Often the owner of a future home asks a lot of questions on how to build a roof with his own hands correctly, without mistakes, so as not to redo it later. In this article, we will analyze in detail the structure of the roof and the stages of its construction, so that you can either build the roof yourself, or competently control the progress of the construction team.
It will not be possible to describe the construction of all types of roofs in one article, because there are a great many of these types, and there are two orders of magnitude more mixed subtypes.
To make the article informative and useful, let's consider how to properly build a roof of the most popular gable shape (an example in the figure above).
So, the walls of the house are built and it's up to the roof. We will immediately make a reservation that it makes sense to build a roof immediately after the completion of the construction of the walls, without interruption.Otherwise, an uncovered building will begin to collapse from the inside.
DIY house roof - the design is quite complex, one cannot do without a project. Therefore, make it yourself, and even better, use the services of professionals, and draw up a roof project according to your wishes.
Think in advance what the shape will be, take into account all the dimensions of the building, designate the roofing material. So let's build a roof.
Mauerlat
Mauerlat (builders can call it differently due to the unusualness of the word) is a wooden support beam measuring approximately 150x150 mm, which is placed around the perimeter of the building on the ends of the walls where the rafter legs will be installed roofs of houses.
Consider the figure:
- coupler,
- Mauerlat,
- waterproofer,
- rafter,
- wire,
- fixture.
Mauerlat is needed to distribute the load evenly along the perimeter of the walls. It needs to be well fixed to the wall. The figure shows wire fasteners, but this method is typical for small roofs with low windage.
This is more of a do-it-yourself roof device. If the roof is more than 250 square meters, then a stud with a thread of 12 mm is embedded in the wall to a depth of 2 or more bricks. The installation step of the stud is not more than 2 meters.
A bar is put on the studs and fastened with a nut with a wide washer. It is customary to close the Mauerlat with masonry from the outside of the wall.
Tip: all wooden structures are coated with an antiseptic to prevent rotting, all places where wood and brick (concrete) come into contact must be laid with a waterproofing agent.
Ways of fastening to the wall may be different. Fittings will also work, which will cost a little less.After laying the Mauerlat, the end of the reinforcement is closed by welding a plug.
Building a roof with your own hands, as you can see, is not difficult. We continue.
Rafter
The rafter is the main load-bearing element of the roof frame. As a standard, they take a beam measuring 150x70 mm, although the size can vary greatly depending on the weight of the roof and the spacing of the rafters.
For example, a light roof with a metal tile can withstand a construction with rafters 50x150 mm and a pitch of 70-80 cm.
For a tiled roof, on the contrary, it is better to take a rafter 80x200 mm, or to make a composite structure of two fastened beams (see the figure above), and it is better to keep the step 60-70 cm.
We pay special attention to attaching the rafter leg to the Mauerlat. It is necessary to rest the rafter by cutting out the required shape (see the figure below). Now, using a metal corner, we fasten the parts.
We also allow a fastening option when three nails are driven in:
- One is angled to the right.
- One is angled to the left.
- One in the center for tightening.
This design also reliably keeps the structure from shifting under loads.
How to build a roof correctly? Previously, craftsmen performed a special “tooth” design, choosing wood from the mauerlat and making a spike on the rafters. Now you will meet this method extremely rarely, the issue is solved with metal fasteners.
Tip: wood for the frame should not have a moisture content of more than 20%.
Rafters are hanging and layered (see fig).
More often, layered rafters are used, which differ from hanging rafters in that they have an emphasis (stops) between the load-bearing walls of the house. It is easier to build a roof from them.
Hanging rafters are used in cases where only the outer walls of the house serve as an emphasis.This design is more complex, it uses additional structural elements.
Such rafters are used more often in non-residential premises, such as farms, storage facilities, halls where partitions are not needed.
Skate
In the upper part we build the roof of the house with a “ridge”. The design of the ridge also varies depending on the features of the roof.
- Butt joint.
The upper edges of the rafters are cut so that they fit snugly against each other. There are two ways to make things easier. First: overlap the rafters, fix and then cut two beams at once at the junction. Second: according to the template.
Tip: make one rafter with a template, the dimensions of which must be carefully adjusted. Outline the rest of the rafter legs according to this template and cut it out. This will greatly reduce the "discord".
A nail is driven in from each end of the rafters (see the figure above). Additionally, a fixing pad is made, which is bolted to two rafters.
- Installation of rafters on a ridge beam. This design is often found where it is possible to make an emphasis for the ridge beam. The advantage is that each rafter can be mounted separately, which simplifies installation. Well, we ourselves are building a roof further.
Such fastening is much less common with small and medium-sized roofs, and often with large ones.
- Overlap joint. This design is the simplest, it is used mainly in small buildings, because. holds a large load badly.
The rafters are connected at the junction with bolts with wide washers and are well pulled together.
crate
So, how to build a roof next? Now that the supporting structure is ready, you need to apply the crate. To do this, a board or timber 50x50 is taken and stuffed onto the rafters.
The size of the board, the step of the crate depends on the type of roof and the angle of the roof. If we lay a soft roof, then the crate fits close. If the roof is sheet, then the step is about 40-60 cm.
Tip: the boards are not perfect in shape, they lead a little. There is always a hump on one side, and a tray on the other. Therefore, lay the crate tray up, hump down, and when it rains, water will not enter the attic.
You can often find a double crate, when bars with a certain step (counter-crate) are stuffed onto the rafters, and then the crate itself. This scheme is popular when laying a soft roof.
Roofing
We continue to consider the question of how to properly build the roof of a house. As a roofing material, we take the now popular metal tile. It is affordable, easy to install and durable. A variety of shapes and colors gives unlimited freedom to the designer.
The structure of the roofing pie is quite complex. Before installing the metal tile, it is necessary to perform insulation work. The figure below shows an example of how to build a roof of a house.
Mandatory elements are waterproofing (spreads directly under the roof), insulation (under waterproofing, 50 mm sheet), vapor barrier (spreads immediately above the living space).
Also important is the presence of ventilation holes along the roof so that moisture can escape through them.
Designations in the figure: 1—metal tile; 2—crate; 3—counter-lattice; 4—internal crate; 5—counter rail; 6—rafter; 7—heat-insulating material; 8—vapor barrier (film); 9—waterproofing (film); 10 - finishing material.
There is no single answer to the question of how to build a roof yourself.Much depends on the skills, material, shape and size of the house, climatic conditions in the region.
We highly recommend inviting at least a familiar specialist to the construction site, who will help to avoid serious mistakes in the construction process of such a structure as roof of the house.
And finally, we suggest watching a video: building a roof - video.
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