Home Renovation

Roofing Terms you Need to Know for a Career in Home Renovation

October 09, 2018

While a roof may seem like a relatively straightforward feature of any building, a home renovation can quickly become complicated if someone is unfamiliar with the appropriate terminology. A roof’s construction can be a serious, expensive investment, and it’s important to get all the details correct before breaking out the tools to get started.

Canadian residential renovations have recently grown to reach nearly $1 billion in revenue. With many people investing in changes to their properties, professional renovators should be aware of the wide variety of styles and specifications that their clients may ask for. Here are some helpful terms to be aware of when taking on a new roofing project.

An Introduction to Roofing Styles

In addition to providing necessary shelter from weather and the elements, a home’s roof is designed to be both resilient and energy-efficient. There are many different varieties of roof styles in home renovation training, but the two most commonly found are the gable and hip style.

A gable-style roof is a popular and simple design

A gable style roof is a more traditional style and, due to its simplicity, is inexpensive to incorporate into the design of a house. It is, however, not recommended for areas with high winds, which can cause roofing material to peel away or collapse.

A roof which slopes on all four sides at equal length is called a hip roof. These sides form a ridge at the top of the roof, which is preferable for snowy and windy locations. Hip roofs are more stable than gable styles due to their inward slope, but are generally more expensive.

Identifying Slope, Pitch, and Individual Roof Sections

Although the terms are often used interchangeably, slope and pitch refer to separate aspects of a roof’s structure. The slope of a roof is the angle of its incline and is usually expressed as a fraction or ratio of the vertical height to the horizontal width. The pitch, similarly, is the rise over span and the overall angle of the slope’s incline.

All roofs have similar components which make up the structure as a whole. The deck is the foundation of a roof, and forms the base which supports the weight of the roofing materials. The ridge is the highest point of the roof where two lines intersect, and should have vents to allow hot air to escape attic spaces. These ridges can also create valleys, which are highly vulnerable to water damage. Additionally, the eaves of a roof hang over the exterior walls of the building and help with water runoff.

Important Roofing Materials During Home Renovation Training

The materials used in a roofing project are just as important in a career in home renovation as the structure itself, and affect a wide range of quality factors, from environment response to durability. Most roofing materials protect the building from water damage, but have additional purposes as well.

Roofing material primarily keeps out water damage

The underlayment is a base layer of a roof between the deck and shingles, and is made of asphalt and a mat of fibreglass or felt, which increases water resistance. Shingles are the visible material which primarily protects the roof from the elements, as well as blocking UV rays from the sun to lower the home’s internal temperature.

Shingles come in a variety of forms and styles, and can be made of metal, tile, slate, or most commonly asphalt due to its cost and versatility. Flashing is a corrosion-resistant metal strip which provides added protection from water damage, and can be applied directly to the roof, valleys, and edges.

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