Knowing a few roofing terms will help you communicate with your roofer the next time you have a leak or decide to re-roof. It will also be helpful to discuss any remodeling projects that may include additions, skylights, or dormers. In most cases, these terms include the main part of the roof and the commonly found openings through the roof that are susceptible to water leaks. Two of the most basic and common roof types are gable roofs and hip roofs. Easy to build and economical. It sheds water and snow easily, making it well suited to wet and cold climates around the world.

A gable roof and a hip roof are very different aesthetically.

The gable roof wants to emphasize verticality. It points to the sky. It is identified by the triangular gable ends and a single ridge between the two sloping roof panels.

All four sides of the hip roof slope inward. The lines emphasize the horizontal and float parallel to the Earth. This is an important distinction because the way a home meets land and sky say a lot about the designer’s intentions.

Some basic roof parts are ridges, pitches, and eaves.

The ridge is the highest point where two roof planes meet and is usually the highest part of the house. Because of their linear nature, ridges are commonly called ridges. The height of a home is often measured from the ground to a ridge, so the location of the ridge is important in many areas with building height restrictions. For this reason, it’s important to know what regional restrictions are and how they affect your design.

A rake is an angled element at the gable end of a roof and consists of trim and structures that extend outward from the house. Rakes can be finished in a plain and simple way, or in a highly stylized and elaborate way.

The eaves are the elements of the roof that project outward from the walls of the house and are made up of a soffit and fascia. Eaves can be close to the walls of the house, close together, or quite far away. The main function of the eaves is to remove rainwater that accumulates on the walls of the house, so the farther out the eaves are, the better they can perform that function.

Find out more about what’s inside your roof. https://kdroofers.com

The roof plane is the large, flat, sloping part that makes up the roof. Whether low-slope, steep, sloped or curved with multiple ramps, these sections give the roof a unique character.

Where two roof planes meet will be a hip or valley. The hip is where the roof plane forms the outer edge. The valley is where internal valleys are created.

Complex roofs with many roof planes have many protrusions and valleys. While hips are relatively easy to keep watertight, valleys are one of the places on a roof that require special care to keep water out.

Almost all roofs have openings or penetrations. These can be plumbing vents, dormers, skylights, chimneys, and other vents. And wherever there are roof penetrations, there is the potential for
water leaks. So, while it’s a good idea to keep the number of penetrations to a minimum, there are also good reasons for penetrations, such as the natural light that comes into your home through
skylights.

The trick then is to make sure all penetrations are installed correctly, using sealant, flashing, or thin pieces of metal or plastic to create a waterproof barrier.

You also need to think about what all these infiltrations will look like from the outside. For example, plumbing vents can appear in places that are visually the worst, such as directly above or near an opening. Another thing to watch out for is the large mushroom vents. Study plans for the entire exterior design, including every little detail that goes into your home.

When thinking about flashing, consider how it will look and function. For example, stepped copper flashing where the chimney penetrates the roof, like in this home, can be a great material that is
not only visually impressive but also long-lasting.

Roof vents combined with soffit vents or gable end vents and other types of vents allow air to move through the attic and out. A cooler, well-ventilated attic is less likely to develop mold than an attic with trapped moist air.

Ridge vents are visually the best option when attic ventilation is required. These vents are located on the ridge of the roof and are often covered with the same shingle material as the roof, creating
a visual blend. Of course, ridge vents can be a very cool detail in themselves if designed specifically. Like you see here.

The most notable vents are the mushroom vents. These are usually large and noticeable. It looks like mushrooms are sprouting from the roof. They are rarely installed in homes anymore because they are not the most attractive ventilation option.

Seamless additions to homes with gables or gable roofs can be easily accomplished by matching the roof slopes and designing the addition roof as a reverse gable or reverse gable perpendicular
to the original house.

The trick is to make sure the added ridge is below or even matches the ridge of the original home. Because nothing says “extra” like a new roof ridge that’s higher than the old one.

For large additions that require a single gable across the entire width to be higher than the original house, you may want to consider a double inverted gable to keep the new roofline within the scale of the existing house, as shown here.

Explore more roofing styles and materials in the KDRoofers blogs archive.

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