During the construction of a country house or cottage, the roof is one of the most important elements that provides both the protection of the interior and the aesthetic appearance of the building.
This article will consider the projects of the roofs of private houses, the correct compilation is necessary for the construction of this element.
In preparation for the construction of the roof, the project performs several rather important functions at once:
- Ensuring effective protection of the building under construction from such environmental influences as wind, precipitation, etc.;
- Designing roofs with the highest possible fire resistance, stability and reliability;
- Giving the roof an attractive and unique appearance, allowing the entire building to stand out among the many of its kind.
The appearance of the house due to the roof
It is necessary to immediately note the fact that a well-executed roof design allows you to give buildings such as country houses or summer cottages an original appearance and embody the most daring design ideas.
The truss structure erected for the future roof depends primarily directly on the shape of the roof itself, as well as on the following factors:
- the presence of internal supports;
- features of their location on the building plan;
- roof architectural design;
- various loads relevant for a given building, etc.
To know how to properly design a roof, one should take into account a rather significant circumstance: a roof is a complete completion of the entire external appearance of a house under construction, a properly executed roof can be compared with a colorful cover in which a good book is wrapped.
In this regard, the choice as a form roofs, and its coloring should be carried out especially carefully, taking into account the various nuances of the general appearance of the house and the surrounding area.
Choosing a future roof project
In modern construction, house roof design mainly uses two types of roof structures - flat roofs and pitched roofs. Pitched roofs include roof structures with a significant surface slope, and flat roofs include those roofs whose slope angle is quite small and does not exceed 2 °.
The most popular among builders are pitched roofs, which have a number of advantages over a flat version. The most important advantage is better protection, since the angle of inclination prevents snow and rainwater from accumulating on the roof surface.
In addition, according to the architects, pitched roof designs are more expressive from an architectural point of view.
Such structures make it possible to give the entire building under construction a completely new unique appearance, which is quite difficult when designing a flat house roofs. It is thanks to these advantages that pitched roofs have become much more widespread.
The choice of the number of slopes, as well as their shape and size, also depends on several factors:
- Operational requirements for the roof being built;
- Climatic conditions of the area in which construction is underway;
- General design decision and individual preferences directly from the owner of the house.
The main types of pitched roofs
If, before designing a roof, you take a walk around any suburban or summer cottage, you can pay attention to the wide variety of types of pitched roofs. We list the main types of pitched roof structures.
The most popular are single and gable roofs, tent and hip roofs are also quite widespread, in addition, such a variety of roofs as multi-gable roofs is periodically found.
In addition, in rare cases, conical, vaulted and domed structures of pitched roofs are used in the construction of country houses.
It should be noted that the most complex structures, for example, multi-gable or tented, are distinguished by a large number of intersections of slopes, forming the so-called "valleys" - internal corners.
The slope of these angles is significantly less than the angle of inclination of the slopes, therefore, such places are the least reliable sections of the roof. Therefore, when building complex roofs, these internal corners are given special attention.
Both the construction and subsequent maintenance of such structures is a rather complicated process, therefore, if we are designing a hipped roof, multi-gable roof or similar roof of complex shape, we should seek help from qualified specialists.
It is worth considering in more detail the main types of roofs used in modern construction:
- Shed roofs are the most common project. Such a roof is an inclined surface fixed on the walls at different levels. Most often, the front side of the ramp faces in the windward direction;
- Gable (often also called gable) designs consist of two slopes directed in opposite directions.
"Nippers" are called triangular end slopes used in this design. This type of roof is quite popular among builders due to a number of qualities, such as ease of construction, reliability and durability.
"Attic" roofs of houses, which are quite fashionable today, are also a type of gable roofs. This type is especially widely used in suburban construction, since it allows you to use the attic space most efficiently; - Four-pitched roofs have also become widespread in recent years.Projects of such roofs with slopes in the form of triangles, the vertices of which converge at one upper point, are used in the construction of square-shaped buildings. This design is also often called a tent. The construction of this type of roof is a rather complicated process, but its reliability and performance compensate for this drawback;
- Hip roofs are also quite a popular option.used mainly in the construction of rectangular buildings. Hips are called triangular slopes located at the ends of such a roof.
The other two slopes, located on the long sides of the structure, are trapezoid-shaped. Comparing the hip and hip roof structures, it should be noted that the hip shape improves the appearance of the building, while increasing the effectiveness of its protection; - A variety of hip roofs are half hip roofs., in which the side slopes cut off only part of the forceps. In addition, the side slopes along the lines of inclination are shorter than the main slopes;
- Multi-gable roofs are most relevant in the construction of buildings of complex shape. Despite the high complexity of the construction of such roofs, they are also used quite often due to their unique unique appearance.
Non-standard roof projects
Recently, owners of cottages and country houses are increasingly using them not only as places for recreation, but also as places of permanent residence.
This leads to an increase in the volume of construction of sufficiently large and spacious cottages.
It is quite clear that the future owner of such a house wants to build not only reliable and comfortable housing, but also quite stylish and aesthetically pleasing.
Therefore, many developers hire design professionals to develop the most appropriate architectural look for their future home.
Therefore, it is not surprising that there is a separate fashion not only for the design of interiors and exterior finishes of houses, but also for various types of roof projects (for example, projects of houses with a straight roof), constantly changing with the improvement of materials production technologies and roof construction.
For example, in the late 90s of the 20th century and at the beginning of the 21st century, it was fashionable to equip various decorative elements on the roofs, such as small turrets, etc.
At present, the fashion for such details is on the decline, but such features of roofs as sophistication and elegance are gaining more and more popularity, which is also partly driven by European fashion.
In addition, multi-level roof structures have recently become quite fashionable, which are most suitable for those homeowners who build additional attics in the attic space. The attic itself is also a fashionable phenomenon in the construction of country houses today.
In these rooms under the roof, bedrooms, children's rooms, home theaters, etc. are often equipped. This suggests that a multi-level roof is not only a decorative structure, but also brings certain practical benefits.
It is almost impossible to say in advance which roof design will be most suitable for a particular country house, just as there is no universal design suitable for absolutely everyone, especially since different homeowners put forward different requirements for a roof project.
We can only say that when designing, one should take into account the design features of the house and one's own financial capabilities. Based on this, you should choose the most stylish, high-quality and aesthetic project.
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