32 SATURDAY VISION, March 9, 2013

HOMES & CONSTRUCTION

Roof in style
There are various types of roofs to consider
when constructing a house, with the choice
largely depending on what the client needs,
writes Aaron Kulindi, a quantity surveyor

1. Concrete tiles need maintenance

2. Iron sheets are cheaper to buy and install
3. Cement tiles are non-combustible

definition of
ROOF PARTS
Purlins
One of the horizontal timbers that
support the rafters.
Batten
Sawn strip of wood
used to cover joints,
provide a fixing
for tiles or slates,
support lathing,
etc. Slates or tiles
are hung, nailed
horizontally across
common rafters or
counter battens.
Rafter
A sloping beam
that supports a
pitched roof

Joists
Any of the small
timbers or metal
beams arranged
parallel from wall to
wall in a structure
to support a floor or
ceiling.
It can also run
from one beam to
another beam to
support a ceiling,
roof, or floor. It may
be made of plywood, wood, steel
or concrete.
Ceiling Joist
One of a series of
parallel framing
members used to
support ceiling
loads and supported in turn by larger
beams or bearing
walls. Also called
roof joists.

person could take into consideration a particular design for

his or her roof finish basing
solely on their personal tastes and
preferences.
Another could take into account the
cost implications associated with the
different types, with the ultimate goal
of minimising costs.
Installing a roof should be done by
a roofing specialist especially when it
comes to the different types, designs,
patterns and specifications as specified by the structural engineer and
architect. This is done to eliminate
chances of leakages and other structural problems that arise from poor
workmanship.
All roofs should be insulated. The
thickness of insulation will depend on
the type of insulator used.
When it comes to roof designs, one
can consider gable or pitched.
Pitched roofs are constructed by
forming rafters and ceiling joists into
triangles. Pitched roofs are normally
covered with tiles, supported on battens, with a roof felt or other underlay.
Purlins and ceiling binders can be
added to help support the structure.
Battens should be fixed to suit the tile
lap. Batten sizes vary depending on
weight of tile and spacing of rafters
and trusses.
Generally, concrete interlocking tiles

Generally, when looking at the

different roof options, iron sheets
are a cheaper choice because they
cover more space with less intermediate supports.
They have a long life after painting and take a relatively short time
to fix. They also dont require very
expensive and skilled labour to
install.
However, if not properly handled,
iron sheets may face a problem of

with spacing of rafters and trusses up

to 600mm, they can be 38mm wide
by 25mm deep. Trusses are normally
placed at 600mm centres along the
wall plate. Trusses do not require any
ridge board or purlin.
The roof shapes and pitches will affect the overall cost. The more complex
and higher the pitch, the higher the
overall cost. The roof covering can be
finished using tiles.
When tiling, care should be taken
to strictly follow the manufacturers
details, because specific tiles may be
needed for different pitch roofs and
methods of fixing tiles may also vary.
Tiles can be distinctive, giving roofs
an authentic architectural character.
They are non-combustible so enhance
fire safety, they do not rot or curve,
particularly those made of cement
mixtures. Roof tiles basically come in
two types, clay and concrete.
Clay tiles come in different designs
such as Mangalore, Portuguese, Roman, Marseilles, to mention but a few.
Prices vary according to design.
Concrete tiles are made of a rich
mix of cement and stone dust and
can be pigmented to achieve various
colors such as green, black, blue and
red. Concrete roof tiles are designed to
outlast all weather conditions without
cracking. They can withstand continuous rain, which can be disastrous to

leakage and rusting and are more

prone to weather effects.
Stone coated steel roofing sheets
may be considered apart from iron
sheets and tiles. One of the common
manufacturers of this kind of roof
covering is Decra.
Their cost ranges between
sh90,000 and sh149,000 per square
metre depending on the profile.
One can also look at grass thatching as a roof covering for their resi-

the other types of roofing materials.

However, when it comes to style, some
may not find it as elegant as clay or
slate tiles.
Also, regular maintenance is necessary. Their most notable disadvantage
is the heavy burden your house is
going to carry. This requires a stronger
foundation and beams for the house
to support the weight of the roofing
materials.
In general, it should be noted that
roofing tiles need more timber in the
roofing structure as compared to iron
sheet roofing and other types.
Iron sheets can be galvanized and
painted (pre-painted galvanized
sheets). Generally corrugated galvanized iron sheets are extensively
adopted as roofs and sides of industrial sheds and buildings.
These are commonly available in
length of 2.5m with a width of 900mm
and 1,000mm.
The sheets are available in thickness of 0.63 mm to 1.60 mm. They are
coated with zinc.
The sheets are cleaned, bright, free
from rust, breakage etc. iron sheets are
manufactured in different profiles but
for residential houses we will consider
a minimum gauge of G28 with Prepainted Ridges G28:10,000/LM and
Pre-painted Valleys G28: 12000/LM.

dential house but the commonest

houses finished with grass thatched
covering are usually beach huts,
village huts in a rural setting, resorts
and fancy safari lodge apartments,
bars and restaurants, hotel cottages
and the like.
For this type of roof finish, the
inhabitants should be cautious when
handling anything to do with fire
because this can have a devastating
effect on the house.

western elevation

Ridge
A beam laid along
the edge, where
two sloping sides
of a roof meet at
the top; provides
an attachment for
the upper ends of
rafters. The top of a
roof at the junction
of two sloping sides

Do the maths

Cost estimates for the residential house plan above. Total roofing area is
713sq.m and total costs include accessories like nails and washers
Material
Clay tiles
Concrete tiles
Galvanized iron sheets
Pre painted iron sheets
Stone coated steel sheets

Cost per sm
sh49,000100,000
sh47,000
sh19,000
sh25,000-35,000
sh90,000-149,000

Total cost
sh34.9m-71.3m
sh33.5m
sh13.5m
sh17.8m-25m
sh64.1 m106m