If you want to check our roofing jargon buster you may find a lot of the 'technical' terms you've heard being discussed by your builder. A quick and simple breakdown of key terms to help make your life simpler. From roofing felt to solar roof panels, check our Roofing Jargin Buster now :
A mixture of bitumen and fine minerals such as clay which is
hot-trowelled onto roofs. The melting point is higher than tar
so it has higher weather resistance. Asphalt occurs naturally
in Trinidad bubbling up in lakes ready mixed with sand, but
over extraction has depleted this resource.
Back to the top
|
The boards fixed against the roof covering on a gable roof.
Back to the top
|
Treated soft wood, measuring around 25x38mm, which is laid horizontally
on top of the sarking felt to hook the tiles / slates on to.
Back to the top
|
The rounded quadrant shaped tile, which is laid over the hip.
Back to the top
|
Used on flat roofs to provide weathering and so-called as it
is laid in two or three layers. The felts may be standard bitumen
based or high performance polymer based - the latter has good
flexibility properties. Felts are laid in hot bitumen or have
the bitumen factory-applied to be melted on-site with a flame
torch.
Back to the top
|
The area under the overhanging part of a roof.
Back to the top
|
A metal sheet cut into brickwork and then dressed over a surface
below, used to deflect water from a joint between two adjacent
materials, such as brickwork and tiles.
Back to the top
|
The sand / cement fillet around a chimney pot.
Back to the top
|
The vertical end of a building with a pitched roof where the
end wall goes up to form a triangle.
Back to the top
|
On a roof which has slopes on all surfaces, i.e. like a pyramid,
the long sloping ridge is called the hip and inside, the rafter
is the hip rafter.
Back to the top
|
Usually constructed from coloured concrete, interlocking tiles
have interlocking edges and hooked tops. The interlocking sides
provide weather resistance without the great overlap of plain
tiles, so the weight over an area is lower. However, the tiles
are considerably heavier than slates, therefore it is very important
to check that the roof structure is strong enough to bear the
weight. Interlocking tiles are much cheaper than plain tiles
and are a favourite on lower cost houses as a replacement for
slates. When looking for new property, be suspicious of older
houses that have new interlocking tiles, especially if similar
houses in the area have slates. Visible raised areas of tiles
on the roof, at the point where two homes join, are a sure sign
of overloading of the roof structure. Interlocking tiles work
well at low pitch angles and in exposed areas.
Back to the top
|
Copper nails used to fix slates will corrode in time, particularly
with the effects of acid rain in city areas. The result is slipping
slates.
Back to the top
|
Clay plain tiles that have wooden pegs to hook over the battens
instead of the hook formed in tile material. These tiles are
found on older buildings and are expensive to replace.
Back to the top
|
The angle of a roof where two slopes meet the ridge. This is
referred to as a pitched roof but often incorrectly labeled
an 'apex roof'.
Back to the top
|
The traditional tile is termed flat but has a slight round to
spot water creeping up between courses. The size is generally
265x165x10mm thick and the tiling will be three thick at the
maximum overlap. This provides the best resistance to wind driven
rain but makes the covering heavy compared to slate or interlocking
tiles.
Back to the top
|
Similar in colour and size to plain clay tiles, but at lower
cost.
Back to the top
|
A common interlocking tile made in concrete with two indent
lines and flexible ridges.
Back to the top
|
This is the waterproof felt lain immediately under the roof
tile battens to keep out wind driven snow and dust. This also
acts as a second waterproof layer.
Back to the top
|
The undersurface of any part of a building such as the arch,
eaves or cantilevered section.
Back to the top
|
When faced with slipping slates through nail sickness, there
is no easy solution as the slate above prevents access to the
damaged nails. In such a situation, it is possible to insert
strips of zinc or copper, bent into long 'S' shaped hooks, to
catch the bottom of the slipped slate. This can then be hooked
over the top of the slate above from underneath. These 'S' shaped
hooks are known as tingles.
Back to the top
|
Where tiles or slates overhang the gable bargeboard, the underside
is bedded in mortar and finished with special tiles, slates
or a inert board, called the undercloaking.
Back to the top
|
Where two sloping roofs meet, as with two mountains, the valley
is the line between.
Back to the top
|
