pan – tiles
• Pot tiles or half round country tiles
• Spanish tiles
• Italian or Allahabad tiles
• Inter – locking tiles.
 A.C. sheet
• Asbestos sheets are popular for industrial building, factories, sheds,
cinema houses, auditorium and even residential buildings. They are
cheap, light weight, tough, durable, water tight, fire resistant and
available in bigger units. They are manufactured from asbestos, fiber
and Portland cement. They are available in 2 to 3 meter length.
 Galvanized iron sheet:
• G.I sheets are stronger than A.C. sheets. However, due to their high
cost, they are gradually being replaced by A.C. sheet. They are not
used for slopes flatter than 1 in 4. G. I. sheets are made up iron sheets
which are galvanized with zinc to protect them from rusting and wet
weather. These sheets are fixed in similar manner as A.C. sheets.
 Slate roofing:
• Slate is a hard, fine - grained sedimentary, argillaceous (clayey) stone.
A good slate should be hard, tough and durable, of rough texture,
should give ringing sound when stuck, should not split when holed or
dressed, non – absorbent and of satisfactory colours. For the method
of fixing, slates are nailed to the battens fixed on rafters.
 Light weight roofing:
• For wide span industrial structures, it is desirable to reduce the weight
of the roof, so that structural framing can be economized. Conventional
roofing materials (such as tiles and slates etc) are heavy and require
heavy framing to support them. The light weight roofing materials are
of two types:
• Sheeting
• Aluminum sheets
• Asbestos cement sheets
• Decking
• Wood wool
• Straw boards
• Aluminum alloy and steel decking
Roof coverings