Estimating Roof Pitch Determining Suitable Roof Types DIY Guide Roofing Calculator Estimate your Roofing Costs. So its time for a new roof, or perhaps you are planning a new home construction project and are considering what your new roof should look like. Surely, you have heard about all the exciting new roofing materials available today and are eager to get started. But, before you can make the call on what to put on the roof, you need to know the pitch or slope of the roof Need a Roofer Get 4 Free Quotes From Local Pros Start Here. Enter Your Zip Code Why Its Important. The roof pitch is necessary for two things one, estimating the amount of material to be ordered for the job and two, knowing what materials are suited for the roof. But, again we are jumping ahead of ourselves. Before we get started with all that we need to find out the pitch of a roof. What is a roof pitch Install Roof Shingles. Average price. Install Metal Roof. Average price. Install Flat Roof. Average price. See costs in your area. Start Here Enter Your Zip Code. Pitch, angle, incline, slope they all can be used to refer to the steepness of a roof. In the roofing trade the go to term is pitch and it is expressed in terms of 1. So the pitch of a roof is determined by how many inches the slope rises for every 1. If a roof increases in height by four inches for every foot of horizontal run, it is considered to have a 4 in 1. Talk in terms of pitches and you will always be understood in the roofing universe. Radiant barrier can be installed in an attic space by either laying over the attic floor or by stapling to the underside of the attic rafters or roof decking. I live in an area with a lot of snow. Some people report that when the snow slides off the roof, the roofing screws occasionally have their heads ripped off. Flat Roofing is as popular as ever. Learn here about flat roofing materials, why its great to use and how to install flat roofing on construction projects. How roof pitch determines suitable roofing systems. Flat and nearlyflat roofs a pitch of 1in12 or 2in12 cannot be covered with shingles or shakes of any. Measuring a roof pitch. Ideally you will have safe access to your roof from inside the building. If not you will need to make your measurement from on top of the roof itself or at the edge of the roof with a ladder. The tools required will be a contractors level at least 2. Place the butt end of the level against the edge of the roof and extend it into the air, balancing it until it becomes level. At that point measure down from the exposed butt end back to the roof surface. Divide the results by the number of 1. For example, if you used a 2. You can also estimate a roof pitch by eyeballing it from the ground from the gable side with a level and ruler. If for some reason you have absolutely no access to basic tools you can guesstimate the pitch of a roof by knowing that clapboards generally present four inches of exposed face and a dollar bill is six inches. So you can count the clapboards from the low end of the roof to the peak and use a dollar bill to figure out your stride and pace off the the size of the building. Then make your mathematical calculations. Using roof pitch to order materials. Once you know the width and length of the space to be covered you can apply the roof pitch to determine exactly how much roofing material to order without leaving yourself short or wasting money with overages. To do that requires basic geometry but fret not, you can just refer to tables that are standard in the industry Multipliers used for estimating roof area based on slope 0 pitch 1. X the roof area since this is a flat roof or nearly flat roof. You can go by the measurements taken by walking the roof1 pitch 1. Roof Pitch Expressed in Degrees 1. How Roof Pitch Manifests Itself in Various Roof Types. Roof shapes have evolved through history in different regions of the world from flat to steeply pitched. Here are some of the common shapes that top roofs today Flat roofs are common with industrial buildings boasting wide roof spans and are also popular in dry climates for houses where there is no need for the roof to help disperse rain and snow. Even in these arid regions so called flat roofs are still installed with a slight pitch to keep water from pooling on top of the structure. How To Install Slate Surface Roll Roofing' title='How To Install Slate Surface Roll Roofing' />Pgriz, we usually do a double layer of the modified bitumen torch down. If we do a single layer, we at least install a double layer where the deck sleepers make. RONA carries Roofing for your Building Supplies renovationdecorating projects. Find the right Underlayments to help your home improvement project. Free Xbox Live Gold Trial Membership. Asphalt is the most commonly used roofing material. Asphalt products include shingles, rollroofing, builtup roofing, and modified bitumen membranes. A mono pitched roof runs from a taller wall to a wall of lesser height to produce a slope. This is often a configuration seen on simple shed buildings. Saw tooth roofs can often be seen on old school factories that were constructed with a series of mono pitched roofs that are used to allow sunlight to filter down to the shop floor. Pent roof is a collection of low mono pitched roofs often seen on residential terraces. A gable roof is a traditional triangle shaped roof that can range from a medium pitch to sharp angled roofs. A frame roof is the sharpest gable style roof resembling the shape of the letter A. It is a traditional roof shape employed everywhere from tropical huts to Nordic ski chalets. Asian style roofs The influences of Asian architecture have infiltrated American shores in recent years. Gracefully sloping roofs are often of medium pitch which emphasize the horizontal spread of the buildings. Hipped roofs These distinctive roofs with overhanging eaves feature four medium pitched sides and are characteristic of Dutch architecture and help disperse snow loads in northern climates. The TOH pros offer up their best advice for shingling properly, sniffing out leaks, and knowing when its time to reroof. EcoStar Majestic Slate recycled roofing, look, feel and longevity of natural slate, enhanced resistance to harsh weather conditions including wind, driving rain and hail. Issuu is a digital publishing platform that makes it simple to publish magazines, catalogs, newspapers, books, and more online. Easily share your publications and get. Hipped roofs are often used in complex roof formations with the hips facing different directions. Saltbox roofs The workhorse of Colonial America, the familiar saltbox is a building that features a long, pitched roof on one side, similar to the lid on a salt storage box. Their attractiveness traces to the desire to make a two story building function as a one story building to reduce the tax bill. The large expanse of such a roof will cause greater expense to cover. How To Install Slate Surface Roll Roofing' title='How To Install Slate Surface Roll Roofing' />A mansard roof, in opposition to a salt box, offers the utility of a full half room on the upper floor rather than an attic. It features tow pitches, one a shallow pitch atop a steeper slope. Pyramidal roofs Sometimes seen on square buildings, a tented or pyramidal roof, feature four slopes rising to a peak. These are often steeply pitched roofs. Gambrel roofs Popular with barns and other structures that create additional interior room, these stepped roofs feature a short steep, non walkable slope before rising more gently to a ridge peak. Clerestory roofs Another popular form for factories requiring light infiltration, the clerestory features long, low pitched roofs before the building rises to a traditional gabled section atop the structure. Conical roofs A staple of Queen Anne Victorian architecture these conical towers were topped with dunce cap roofs that are too steep to be walked on. Arched roofs Seen on utility structures there are several types of medium pitched roofs that feature curves from gentle arches to bows and barrels. Circular roofs These full arched roofs can be anything from domes to decorative Byzantine inspired onion domes. Domed roofs can be low pitched or fully circular. Pros and cons of various roof slopes. Low pitch roofs are easier to install and safer to walk around to complete repairs and maintenance. This is fortunate since flat roofs are more prone to leaks and require frequent inspections. Low pitch roofs are seldom used in regions of severe weather due to the stress of snow accumulation on roofs of structures. Flat roofs are significantly cheaper to install than a pitched roof but require more maintenance. Flat roofs are popular in regions of sparse rainfall and are favored by modern architects in contemporary designs. Medium pitched roofs come in a variety of styles and provide help with dispersing snow and rainfall while still being able to be inspected and repaired by the average homeowner by walking around the surface. High pitch, non walkable roofs are dynamic and present an exciting appearance, but they are more expensive to install, and repairs will be left to roofing contractors with all the necessary safety equipment.