Roofs Flashcards
What components and materials are typically used within a pitched roof?
- Purlin
- Rafters
- Ridgeboards
- Roof Joist
- Flashing
- Fascia board
- Downspout
- Gutters
- Tiles
- Underlayer
- Valley
- Sheathing
- Truss
- Struts
- Wall Plate
- Blinder
- Roof Tie
- Purlin strut
What is the difference between a truss roof and cut roof?
Truss roofs are factory made trusses which are delivered to site complete and then installed on site
Cut roof is the traditional method of cutting the timber on site and building up the roof using rafters,ridgeboards, joists and purlins etc – the exact details being determined by the size of roof, size of timbers etc.
What is a chimney?
A vertical channel or pipe which conducts smoke and combustion gases up from a fire or furnace and typically through the roof of a building.
What is a ridge?
The ridge of a sloped roof system is the horizontal top area where two sloped roof areas meet
What is a flashing?
- Required when any part of a roof meets a vertical surface or abutment
- Used commonly on roof window, chimney or a dividing wall between two terraced properties
- The joint between the vertical surface and the roof covering needs to be sealed against leaks
What is a fascia?
- A board that runs along the roofline and acts as a finishing edge or trim that connects to the ends of the rafters and trusses
- The fascia is to protect the roof and the interior of the home from moisture by blocking its entrance
What is a gutter?
A rain gutter’s main purpose is to funnel water off the roof and away from the home. Too much water falling too close to your home can erode the soil around it
What is a valley?
Valleys are created when two sloping roof areas intersect and are one of the critical detail points on a steep-slope roof system
They occur on primary roof areas and where projections, such as dormers, break the plane of the main roof
A valley’s main function is to create runoff pathways to direct water flow from the roof planes into a valley trough
The volume of water varies with the valley’s length and slope.
What is a sheathing?
Roof sheathing is a layer of plywood, wafer board or wood planks which is nailed on the rafters and stands between them and the shingles that finish the roofing.
What is roof underlaying?
- A roofing underlay is placed under the exterior roof
- its primary function protects the thermal insulation material and the building structure from the effects of the weather.
- The roofing underlay works as a secondary roof underneath the primary roof.
- The roofing underlay acts as a condensation barrier, which leads condensed water away from the underlay, and thereby also the insulation material.
What is a ceiling joist?
Ceiling joists support the ceiling and act as a tie to the rafters to stop the rafter feet from spreading
What are common rafters?
A sloped roof member that is smaller than the principal rafter, which spans from the top plate of the exterior wall to the roof ridge rafter.
What is a roof tie?
Rafter ties resist the outward thrust that rafters exert on the exterior walls. They help keep walls from spreading due to the weight of the roof.
What is a purlin?
A purlin is added which prevents the rafters from
sagging mid span
The purlin is supported by the gableend walls (party walls in mid-terraced houses) and is sometimes strutted
from an internal loadbearing wall (and sometimes the gable walls) to provide additional support
What is a wall plate?
The purpose of the wall plate is to accommodate the wooden beams of a framing, to ensure a uniform bearing height and to better distribute the bearing force over the bearing.
What 3 types of trusses
Kingpost
Queen Post
Fink
What is roof flashing made of?
- Lead is commonly used for flashings, however;
- zinc
- aluminium
- slate
- and cement mortar are often found in the UK
What is a common result of roof flash deterioration and what would the Building Surveyor encounter with roof flashing ?
- Leaks commonly occur as a result of deterioration of flashings or poor workmanship
- the Building Surveyor will often encounter situations where temporary felt or ‘flashband’ repairs have been made
Name the common defects of a roof
There are many defects however these defects are common. • Moss Growth on Roof Surface • Roof Flashings • Roof Spread • Sagging Roof Surface • Nail Sickness • Turnerising
Why is moss growth a problem and what are the remedial works?
• A common problem to many roof coverings and often exacerbated where there are trees nearby.
• The moss builds up on the roof surface which then allows water to sit on the roof, which in turn can
allow damage to occur to the surface of the tiles
• Moss should be cleared on a regular basis before it has the opportunity to build up. Care must be taken during removal to ensure that it does not fall into gutters causing blockage
What is roof spread?
- Roof spread occurs when a roof frame is not adequately tied
- Resulting in horizontal movement which can push fascia boards out sideways, and often leaves a visible gap between the soffit board and brickwork
- In extreme cases,brickwork can be pushed out at the top and the wall develops an outward curve
How does roof spread usually occur?
