Residential Roof Terminology

An asphalt based roof cement formulated to adhere overlapping plies or asphalt roll roofing.

Residential roof terminology.

Roofing terms you should know deck sheathing. A small structure projecting from a sloped roof usually with a window. Used for alignment purposes. What is an ice dam.

An l shaped strip usually metal installed along roof. A line made on the roof by snapping a taut string or cord dusted with chalk. Square hip roofs look like pyramids but hip roofs are also found on rectangular homes. Pitch this is the slope of the roof.

A roof is typically referred to for example as a 4 12 or 4 pitch. Indicates roofing is able to withstand severe exposure to fire originating from sources outside the building. The terms pitch and slope are simply two different ways of expressing the same measurement. Occurs where overlapping materials are seamed sealed or.

It is the number of inches a roof rises vertically for every 12 inches of travel horizontally. The surface usually plywood or oriented strand board osb to which roofing materials are applied. The same roof has a 4 12 or 1 3 pitch. A hip roof is a roof in which four separate roof planes all come together at the top.

The higher the number the steeper the roof. That part of a roofing waterproofing or flashing component that overlaps or covers any portion of the same or. Ice dams occur when melted snow refreezes near the overhang of a roof blocking the path for water run off and building up a heavy wall of ice.