Roof spread mainly occurs in ‘cut’ roofs (made from sawn timber) and is usually a result of poor design
Is a truss roof likely to be affected by roof spread?
Roof Spread is much less likely to occur in trussed roofs, which are designed and manufactured in a
factory and brought to site for final erection
Is a truss roof likely to be affected by roof spread?
Roof Spread is much less likely to occur in trussed roofs, which are designed and manufactured in a
factory and brought to site for final erection
Why does roof spread occur?
Roof spread often occurs, particularly in older buildings where a new heavier roof covering (such as concrete tiles) is installed on a roof that was
designed for a lighter roof covering (such as slate)
What are the remedial works for roof spread?
Depending on the severity of the roof spread, the usually remedy is to introduce bracing (usually metal), to tie the walls back to the structure
How expensive can roof spread be?
Roof spread is not generally covered by standard house insurance policies, therefore the expense of remedying will normally be the responsibility of the owner
How does roof sagging occur?
Sagging to the surface of a roof can occur for a number of reasons, which are unlikely to be visible from the
outside of a building.
A sagging roof may be a result of a damaged or broken roof rafter.
What should the Building Surveyor inspect when investigating Roof Sagging
- Broken or damaged rafters
- Moisture ingress causing Wet Rot
- Dry Rot
- Deflection to Purlins
- Poor Ventilation (Possible Condensation)
- Bearing points of structural members
In older properties, deflection of the purlins may occur over many years as result of progressive loadings (such as snow), and also weakening on the purlins
Does roof sag mean there’s a problem?
In older properties, deflection of the purlins may occur over many years as result of progressive loadings (such as snow), and also weakening on the purlins.
What is nail sickness on pitched roofs?
• Loose roof slates are more often the result of the fixing nails failing as they rust away (a problem known as ‘nail sickness’)
• ‘Nail sickness’ can typically be first seen by the lower edges of a
row of slates being out of line - one fixing will fail on a number of
slates and these will then begin to twist
Why might the slate tiles get loose?
The slates themselves may disintegrate around the nail holes due to the roof settling, frost or wind damage, or things falling onto them
What does nail sickness indicate?
When slate roofs begin to suffer from ‘nail sickness’ or breakdown of the actual slates, it usually indicates that the roof is approaching an age when complete re-roofing will be required
It is likely that the fixing nails and all the slates will probably have
originally installed at the same time so they should be suffering
the same degree of ageing
How would you investigate nail sickness?
‘Nail sickness’ can typically be first seen by the lower edges of a row of slates being out of line - one fixing will fail on a number of slates and these will then begin to twist
What is turnerising?
‘Turnerising’ is a process usually applied when roofs have started to deteriorate or leak
Turnerising involves the covering of a roof with a mesh and coating it in bitumen
Is turnerising beneficial?
Good for temporary repair however, it is almost impossible to economically save or re-use materials which have been treated in this manner
Name the defects of roof voids
There are many potential defects that can occur within a roof void and the Building Surveyor should pay due regard to:
- Wet Rot
- Dry Rot
- Ventilation
- Insulation
- Vermin
- Fire Separation
- Water Storage
- Woodworm
- Structural Timbers
- Services
What is the cause of wet rot?
Wet rot is caused by high moisture content (typically will start to occur at 30% with optimum decay rate at 50% to 60%) in timbers, coupled with poor ventilation
What does wet rot physically affect?
The attack with affect the timber that will be limited to those areas that contain sufficiently high moisture content
What does wet rot cause?
Wet rots are a common cause of structural defects and there are number of species which attack timbers in buildings
What are the physical features of wet rot timber?
Attacked timber is either darkened or bleached depending on species and is left in cuboidal or longitudinal cracks
What are the physical features of wet rot timber?
Attacked timber is either darkened or bleached depending on species and is left in cuboidal or longitudinal cracks
What is the remedial action of wet rot?
• Finding out where the water is coming from and
stop it (Eradicate the source)
• Removing all rotted timber and replacing it with
pressure-treated wood or wood that has been
painted with a preservative
• Treat any remaining wood within the affected
area with a wood preservative
• Monitor for further signs and treat as soon as
possible
• Ensure good levels of ventilation, including
ensuring that air bricks are not blocked